Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power, and Persistence

by Wendy R. Sherman

Distinguished diplomat Ambassador Wendy Sherman brings readers inside the negotiating room to show how to put diplomatic values like courage, power, and persistence to work in their own lives.

Few people have sat across from the Iranians and the North Koreans at the negotiating table. Wendy Sherman has done both. During her time as the lead US negotiator of the historic Iran nuclear deal and throughout her distinguished career, Wendy Sherman has amassed tremendous expertise in the most pressing foreign policy issues of our time. Throughout her life -- from growing up in civil-rights-era Baltimore, to stints as a social worker, campaign manager, and business owner, to advising multiple presidents -- she has relied on values that have shaped her approach to work and authenticity, effective use of power and persistence, acceptance of change, and commitment to the team.

Not for the Faint of Heart takes readers inside the world of international diplomacy and into the mind of one of our most effective negotiators -- often the only woman in the room. She shows why good work in her field is so hard to do, and how we can learn to apply core skills of diplomacy to the challenges in our own lives.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Memoir, Iran, Leadership, Biography, Audiobook

256 pages, Hardcover

Published September 4, 2018

Reviews

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a free ARC of this book in a Goodreads giveaway. You have been warned.

Ambassador Sherman has had a long and distinguished career, and this book covers the highlights, from her college days to as recently as 2017. She lays out what it means to be a diplomat, and gives us a glimpse or two of the process in action. The book is full of observed details and insights.

While it was certainly interesting, I don't think this is a book I’m likely to read over and over. I enjoyed it well enough, but politics isn't really my thing as a general rule. I like to dip my toe in now and then, but I don't think I’m ever going to be ready for a deep dive. Sherman’s book is inspiring, and not at all as dry and dull as political books can often be. I think my lukewarm reaction is more about my personal preferences in reading material than it is about her book. That I was able to get through it at all is a testament to its quality. Definitely recommended if it sounds at all interesting to you.

[Mahdi · Rating 4 out of 5]

این کتاب قرار است نمادی برای تبدیل شرمن به عنوان الگوی مطلوب دختران آمریکایی باشد؛ حتی در بخش خاطرات مذاکرات هسته‌ای هم چنین رویکردی دارد

در مجموع اگر اهل سیاست یا پیگیری اخبار هستید، خواندنش را به شما توصیه می‌کنم

[Zahra · Rating 3 out of 5]

شرمن در من ترسو نیستم می‌گوید که چطور با اشک‌هایش، بر عراقچی و روانچی تاثیر گذاشته و چطور با دیدن توییت روحانی، فهمیده ایران عطش رسیدن به توافق دارد. او لابلای سطوری که پر از داستان ها و روایت های متعدد است، اتفاقات کمتر روایت شده مذاکرات هسته ای با ایران را روایت می کند و تصویری بدیع از زن ستیزی جامعه امریکا ارائه می کند.

ترجمه اسناد مرکز انقلاب اسلامی از این کتاب، امانت را رعایت کرده و حتی وقتی شرمن تلاش دارد از رهبر انقلاب، تصویر مخدوش کننده مذاکرات را ارائه دهد، تحریفی صورت نگرفته است. اما کتاب به ویراستاری جدی نیاز دارد. در برخی صفحات، تفاوت ها و اشتباهات فاحشی نیز به چشم می خورد که آزاردهنده است.

[محمد شفیعی · Rating 4 out of 5]

دید خوبی از وضعیت مذاکرات هسته ای از منظر مذاکره کننده‌ی آمریکایی میده و البته حس تحقیری که نسبت به ایرانی ها در سرتاسر کتاب موج میزنه...
شرمن تجربیات شو در زمینه های مختلف میگه و به شدت سعی در الگو کردن خودش و زندگی خودش داره و تا حدی هم موفق بوده

ولی ویراستاری این کتاب فاجعه بود، البته مقل دیگر آثار مرکز اسناد

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I was adjacent to the target audience of this book. Lots of political detail.

That said I enjoyed hearing about the trials of diplomacy and the ascent of some prominent female politicians.

yay, smith college!

[Matt Connolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a chronological diplomatic memoir, this isn’t it. But Ambassador Sherman does a great job of taking her experiences and distilling out some key themes, including courage, power, persistence, etc. I learned more about how to be a better ally for the women in my life, and I can imagine her tips for women would be equally valuable. Overall, a great, short read.

