John Lewis Gaddis is a genius. Whether genius means to you an extraordinary intellectual power as manifested in creative activity, a distinctive character or spirit, or one who influences others for truth and good—Gaddis is all those things and so much more, as his newest—and perhaps final—book “On Grand Strategy,” proves.
I will acknowledge here that I am a most biased reviewer: I was a student of Professor Gaddis in his Yale seminar “Grand Strategy” as well as served as one of his teaching assistants in his undergraduate class “History of the Cold War.” And I remain friends with him. But I think the source of my bias is a virtue to you: insight based upon experience and a personal relationship of profound consequence (at least to me).
Some reviewers have commented that “On Grand Strategy” is a “meandering, mostly thematic route through a variety of topics such as Athenian democracy; Caesar’s mentorship of his successor, Octavian; and the interplay between religious belief, nationalism, and the motiving power states have over their citizens” while concluding that such “frivolous, cryptic anecdotes that bounce aimlessly across time periods and characters…ensures such [strategic] questions remain unanswered” (Alexander Kirss, “Review: Does Grand Strategy Matter?” in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Vol. 12 No. 4, pg 116-132). While somewhat true, this is inaccurate—such critique misses the point: Grand Strategy does matter and Gaddis approaches a weighty and infinitely nuanced idea with a graceful elegance and lifetime of experience in an approachable and readable way.
Rather, I tend to side with Gordon M. Goldstein in his “Washington Post” review of “On Grand Strategy,” “How great leaders make good and terrible military decisions.” Goldstein acknowledges that the book illuminates “misapplied strategic ambition and miscalculated military intervention” and “bind ancient and modern history to provide practical guidance to the contemporary strategist.”
While a renowned historian of the Cold War and famously the official biographer of George Kennan (“George F. Kennan: An American Life”), “On Grand Strategy” will be a classic long after the Cold War has faded from human memory. Dashing, moving, witty, even sly—“On Grand Strategy” is a magisterial work that I give to you, the dear reader and strategist, my highest unqualified recommendation. Read this book!
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The Grandest Book on Grand Strategy
John Lewis Gaddis is a genius. Whether genius means to you an extraordinary intellectual power as manifested in creative activity, a distinctive character or spirit, or one who influences others for truth and good—Gaddis is all those things and so much more, as his newest—and perhaps final—book “On Grand Strategy,” proves.I will acknowledge here that I am a most biased reviewer: I was a student of Professor Gaddis in his Yale seminar “Grand Strategy” as well as served as one of his teaching assistants in his undergraduate class “History of the Cold War.” And I remain friends with him. But I think the source of my bias is a virtue to you: insight based upon experience and a personal relationship of profound consequence (at least to me).Some reviewers have commented that “On Grand Strategy” is a “meandering, mostly thematic route through a variety of topics such as Athenian democracy; Caesar’s mentorship of his successor, Octavian; and the interplay between religious belief, nationalism, and the motiving power states have over their citizens” while concluding that such “frivolous, cryptic anecdotes that bounce aimlessly across time periods and characters…ensures such [strategic] questions remain unanswered” (Alexander Kirss, “Review: Does Grand Strategy Matter?” in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Vol. 12 No. 4, pg 116-132). While somewhat true, this is inaccurate—such critique misses the point: Grand Strategy does matter and Gaddis approaches a weighty and infinitely nuanced idea with a graceful elegance and lifetime of experience in an approachable and readable way.Rather, I tend to side with Gordon M. Goldstein in his “Washington Post” review of “On Grand Strategy,” “How great leaders make good and terrible military decisions.” Goldstein acknowledges that the book illuminates “misapplied strategic ambition and miscalculated military intervention” and “bind ancient and modern history to provide practical guidance to the contemporary strategist.”While a renowned historian of the Cold War and famously the official biographer of George Kennan (“George F. Kennan: An American Life”), “On Grand Strategy” will be a classic long after the Cold War has faded from human memory. Dashing, moving, witty, even sly—“On Grand Strategy” is a magisterial work that I give to you, the dear reader and strategist, my highest unqualified recommendation. Read this book!
