For any of you interested in American history, and understanding how we got to where we are now, I cannot recommend the book The Brothers: John Foster Dulles, Allen Dulles, and Their Secret World War enough. It was written by Stephen Kinzer, who is the national cultural national cultural correspondent for the New York Times. This book is incredibly fascinating and very well written.
John Foster Dulles was Secretary of State under President Eisenhower and Allen Dulles was the head of the CIA. Both worked for the corporate law firm Sullivan & Crowell. Their father was a minister. They brought together the interests of big business, interventionist foreign policy, and especially in the case of John Foster Dulles, missionary religious beliefs, in a way that had never been done before.
Their grandfather, who was also Secretary of State, was the first Secretary of State to help overthrow a foreign country. He helped bring about an end to the reign of the monarchy in Hawaii. They grew up in the realm of the exclusively white patriarchal ruling elite. Both brothers went back in forth in their careers between representing large corporations and representing our government. Both believed that the US had a role in shaping the world. Often their policy beliefs were in line with what the interests were for large corporations.
I am only partially through the book at this point, and I want to read more before I say too much. However, if you want to understand how the modern world was created in the world after World War II, I already know that this book is essential reading.
I was a History Major for most of my college career before finally graduating in American Studies. The wider you cast your net when learning history, the more time and people you cover, the harder it can be to understand the specifics of what was happening and why. That is why a class concerning the history of the Civil War is so much more interesting than a broad American History class. You are able to get down into the nitty gritty of things. By focusing on the Dulles brothers, who were fundamental in shaping US policy, this book makes understanding this period of history easy to those that might not be well versed in it. However, this book is full of revelations even for those of you that might have read different texts concerning this time period. If you are interested in our history, or troubled by the current US, I can already say that this is essential reading.
Windup Wire 