[Gabrielle Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

As others have stated, this isn’t a chronological accounting of the JCPOA. Rather, Sherman’s account of the deal (and intricate diplomatic process that led to it) is interspersed with reflections from her personal life, management advice, and stories from other professional endeavours — Sherman is not a career foreign service officer, but came into her roles at State as a political appointee with experience in social work, campaigning, nonprofit management, and more.

I personally enjoyed the format of the book. It was easy to read in small chunks, and I appreciated how Sherman often concluded her stories about the theatre of summitry or politics with personal reflections of the lessons she learned, or dynamics she observed. This is an important angle that doesn’t always get discussed when we see deals like the JCPOA in the news.

Would recommend to anyone in the field of foreign policy and international affairs writ large, especially if you’re also interested in politics and human dynamics.

[Ruxandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some key takeaways from the book:

- The key of the deal was to retain power, without depriving anyone of theirs; even Iran was to remain with some power of its own.
- Nonetheless, just as the Russians traditionally defer to the Chinese on matters regarding North Korea, China generally followed the Russians in the Iran negotiations, working closely with them.
- We must learn to let things go. The tendency to try to control one’s life too closely can inhibit us from saying yes to opportunities that might change our lives.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasant account of Wendy Sherman and the State Department during the Obama Administration while they worked on the Iran Deal. Provides insight into the state department workings.

[Jessica Lucci · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power, and Persistence" by Wendy R. Sherman, provides a behind the scenes look at politics as a woman.

Ambassador Wendy R. Sherman takes us on a trip through her life, from her childhood with forward-thinking parents battling segregation, to becoming a young wife with new professional opportunities, then a fresh divorcee encountering important life lessons on her professional track, through heartache and joy, new love and motherhood, all the while seeking a work/life balance that would allow her to do her best as a human being to improve the world.

Sherman is best known for her key role in securing peace in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. This book delves into then true stories and real people involved in this momentous event. Uncertain alliances became cemented through personal connection and persistence.

Throughout the stories of politics and deals, Sherman's messages of persistence and personhood are clear. While women must often hide their emotions lest they appear weak in a male-dominated environment, Sherman allowed herself to feel and express. Crying and showing were not routine, but not ignored, either. She allowed herself to be sad, frustrated, and angry, and this built bridges of humanness.

"Ideas are the life-blood of any good resolution process, and it's in everyone's best interest to let them flow, even if many of them won't survive to the end. Even the strangest ideas may evolve into something workable, or spur thought in another mind and lead to a workable plan." This outlook of Sherman's proved itself over and over again during brainstorming sessions and peace-keeping missions.

She agreed to manage Barbara Milkuski's new campaign for the U.S. Senate. Sherman had three needs that needed to be agreed upon before she would accept the offer. They involved time with her family. Family time was too important to completely give up. "...she could never call me at the time I usually put my daughter to bed, barring a genuine crisis, and I wouldn't miss bedtime for campaign events unless there was important business being conducted beyond handshakes and a speech...I had a two-year-old whom I wanted to see grow up and a marriage I wanted to keep."

This theme of balancing work and family life is raised pointedly throughout the book, not only for herself personally, but for other people as well. Sherman relates that women in particular often bear the guilt and pain of being a parent who works outside the home. After a failed marriage, she cherished her second marriage even more, as she kept to her new rules about self-care.

After a time during which she was overcompensating at home, she felt exhausted. "A wise therapist once told me that no one dies of a little guilt." Since then, whenever she found herself overcompensating, she tried to remember that line.

This book was full of political information. I do wish there was more about her personal life, as politics are not so intriguing to me.