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2019
John Lewis Gaddis is a genius. Whether genius means to you an extraordinary intellectual power as manifested in creative activity, a distinctive character or spirit, or one who influences others for truth and good—Gaddis is all those things and so much more, as his newest—and perhaps final—book “On Grand Strategy,” proves.
I will acknowledge here that I am a most biased reviewer: I was a student of Professor Gaddis in his Yale seminar “Grand Strategy” as well as served as one of his teaching assistants in his undergraduate class “History of the Cold War.” And I remain friends with him. But I think the source of my bias is a virtue to you: insight based upon experience and a personal relationship of profound consequence (at least to me).
Some reviewers have commented that “On Grand Strategy” is a “meandering, mostly thematic route through a variety of topics such as Athenian democracy; Caesar’s mentorship of his successor, Octavian; and the interplay between religious belief, nationalism, and the motiving power states have over their citizens” while concluding that such “frivolous, cryptic anecdotes that bounce aimlessly across time periods and characters…ensures such [strategic] questions remain unanswered” (Alexander Kirss, “Review: Does Grand Strategy Matter?” in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Vol. 12 No. 4, pg 116-132). While somewhat true, this is inaccurate—such critique misses the point: Grand Strategy does matter and Gaddis approaches a weighty and infinitely nuanced idea with a graceful elegance and lifetime of experience in an approachable and readable way.
Rather, I tend to side with Gordon M. Goldstein in his “Washington Post” review of “On Grand Strategy,” “How great leaders make good and terrible military decisions.” Goldstein acknowledges that the book illuminates “misapplied strategic ambition and miscalculated military intervention” and “bind ancient and modern history to provide practical guidance to the contemporary strategist.”
While a renowned historian of the Cold War and famously the official biographer of George Kennan (“George F. Kennan: An American Life”), “On Grand Strategy” will be a classic long after the Cold War has faded from human memory. Dashing, moving, witty, even sly—“On Grand Strategy” is a magisterial work that I give to you, the dear reader and strategist, my highest unqualified recommendation. Read this book!
I will acknowledge here that I am a most biased reviewer: I was a student of Professor Gaddis in his Yale seminar “Grand Strategy” as well as served as one of his teaching assistants in his undergraduate class “History of the Cold War.” And I remain friends with him. But I think the source of my bias is a virtue to you: insight based upon experience and a personal relationship of profound consequence (at least to me).
Some reviewers have commented that “On Grand Strategy” is a “meandering, mostly thematic route through a variety of topics such as Athenian democracy; Caesar’s mentorship of his successor, Octavian; and the interplay between religious belief, nationalism, and the motiving power states have over their citizens” while concluding that such “frivolous, cryptic anecdotes that bounce aimlessly across time periods and characters…ensures such [strategic] questions remain unanswered” (Alexander Kirss, “Review: Does Grand Strategy Matter?” in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Vol. 12 No. 4, pg 116-132). While somewhat true, this is inaccurate—such critique misses the point: Grand Strategy does matter and Gaddis approaches a weighty and infinitely nuanced idea with a graceful elegance and lifetime of experience in an approachable and readable way.
Rather, I tend to side with Gordon M. Goldstein in his “Washington Post” review of “On Grand Strategy,” “How great leaders make good and terrible military decisions.” Goldstein acknowledges that the book illuminates “misapplied strategic ambition and miscalculated military intervention” and “bind ancient and modern history to provide practical guidance to the contemporary strategist.”
While a renowned historian of the Cold War and famously the official biographer of George Kennan (“George F. Kennan: An American Life”), “On Grand Strategy” will be a classic long after the Cold War has faded from human memory. Dashing, moving, witty, even sly—“On Grand Strategy” is a magisterial work that I give to you, the dear reader and strategist, my highest unqualified recommendation. Read this book!
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Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2019
Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2020
Top reviews from other countries
Yugal Tiwari
Interesting perspectives on strategy.
Reviewed in India on September 30, 2023Stefan Jenart
This book is not Grand
Reviewed in the Netherlands on October 12, 2020