This book’s subtitle (“The Misunderstood Years Between the Fall of the Berlin Wall and the Start of the War on Terror”) aptly synopsizes its content, focusing on the 12 years of naive hope where it was seriously (we thought) suggested there would be a “peace dividend.” Considering this study is the first to concentrate on this period, it has received a lot of review attention, including from historian Sean Wilentz, who opines:

Here is an excellent account of how the United States and the world changed from the conclusion of the Cold War to the Al Qaeda attacks of 2001. The history of diplomacy and international affairs are inseparable from the history of politics; but it is extremely difficult to do them all justice in a single book. Derek Chollet and James Goldgeier not only succeed, they succeed in style—and they provide a persuasive and entirely original way of understanding America’s role in global affairs during a pivotal dozen years.