[.ca] Soldier: The Life of Colin Powell (ISBN 1400075645)

A Soldier's soldier:
Deyoung's biography on the life and times of General Colin Powell is both comprehensive and insightful. It offers a thorough and effective examination of the man's rise from virtual obscurity to national prominence over four decades of political and social upheveal in America. Lots of interesting reminiscences from Powell himself as he reflected on the many personal challenges he had to face as a Black-American in achieving his military career. Deyoung portrays Powell as an officer who always played by the book. For him, teamwork, and not individual heroics, was his ultimate calling in life and served him well in reaching the top. However, that loyalty and commitment to detail may have ultimately deserted him when it came time to step into the public office as Secretary of State in the Bush Administration. Deyoung spends considerable time in this part of the story going over the daily rough and tumble of Powell having to continuously be the point man for an increasingly unpopular political agenda. Unlike other political pundits of the day, Deyoung avoids indulging in Bush bashing over the Iraq invasion by staying effectively focussed on how Powell's career plays out in terms of the resolution of critical issues. I highly recommend this very book to anyone who sees history as just as much a process of events making people as being made by them.