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Title details for Soldier by Karen DeYoung - Available

Soldier

The Life of Colin Powell

by Karen DeYoung
Coleen Marlo
Audiobook
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Over the course of a lifetime of service to his country, Colin Powell became a national hero, a beacon of wise leadership and, according to polls, “the most trusted man in America.” From his humble origins as the son of Jamaican immigrants to the highest levels of government in four administrations, he helped guide the nation through some of its most heart-wrenching hours. Now, in the first full biography of one of the most admired men of our time, award-winning Washington Post journalist Karen DeYoung takes us from Powell’s Bronx childhood and meteoric rise through the military ranks to his formative roles in Washington’s corridors of power and his controversial tenure as secretary of state.
With dramatic new information about the inner workings of an administration locked in ideological combat, DeYoung makes clearer than ever before the decision-making process that took the nation to war and addresses the still-unanswered questions about Powell’s departure from his post shortly after the 2004 election. Drawing on interviews with U.S. and foreign sources as well as with Powell himself, and with unprecedented access to his personal and professional papers, SOLDIER is a revelatory portrait of an American icon: a man at once heroic and all-too-humanly fallible.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    October 10, 2006

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780739346631
      • File size: 670407 KB
      • Duration: 23:16:40

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Narrator Coleen Marlo's soft, almost serene, voice may seem incongruous and appeared to this reviewer to possibly be an attempt to echo author DeYoung's voice. Marlo's delivery has a certain detachment in reading the many events in Powell's life. DeYoung goes to great lengths to establish Powell as being "non-ideological" and "pragmatic." Indeed, one hears this so much as to conclude that "pragmatism" is Powell's ideological framework. Much of the work focuses on the events of the past six years. Marlo rarely renders a unique voice for dialogue; one that stands out is an attempt at a Jamaican accent. Her attempts at military acronyms sometimes fall short but do not detract from an overall solid performance. M.T.F. (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine
    • AudioFile Magazine
      No one epitomizes the American dream more than Colin Powell, the son of immigrants who rose to the highest levels of government through his own talent and hard work. Yet as a black man in America, Powell did not escape the sting of racism. But the overarching theme of this biography of Powell is learning from experience--especially his tours of duty in Vietnam and his early tenure as a White House staff member. Roscoe Orman is solid as the reader. His tone is even, without being reverential or bombastic. His reading is easy to listen to and makes the material flow. The abridgment is choppy in the early portions. For example, the author discusses a blind date Powell went on, and in what seems the same paragraph, Powell heads to Vietnam for the first time. It's smoother for the later years, especially during his time as Secretary of State. Orman gives a good presentation of DeYoung's biography. R.C.G. (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from August 14, 2006
      Washington Post
      reporter DeYoung covers Powell's entire career in this nuanced, comprehensively researched first complete biography to bring to life the Jamaican immigrants' son who became chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, secretary of state and a widely supported potential candidate for president. DeYoung presents her subject as above all a soldier, with an ethic of honor and service shaped by his career in the U.S. Army, during which he brought a combination of intellectual force and moral courage to his senior military appointments that distinguished him among his contemporaries. DeYoung, who obtained six in-depth interviews with Powell, explains that he wrestled with whether or not he had the duty to run for president in 2000, but ultimately realized he didn't want the presidency from the "depth of stomach or soul." She correspondingly demonstrates that his continuing commitment to public service drove his ascension to secretary of state—a commitment that was strained to the limit during Powell's four years in office. DeYoung paints a favorable but balanced portrait of Powell, and she avoids using him as an instrument for Bush-bashing. Powell emerges from her account as a person who grew to meet his wider responsibilities. Photos not seen by PW
      .

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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