An accessible, readable history of US foreign policy and history. Some interesting and different interpretations that should generate debate and discussion. Definitely worth reading by all with an interest in US (foreign policy) history

This is a very well-written and well-researched historical perspective on American foreign policy over the years. It gives a balanced analysis of blunders , malfeasances, and successes. I thoroughly enjoyed it as I didn’t really know much about these things. It helps sometimes to understand why other nations have resentments against us. A well-balanced history is a good area of knowledge in today’s often complex and confusing world.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

An excellent review of American foreign policy throughout it's history. The author shows that our past foreign policy has always been a mix of good decisions and bad ones. That all president's have struggled to 'do the right thing", but have at times made some bad moves. One would hope that our people now in charge of these matters would take the time to read this book, and learn and apply it's lessons. To do so would benefit America. To ignore the lessons of yesterday might lead to history repeating itself in a negative way.

The United States take many things for granted about its position as a leader in world economics and politics. The average citizen may not consider exactly what is the U.S.'s foreign policy and take it for granted that, because of its role, that is superior to those of other nations.

Cohen opens up the reader's eyes to how flawed the system has been and explains how certain stances have mirrored those of European powers. The author does not shy away from domestic policies as well, particularly on how the U.S. has dealt with Native Americans.

The title of Warren Cohen's new survey of American foreign policy also serves as the thesis statement of this book: despite all our claims to exceptionalism, American foreign policy has traditionally been just as flawed, pragmatic, and tumultuous of most other nations. Our foreign policy has at times been aggressively expansionist, going so far as to seize land from Mexico and other countries. At other times, we have subordinated exceptionalism to perceived security needs, as during the Cold War. Throughout our history, domestic interest groups have played a huge role in dictating the direction and tone of our relationships with other nations.

Cohen's book serves as a highly readable single-volume history of American foreign policy since 1776. Given the amount of history, it's no small feat that the book manages to hit upon the most important foreign policy issues during each era without feeling superficial. Somehow, despite the breadth of the book, the book doesn't sacrifice depth. I consider myself a student of international relations, but I learned quite a bit from this book. For example, I did not realize that Secretary of State William Seward had seriously proposed declaring war on a European power in order to unify the US and forestall civil war!

That said, there is a recency bias in that he spends more time on more recent foreign policy issues than those in the distant past. For example, the disintegration of Yugoslavia during the 1990s received far more attention than the trade sanctions that led to the War of 1812, when our nation's sovereignty was at stake. Also, I noticed a few noteworthy omissions; Cohen does not address JFK's role in resolving the Sino-Indian War of 1962, or the human rights campaigns to push for change in South Africa or Myanmar (Burma).

I also wish Cohen had provided a clearer rubric for understanding how to evaluate a president's foreign policy. Cohen occasionally interrupts the historical narrative to provide an assessment of a particular decision (he considers Carter inept, surprisingly favorable towards the Kellogg–Briand Pact). However, presidents make hundreds of decisions. Should we evaluate presidents based on their decision-making process or policy outcomes? How should we weigh security and moral concerns when the two come into conflict?

Ultimately, no president gets a perfect score from Cohen, and perhaps that the best lesson to take from this book. Cohen's book helps demythologize our past. Foreign policy is difficult and involves compromises. More often than not, the presidents in this book come across as constrained by domestic politics or incomplete information about foreign actors. There never was a golden age of foreign policy wise men. But perhaps by learning from our history we can do better in the future.

To be honest, I'm not all that interested in politics. Don't get me wrong, I know it's important to know what is going on in the world, especially at home here in America, but lately the word politics makes me cringe and want to cover me ears and scream "La la la la la" like a child. However, what I am interested in is American history. I wasn't sure how I would feel about this book going into it because it sounded like it would be covering topics that I had very different levels of interest in. However, I found that I actually enjoyed this book quite a bit. It covers a broad range of time, which I was very pleased with (if it had focused primarily on current affairs, I probably would not have enjoyed it at all). There's very valuable information in here that would help readers gain a better understanding of our country and how we got to where we are now. Also, it's presented in a way that makes it accessible to all readers, even those who have very little knowledge on the American political system.

If you have the same attitude as I currently do about American politics and you think this may deter you from reading this book, I think you should reconsider. It's a quick, entertaining read that provides a lot of interesting and helpful information that will help you understand the USA a little bit better.