To read a comprehensive history of the technical, military and political aspects of the Cold War, based on documents from the two super—powers, written by a scholar who is free of bias, is something I never thought I would be able to do. But in The Fifty—Year War I can. . . . For the men and women who are going to lead the world in the first generation of the Twenty—First Century, this account of how the Cold War was fought and won is indispensable. For those of us who lived through it. . . . Friedman's account is enthralling. Having spent much of my life reading about, studying, worrying about, participating in the Cold War, I thought there was nothing new for me to learn about it. Boy was I wrong. Read The Fifty—Year War and see why. — Stephen Ambrose