From the Cold War to a New Era: The United States and the Soviet Union, 1983-1991

Don Oberdorfer

JHU Press, May 1, 1998 - Political Science - 568 pages

An updated edition of Don Oberdorfer's acclaimed book, The Turn

First published in 1991 as The Turn, this is the gripping narrative history of the most important international development of our time—the passage of the United States and the Soviet Union from the Cold War to a new era. Don Oberdorfer makes the reader a privileged behind-the-scenes spectator as U.S. and Soviet leaders take each other's measure and slowly set about their historic task. Oberdorfer writes diplomatic history with a vital difference: extraordinary intimacy made possible by comprehensive interviews with major figures on both sides and exclusive material from a host of other sources.

Now this widely praised book is available in a new, updated paperback edition that continues the narrative up to the dramatic collapse of the Soviet Union. Replete with revealing portraits of historical personalities, as riveting as a spy thriller, this is an enthralling record of history in the making.

What people are saying

Review: From the Cold War to a New Era: The United States and the Soviet Union, 1983-1991

User Review  - Riley - Goodreads

This book is a good, if somewhat depressing, reminder of the hope that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union. I learned a lot about the diplomacy of Presidents Reagan and Bush, and it gave me a ...

Review: From the Cold War to a New Era: The United States and the Soviet Union, 1983-1991

User Review  - Rob - Goodreads

This was one of the best books on US-Soviet relations that I have read, and I've examined quite a number of them since that is one of my favorite areas of history to study. The final chapter on the ...

Contents

• PREFACE TO THE JOHNS HOPKINS EDITION: 9
• Evil Empire and Star Wars A Golden: 34
• THE EBB TIDE: 49
• THE CHERNENKO INTERLUDE: 79
• The Summer of Reengagement Gromyko Visits: 93
• GORBACHEV TAKES COMMAND 1: 107
• A Cautious Beginning Stumbling Toward: 150
• Gorbachevs New Program A Case of: 183
• TO THE WASHINGTON SUMMIT 2 1 1: 211
• REAGAN IN RED SQUARE: 273
• The Greening of Baker To the NATO Summit: 374
• A NEW ERA: 387
• the GasFilled Room The Rise of the Soviet: 410
• Summit in Helsinki Authorizing the: 442
• and War The Unraveling of Soviet Power: 466
• AFTERWORD: 477
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: 483
• INDEX: 519

About the author

Don Oberdorfer was a diplomatic correspondent for the Washington Post from 1976 until his retirement in 1993. His previous book, Tet!, a history of the crucial battle of the Vietnam War, was a National Book Award finalist.

Bibliographic information

• Title: From the Cold War to a New Era: The United States and the Soviet Union, 1983-1991; From the Cold War to a New Era
• Author: Don Oberdorfer
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: JHU Press, 1998
• ISBN: 0801859220, 9780801859229
• Length: 568 pages
• Subjects: Political Science / International Relations / General