I had the divine pleasure of hearing this great ambassador speak at the 2018 Boston Book Festival. After her powerful panel discussion, I was overjoyed to speak with her, and meet her daughter and lively grandchildren. I had a total fan girl moment, and not only acquired a photo with this outstanding diplomat, but also scored a hug, with genuine emotion. I was in tears. It was a powerful moment I will always remember. Sherman's humanness in person made the words in her book feel more personal to me. No matter what challenges lay ahead of me as a woman, I will persist, with a strong heart, in my own way. Just as Wendy Sherman does.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impressive account of the multitudes of considerations behind and on the scene necessary for the creation of a functional multicultural work group that led to the 2015 Iran deal creating an agreement among 6 nations to monitor its development of uranium enrichment and permit ongoing inspections by the International Atomic Energy Commission in exchange for a lessening of sanctions on its oil and unfreezing bank assets arrived at over a four year time period. The author intertwines this story with biographical tidbits relating to the values installed in her childhood home and how she came to become the head US negotiator which is sometimes disorienting but I was still glad she included it all. She more than completed her intent in writing this book: to help others understand the process of diplomacy and negotiations and how she found her way to the table. A common message throughout is that our personal and professional lives are interwoven. Each episode providing the skills and capabilities, even when not realizing it at the time, for the next step. She continously praises the courage of those trailblazers who have gone before : Geraldine Ferraro, Nancy Pelosi, Susan Rice, Anita Hill and Hillary Clinton making her oppportunities and success a possibility when it would not have been had they not established a history. "None of public service was a solo act." Women do not always know what they know in her estimate. She interestingly cites a study whose results are probably inherently known to all women already ie that males will apply for positions without regard to qualifications while females generally do not post for positions unless they are 100 % qualified. Typically per the study cited males meet only 60% of requirements.

Having been educated in social work , it was very elating for me to see the author credit her skill set in Community Organization to the University of Maryland School of Social Work which she found as applicable here as it would have managing a caseload.

The author witnessed and felt the sacrifice made by her father when as a successful real estate broker in Baltimore Maryland he chose to sell homes to African Americans to demonstrate his belief in Open Housing clearly unacceptable to neighbors and friends alike which they responded to by White flight. That position would end the referrals he had become accustomed to expect from fellow brokers, home builders, etc. Notwithstanding he was the go-to broker enlisted by Frankie Robinson when traded to the Baltimore Orioles. He would go on to win the MVP award in the World Series. Robinson stated he would not come to Baltimore unless he could obtain housing in an integrated community with good schools. Likewise,she documents the never-ending persistence of John Kerry as Secretary of State at the time (# 68) in understanding each and every player's decision making and possible contributions meeting one on one whenever and wherever possible to achieve agreement on the topic of the next scheduled meeting. She identifies his resolve having come from serving in Viet Nam as a 24 year old and coming home with the intent of making sure we never went to war again. No doubt, this is addressed in his autobiography Every Day is Extra which I cannot wait to read.

Diplomacy is tauted as a necessity for democracy and security to exist in any nation. The
author joins forces with Madeline Albright and others after her "civic" duty is completed to create the Albright Stonebridge group who provided guidelines and consulting on an international basis to enable business development using lessons learned in public service. The idea being that "a middle class pushes for democracy, inclusion, less corruption and creates consumers of American products and American jobs. Their group currently serves clients from 110 countries.

Despite running political campaigns, recruiting women to run for office as Executive Director of Emily's List and acting as Under secretary of State, the author still admits to vulnerabilities when being confronted by the politics of Washington. The freshman senator of Arkansas Tom Cotton's public protest of the Iran agreement is a case in point when he wrote a letter to the Islamic Republic that advised them that the "agreement" was made without Congress approval and could only pertain as long as the Obama administration. The next president, he noted, would revoke and the future Congress would modify. Another unanticipated moment when testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Jesse Helms ( the Senator from North Carolina at the time) asked why she lied to Anita Hill when prepping her for her presentation before the Judiciary Committee. She had provided input on the testifying process but nothing addressing the content of her testimony yet this was what was front and center to this senator at this time depriving her of time to speak on the Iran Deal which totaled 110 pages long and many Republican senators spoke against WITHOUT EVEN READING THE DOCUMENT.

An inspirational book that provides hope for this nation even though Wendy Sherman and John Kerry no longer serve in public office. Their dedication to democratic principles and values are an example for all including their their P5 + 1 colleagues who should long remember the respect and hospitality of United States delegation. A true testimony to the value of diplomacy in an age when it is not appreciated.

[Shari · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this window into Wendy Sherman's world, as it is so very different from anything I've ever experienced. I've actually never read a book on politics before. She has had an incredible career, and it's nice to learn that since this book was published, she is now the US Deputy Secretary of State. I most appreciated her personal touches, humility and life lessons, especially her value on the "unexpected life."

