Diplomats in the Trenches

Most Americans, like ordinary people everywhere, don't relate to diplomacy -- to the extent they think about it at all, they view it as something that happens in a stratosphere of officialdom, far out of their reach. They also believe that it has little to do with their lives.They do relate, however, to other people's stories -- and diplomats have incredible stories to tell. While few dine with kings and queens, many more are targeted by terrorists, carjacked or exposed to severe pollution and epidemic diseases. Through it all, what they do around the world has a direct impact on our security, prosperity, health, privacy, ability to travel and much more. A natural successor to "America's Other Army," the author's earlier work on the U.S. Foreign Service as an institution, this book is a collection of American diplomats' stories -- about their work and their lives, because diplomacy is not just a profession. It affects every aspect of diplomats' lives, and those of their families. At the same time, their job performance affects all our lives.