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Fire and Ashes
Success and Failure in Politics
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Fire and Ashes
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
Ideal for readers interested in politics, leadership, and contemporary Canadian affairs, as well as those curious about the personal sacrifices and realities behind public life. Scholars and enthusiasts of political memoirs will find Ignatieff's blend of analysis and personal narrative especially engaging.
In 2005 Michael Ignatieff left Harvard to lead Canada’s Liberal Party and by 2008 was poised to become Prime Minister. It never happened. He describes what he learned from his bruising defeat about compromise and the necessity of bridging differences in a pluralist society. A reflective, compelling account of modern politics as it really is.
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Description
In 2005, Michael Ignatieff left his life as a writer and professor at Harvard University to enter the combative world of politics back home in Canada. By 2008, he was leader of the country's Liberal Party and poised—should the governing Conservatives falter—to become Canada's next Prime Minister. It never happened. Today, after a bruising electoral defeat, Ignatieff is back where he started, writing and teaching what he learned.
What did he take away from this crash course in political success and failure? Did a life of thinking about politics prepare him for the real thing? How did he handle it when his own history as a longtime expatriate became a major political issue? Are cynics right to despair about democratic politics? Are idealists right to hope? Ignatieff blends reflection and analysis to portray today's democratic politics as ruthless, unpredictable, unforgiving, and hyper-adversarial.
Rough as it is, Ignatieff argues, democratic politics is a crucible for compromise, and many of the apparent vices of political life, from inconsistency to the fake smile, follow from the necessity of bridging differences in a pluralist society. A compelling account of modern politics as it really is, Fire and Ashes is also a celebration of the political life in all its wild, exuberant variety.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Critics praised Fire and Ashes for its candour and thoughtful introspection. Barton Swaim of the Wall Street Journal lauded its rare honesty about political power, while Peter Clarke of the Financial Times called it an elegant and candid explanation of Ignatieff’s struggles and failures. David Brooks in the New York Times deemed it the best portrayal of a politician's experience since Richard Ben Cramer’s What It Takes. Paul Wilson from the New York Review of Books noted its poignant cautionary message about the fading civility in politics. Together, the reviews depict a compelling and moving memoir of political life.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780674725997
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 19 November 2013
Country: United States
Imprint: Harvard University Press
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Width: 140.0mm
Height: 210.0mm
Weight: 250g
Pages: 224
About the Author
Michael Ignatieff is Rector and President of Central European University in Budapest and former Professor at the Harvard Kennedy School.
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