[Mahdi Soleymani · Rating 3 out of 5]

این کتاب جدا از بیان خاطرات سیاسی مرتبط با مذاکرات هسته‌ای با ایران، تصویری از چگونگی فعالیت‌ها و نگاه‌های موجود در امریکا به زن به تصویر می‌کشد. هرچند ممکنه این تصویر کامل نباشد.
پایداری، استقامت و ناامید نشدن در مسیر اهداف و فعالیت‌ها هم نکته جالبی بود که در چند بخش کتاب به آن اشاره شده است.

[Ketabkhoram · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭕ماجرای مذاکرات برجام برای ما ، ماجرای پیچیده‌ای بوده، یک عده که نگران خدعه‌های آمریکا و اروپایی‌ها بودند،هر چه می‌توانستند از خطرات پیشِ رو گفتند و سالها دلواپسان خوانده شدند و به سُخره گرفته شدند
حالا بعد از گذشت یک یا دو سال از بیرون آمدن آمریکا از برجام، خاطرات کسی را می‌خوانیم که مذاکره کننده ارشد آمریکایی‌ها در برجام بود

⭕در این کتاب که شامل مراحل مختلف زندگیِ شِرمَن هست تا فصلِ موفقیت زندگی نویسنده جلو می‌ریم
در هر فصل مخلوطی از ماجرای مذاکرات هسته‌ای،زندگیِ شخصیِ شرمن و زندگیِ شغلی اوست
در واقع کتاب در حالِ معرفیِ یک الگوی موفق (در حین حال با سختی فراوان) برای دختران آمریکایی است

⭕یک نکته‌ای هم که باید بگم اینه که ترجمه‌ی کتاب بعضی مواقع خیلی اذیت کننده بود ، امیدوارم یک تجدید‌نظری بشه و ترجمه رو درست کنند
یک نمونه‌اش رو می‌تونید در قسمت((بخشی از کتاب)) ببینید

⭕پ.ن(صرفا برای درد و دل):
خیلی از تمدن‌ها و عقاید برای افرادشون الگو تعریف می‌کنند و درباره‌ی الگوهاشون صحبت می‌کنند که حتی ممکنه اون الگو تخیلی و ساخته‌ی ذهن باشه
اما ما با داشتن الگوهای عالی ،خیلی کم‌کاری کردیم
برای همین هم خیلی‌هامون الگوهای نامناسبی پیدا کردیم و داریم راه رو کج می‌ریم

⭕بخشی از کتاب:
کِری به یک‌باره لنگان‌لنگان با عصایش از سالن گذشت و به سمت اتاق جلسه‌ای رفت😐 که همه‌ی ما در آن جمع شده بودیم 😐 و بیان کرد که ظریف به چیز دیگری نیاز دارد؛ ... جمله‌ای آشنا برای ما به معنی خودداری ظریف از رسیدن به توافق نهایی بود.
.... روز قبل، رئیس‌جمهور روحانی، توئیت کرده بود که معامله در حال انجام‌شدن است. با وجوداینکه او به‌سرعت توئیت خود را پاک کرد، اما کارت‌های ایران را در نهایت نمایش داده بود. آنها نمی‌توانستند به راحتی در این لحظه زیر معامله بزنند
.... کریس فهرستی از افراد و شرکت‌هایی را در دست داشت که می‌توانستیم به فهرست تعلیق تحریم‌ها اضافه کنیم. در هر مذاکره‌ای، هوشمندانه است که برخی از امتیازات کوچک را... پیش خود نگه دارید تا در پایان کار بدون اینکه هزینه زیادی بپردازید بتوانید از آنها استفاده کنید. کریس برگه‌ای به دست کری داد و او ...به اتاق بازگشت.
چند دقیقه بعد، کری دوباره در آستانه در ظاهر شد و گفت که کار تمام شده است.

