The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made

As someone who is to the right politically than the authors I was happily surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I felt as though the authors missed the boat with Reagan and his relationship to the soviets, thankfully it was a very small part of the overall book. The authors suffered from a 1980s liberal anathema of all things Reagan and history proved them wrong about the efficacy of his policies. The antipathy towards Reagan has the authors offering up an almost naive view of the Soviets and it was my only issue with the book. Common sense AND HISTORY proves my point and is shown by the benign attitude the authors have towards Yuri Andropov, a former KGB head and a serious problem regarding freedom for people in Eastern Europe, and for the world. Having said my piece above I still give the book 5 stars due to how much I loved how the authors gave us the feel of the times and how our six heroes dealt with all of it's issues and crises. Being a Dean Acheson fan I found his part of the book fascinating and it just reinforced all of my prior thoughts about this giant of the 20th century. I feel as if there should be a movie made of Acheson as a way to introduce him to today's students and others...but I know it will never happen. Anyone who doesn't know Dean Acheson should read some books by or about him. Being a fan of the time period I of course was familiar with Averell Harriman, but I wasn't aware of exactly what a giant of the times he was. As the book progressed I found myself thinking that he was an opportunist, a man that wanted "it" to be all about him, but as the book progressed I came to respect him more and more. This is especially true when he did not get his coveted Secretary of State position and yet never tried to torpedo Acheson, who did get the job. This is so unlike today and that is a shame. Harriman kept on and kept on and I found him also fascinating. His desire for diplomatic means of solving problems was legendary. I found Chip Bohlen to be totally enjoyable, cool and as "hip" as anyone from today...he came across as timeless. The picture of him and JFK driving down the street, Kennedy with his shades on and at the wheel showed the man perfectly. Robert Lovett as someone I had never heard of and yet he was also a huge force during momentous times. Almost as rich as Harriman, but not nearly as stuffy, his part was a great part of the book as well. As someone who followed foreign affairs a bit I was very familiar with George F, Kennan (Mr. X) but I was surprised by his being so sensitive with regard to being insecure. A great mind and perfect for the early cold war period. John McCloy was someone who is so underrated when discussing historic people of the second half of the 20th century. He combined public and private service that could (and should) never be allowed today, but his contribution was huge and very positive and that is why so many presidents called on him for assistance. Anyone who is interested in WWII, the Cold War, the Korean War and the Vietnam War should read this book. Anyone interested in high society in the 20s thru the 80s should read this book. It was a different time, but we would not be us without how well our country handled events and how these man contributed to the world.

This is an excellent book by Walter Isaacson and Evan Thomas, two very good authors. The United States was very fortunate for the intelligence, creativity, patriotism, determination, ethics, and efforts of the six men who are the book's subjects. We Americans benefited from having them doing their best in a wide variety of critically important international affairs. Born at the outbreak of World War II, I remember their names in the news from about 1949 onward. When the U.S. was in a tight spot one or more of these men were called to counsel the President, Secretaries of State or Defense and others in the government hierarchy or to act on their behalf with other Heads of State such as Stalin or Churchill. The book is both a history and a biography. The reader learns about the lives of each of the six from their prep school days on so we get an inkling of what basic values were inculcated into them and we see that these values molded their character and their lives. In the course of things we also get a unique view of every President from Roosevelt to Johnson, and several others such as Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. This book has a cast of scores of fascinating people involved in scores of events over scores of years! A great book! Originally published in 1986, it was re-issued in 2012 with an new preface by the authors.

As happens frequently in biographies, the authors fell in love with their subjects; praise for the 6 main members of the Cold War "Establishment" far outweighs criticism. Averell Harriman and Dean Acheson get the most thorough attention among the 6 subjects, and rightfully so. I took away one star because the authors largely see the foreign policies of Republican presidents Ike, Nixon and Reagan through the eyes of the Wise Men, instead of objectively. Only when Nixon "comes to his senses" and asks Acheson and Harriman for advice does he receive some praise. Ike's foreign policy era is portrayed as one to be endured until the Wise Men are allowed back in the inner circle under JFK. Their total disdain for Reagan is clear; no mention of the reasons for end of the Cold War and Reagan's active part in it. However, the 5-star section of the book is clearly the LBJ-Vietnam era. Wow, they really can't stand LBJ as a human being and politician, but his (and the Wise Men's) agony over the Vietnam war is written about almost lyrically. The authors convey the complicated global factors of the war in an admirable, even-handed, almost sympathetic way.

There are politicians, and then there are the diplomats , advisors and experts and so many others that advise on and implement policies and decisions. History needs to record the service of these people if only provide a goal or measurement for the future. These men served over a forty year period that included world war, the atomic bomb, the State of Israel, the Korean war, The Viet Nam war and the cold war. They served under presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson. This is an important book. It is well written. Every American citizen needs a better understanding of how our government works. This highly readable book would be a good place to start.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Isaacson and Thomas employ a writing style that keeps me wanting more. When coupled with the compelling story of six members of “The Establishment” and their (mostly) selfless contributions to international problem solving from the ‘40’s to the ‘80’s, this book puts today’s World into historical perspective. Where are the Americans like this today? Great read!

Average

A good walkthrough recent American history

An amazing history of the selfless men who helped guide the US through two world wars and other wars. I found this book to be both entertaining and informative. Well done to both authors! Sad to see the state of the US today.

AWESOME

Everyone should read this book - how America & Israel shaped and own the financial markets