{"product_id":"the-triumph-of-improvisation-2","title":"The Triumph of Improvisation","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Triumph of Improvisation\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e, James Graham Wilson takes a long view of the end of the Cold War, from the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979 to Operation Desert Storm in January 1991.\u003c\/b\u003e Drawing on deep archival research and recently declassified papers, Wilson argues that adaptation, improvisation, and engagement by individuals in positions of power ended the specter of a nuclear holocaust. Amid ambivalence and uncertainty, Mikhail Gorbachev, Ronald Reagan, George Shultz, and George H. W. Bush—and a host of other actors—engaged with adversaries and adapted to a rapidly changing international environment and information age in which global capitalism recovered as command economies failed. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEschewing the notion of a coherent grand strategy to end the Cold War, Wilson paints a vivid portrait of how leaders made choices; some made poor choices while others reacted prudently, imaginatively, and courageously to events they did not foresee. A book about the burdens of responsibility, the obstacles of domestic politics, and the human qualities of leadership, \u003ci\u003eThe Triumph of Improvisation\u003c\/i\u003e concludes with a chapter describing how George H. W. Bush oversaw the construction of a new configuration of power after the fall of the Berlin Wall, one that resolved the fundamental components of the Cold War on Washington's terms.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"James Wilson","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43572899152054,"sku":"9780801470219","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0251\/4980\/0541\/files\/9780801470219.jpg?v=1712125809","url":"https:\/\/combined-academic.myshopify.com\/products\/the-triumph-of-improvisation-2","provider":"Combined Academic Publishers - Mare Nostrum Group","version":"1.0","type":"link"}