[Justin Goldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was intrigued when I came across this title on the shelf based on the recent experience of Deputy Secretary of State Sherman representing the U.S. at the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of Guadalcanal in August 2022 in the Solomon Islands, a battle her Father fought in as a young Marine. This book, published in the fall of 2018, was a great short read. While I was fairly familiar with her key contributions as an appointed official in the State Department serving as a Counselor to the Secretary in the Clinton Administration leading negotiations with North Korea and then as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs in the Obama Administration where she was the chief negotiator in the nuclear talks with Iran. However, it was really interesting to learn about her formative experiences, especially what she learned from the powerful example of her parents in 1960s Baltimore on matters of civil rights. It was also moving to hear about the moral clarity from their Rabbi at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation who served as a Chaplain in World War II, with his experience of walking through the concentration camps at Dachau after their liberation. I appreciated learning about her earlier experience as the Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs as that prepared her for the challenges of engaging with Members of Congress as the nuclear negotiations with Iran became an ever more of a contentious issue on Capitol Hill. Overall I liked how she brought in both her personal and professional anecdotes throughout this work.

[Dan Dundon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wendy Sherman's interesting autobiography spends a great deal of time discussing the diplomatic efforts to reach the Iran nuclear deal. Some reviewers have been critical of the "excessive" attention the author gives to the diplomatic process involved in reaching the deal. I understand this point but believe the reader would not have been given a true understanding of the enormous complexity of this deal if the author had not devoted so much attention to it. When the Trump Administration eventually withdrew from the deal, the frustration on the part of those who negotiated it must have been enormous. This reader has a much better understanding of the diplomatic process involved as the result of this book.

Unfortunately, the rest of Ambassador Sherman's life is squeezed in between chapters about the Iran deal and this gives the book a very jagged feel at times. While the Iran deal is certainly the focal point of the book, the rest of her life would have been much better presented in a more chronological order. Perhaps that will be left to a later book when her life journey is more complete.

[Joana Gomes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am giving 2*, but I really wanted to give 1* -- it's not the book's fault, it's mine.
I bought this book because I thought it was about leadership, women in leadership, the difficulties women face when climbing the ladder, etc etc... but it is mostly about diplomacy and the Iran nuclear deal.
And it has a HUGE list of names of (very important) American politicians that the reader is (apparently) supposed to know, but I didn't -- worst of all, I really didn't care! I didn't care for any of these people, honestly.
In what concerns the timeline, the book is constantly jumping back and forth, depending on the topic being discussed... I am normally ok with this, but in this book, and at the level of boredom I was in, I found it really annoying.
Last but not least, the constant self praise for the greatness of the USA and the American Government and its power over the world, and argh... it's so dull, repetitive, uninspiring, narcissistic, ... should I continue?
I should have realised this was not a book for me when I starting dragging it, but my relationship with DNF-ing books still has a lot to grow and this is a critical example of this.
Waste of time.

[Becky Skillin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading Ambassador Sherman’s story of negotiations for the Iran Deal was encouraging.

Ultimately she was a successful negotiator and used diplomacy to take a step towards a peaceful solution. The book shows that the power of relationships can beat seemingly intractable situations.

Things certainly don’t always go the way we hope, and we do not always understand what is going on behind the scenes, but the book provides hope in that we can work hard and make progress.

Nothing is ever wasted.

The book was a timely read. The marking of stars is so difficult. It was a perfectly written memoir about a very specific topic. Its publication date, 2018, is noteworthy.

I didn’t give it five stars because it is not life-changing, but it is well-written, incisive, and interesting (most of the time).

[Evan Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting memoir of politics and diplomacy. Wendy Sherman served as the chief negotiator for the Iranian nuclear deal, and she was the first woman to serve as Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs (and later, the first woman as Deputy Secretary of State), so she's got a bit of a front seat to history.

Part of the set up for this book is the values/lessons Sherman has learned that are necessary for negotiation and diplomacy, which forms the title of each chapter, and while those are interesting, what is more interesting is Sherman's own history. She's occupied both the realms of domestic politics and foreign policy, and her background is in social work, which gives her a very different perspective than you would expect. Sherman writes with a dry sense of humor and she's quite open about her own history and her journey to where she is now/was then.
Sherman is also very clear about the nature of things that she deals with as a woman, and what women deal with as part of their everyday life, especially in a field dominated by men, such as foreign policy/national security, and she pays tribute to the women who have come before her and she's worked with or for.

If you're familiar with the story of the Iranian nuclear deal negotiations, there won't be a lot of new revelations in this book, but it is an interesting read in terms of an insider's perspective on that particular debate, and the intersection of politics and diplomacy in general.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Public servants, diplomats in particular, have been excoriated of late in the United States. It will only be when we feel the wreckage of their absence that we will fully understand how critical diplomats are to our democracy and to our security." This quote comes from Wendy Sherman's epilogue, after providing a very personal, intimate memoir, as well as penetrating insights into negotiations, diplomacy, politics, and the advancement of civil rights and women. Her account makes all the more painful what was so stupidly thrown away with the U.S. abandonment of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran. There is so much which Wendy shares here, based on her experience as a social worker, a political strategist, an advocate for women as leaders, and a diplomat in her own right.

[Marvin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a mildly interesting account of Wendy Sherman's life and career, with a great deal of detail about the negotiations with Iran over a deal to reduce the number of enriched uranium producing centrifuges. However, I found it disconcerting as she jumped around from the Iranian negotiations to all sorts of incidents in her political and intellectual life.
To me, it would have been more interesting if it had been a straight autobiography culminating in her discussion of the negotiations with the EU and Iran. I am not sure that I learned much from the book about anything and I found her life lessons, which she interjected throughout the book, to be pretty useless.

I had to read this for a book club; if not, I would have given up after the second chapter.

[Kavinda Ratnapala · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book has some key insights into the intricacies of diplomacy and this is the main take away of the book.

When the book is a very easy read and structured as expected by a respect publishing house, it is by no means a must read.

The aforementioned insights are dotted throughout the book as such there is no particular chapter that can be recommended to skip forward to.

Sherman, has written an account that focuses on notable points in her career that mattered the most to her with the JCPOA deal taking centre stage. As such, for anyone interested on the personal dynamics at play during the deal, this is a must read but is very light on the technical aspects of the deal as and when it played out.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book,Wendy R. Sherman encourages us to expect the unexpected in our career journey. Sometimes we come a long way just fail. That way, we carry into the future vivid lessons of what works and what doesn’t. Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power, and Persistence

[Adam Glantz]

Before you spend money on this book, and no matter your opinion of the JCPOA, know that Wendy Sherman claims to have achieved a diplomatic breakthrough with Iran by crying. Don't believe me? Go to her Twitter account (@wendyrsherman) and check out the September 5, 2018 thread. All bona fide feminists out there should be busily burning her in effigy for such a little-girl-lost routine and her perversely proud revelation of it. It's frankly unbelievable that she has the gall to presume to teach lessons about diplomacy.

[Lena Denman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of leadership lessons. Excellent advice on compiling a team, including examining how the team functions together. Ambassador Sherman describes how a she was at the center of the negotiation of the Obama Administration’s Iran deal, and how President Obama honored her for the achievement. She talks about President Trump’s choice to destroy the deal and the ramifications that decision has had on America’s international power and standing.

[Helma Betts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book! It could have been a dreary retelling of some of the most important political achievement in recent years but it was actually quite the page turner. Wendy intertwined her personal story of her career and negotiation tips with the retelling and is often very honest and vulnerable (but also incredibly humble). I would have just wished for a slightly clearer path through the book but that didn't stop me enjoying it at all.

[Jennifer Marquis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved Wendy Sherman's lessons through her life long career of serving others and our country. I also found the recollections of negotiating the Iran deal fascinating and what she learned from long term negotiations and eternal optimism to get it done, and then to pick up and do it again.

Thank you, Ms. Sherman!

[Jackalacka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coincidentally the Iranian arms treaty is back in the news and Wendy Sherman is back in the State Dept.. Sherman was the lead negotiator with the Iranians back when Obama was president and she shares the behind-the-scenes of the whole affair. This is such an insightful book about the art of diplomacy in general too. I could never do her job!! She’s amazing.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with many books I read lately, I heard the author of this one on a podcast and found her interesting. I enjoyed her book as well, particularly as it detailed the unusual journey from social worker to diplomat and ambassador instrumental to the Iran deal.

[Bart Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful read. As a staffer for Senator Mikulski for 18 1/2 years and a son of Baltimore, I've met Wendy on numerous occasions. I admire Wendy greatly and recognize some of the "Mikulski Method" coming through in her book.

Once a BAMMER, always a BAMMER!