Madam Secretary audiobook

Long book. :) Still I appreciated 3 things:- 1st is personal: never stop learning. No matter how tired, how busy or how bored you might be, train your mind.- 2nd is related to the way she wrote the book. The first 300 pages are quite easy to read because she outlines her personal life from the moment she was born until her divorce. From there on she concentrates on explaining the international context and the way she handled the different situations as a State Secretary.- 3rd comes from the 2nd point. So many names, so many contexts. I never got to really understand them until this book. I know the story is told from her perspective. Still for someone who is not initiated in international politics, it gives pretty good insight.

In 2012 I read Albright’s “Prague Winter” (my favorite one so far). Then in 2018 I read her book on “Fascism A Warning”. In April 2020 I read her most recent memoir entitled “Hell and Other Destructions” which covers the period after being Secretary of State to the current time. I had been examining the books she had written and realized I had not read her most important memoir of her time a Secretary of State. I have now corrected that over-site by reading “Madam Secretary: A memoir” published in 2003.The book is well written and meticulously researched. What I like about reading a memoir is learning about an event from their viewpoint. In fact, I enjoy reading about an event from various people’s viewpoints, which means I read a lot of memoirs. Albright is tougher on herself than on other people. She admits her mistakes and states what she should have done or said with no excuses. Some people admit to no mistakes so this is refreshing. The book covers her early life to her divorce then her life working for the government. Most of the personal information is at the beginning of the book: her diplomacy role and policy viewpoints are in the later part of the book. She covers in-depth her period as Ambassador to the United Nations and as Secretary of State. I noted how helpful it was to her to have been at the United Nations before becoming Secretary of State. I highly recommend this book.I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is twenty-four hours and twenty-three minutes. Albright does a good job narrating her own book. It is great to hear it straight from the author.

Madam Secretary: A Memoir, Madeleine K. AlbrightIn this outspoken and much-praised memoir, the highest-ranking woman in American history shares her remarkable story and provides an insider's view of world affairs during a period of unprecedented turbulence. A national bestseller on its first publication in 2003, Madam Secretary combines warm humor with profound insights and personal testament with fascinating additions to the historical record.تاریخ نخستین خوانش: دهم ماه می سال 2009 میلادیا. شربیانی

I enjoyed Albright's autobiography, "Prague Winter," so much, I decided to read this earlier biography which focuses almost entirely on her years as Ambassador to the UN and then Secretary of State under President Bill Clinton. The book spends a few short chapters on her life before she assumed these two positions - fleeing Czechoslovakia for England with her parents just ahead of the Nazis in 1937, returning to Czechoslovakia after the war only to flee from the Russians to the US with her family when she was a teen, college years at Wellesley, her marriage to journalist Joe Albright , her years as a wife and mother of three daughters, graduate school at Columbia and early career in academia at Georgetown. A side story of her appointment (and confirmation) as Secretary of State also goes into detail about the revelation, originally uncovered by the Washington Post, that three of her grandparents and several other relatives died in the Holocaust, a fact she did not know because her parents hid their Jewish identity from her. But most of the book explores, in rather generous detail, many of complexities of international relations with lots of space devoted to some of the troubled spots with which she dealt during her term as Secretary of State: Rwanda, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Somalia, Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia, and, over and over again, the Middle East, especially Israel and Palestine. Part of the challenge she faced was in the fall out from the breakup of the Soviet Union and the subsequent domino effect that had in Russia itself and among the so-called Eastern Bloc countries as well as other Communist countries like Cuba, China and North Korea which had depended on Soviet support. In the book, which was first published in 2006, she also discusses the ways in which 9/11,which happened just after she left office, changed the picture. I liked the book -- I am sure anyone who is interested in global politics would find it intriguing . It was also very interesting to learn about some of the particular challenges she faced as the first woman Secretary of State, not the least of which was finding herself - often - as the only woman in the room during negotiations. And did I mention it was exhausting, reading about the ninety-six separate official trips she took either as UN Ambassador or Secretary of State, many of them with stops in four or five countries wore me out, not to mention the times she was responsible for hosting talks in the US between particularly aggrieved parties. And then there is the very human side of people we know about mostly in the news; the image of Yasser Arafat playing hide and seek with her grandkids at her farm near Washington will probably stick with me forever.

Behind my grandparents, my #1 hero in the world. This book is so good. If she had been born in the US, I would give up everything to help her be the president. But part of what makes her so amazing is her Eastern European lineage, her family's escape, her passion for that part of the world (and the work she did in that area on behalf of the UN and the State Dept - some of which is detailed in this book). Her work in Africa was amazing. I cried as I read her accounts of the genocide in the Balkans and all that she, the UN and the State Dept did (and didn't do) to resolve this monstrosity. She discussed how she does business and I liked her approach. Be generous with people, use humor, be strong and don't let people walk all over you. Invite people into your home and into your world (food always helps...people don't care if you're not a gourmet). Don't always need to be the smartest person in the room. Ask for help and be thankful. Be loyal to those who deserve it. I could go on and on...I won't.

The former Secretary's account of her life is truly inspiring. Focusing mostly on her work as Ambassador to the United Nations and her role as the first female Secretary of State, the book takes the reader through the incredibly labor intensive and - often tedious - work of the United States' chief diplomat. Albright's dedicated effort toward learning languages, hosting forums for intellectual discussion, and flat out spunk are extremely fun to read along. She made me laugh several times with some of her one-liners to strongman type leaders that thought they could bully her along the way.

I've always admired Secretary Albright especially for her work in the Balkans. I remember watching her give a speech to the Serbian people in Serbo-Croatian. I meant a lot to me then and now that she was able to give the speech in their language. Even as a foreign policy wonk she holds a special place for me because she's the first Sec of State that I remember. She digs into wonderfully delicious details not only of her life but of the foreign policy of her time. She reminds us not to let anyone tell us what we can and cannot be. Definitely recommended.

This is a great memoir! It's honest, funny, insightful, and doesn't get too bogged down in policy or minutia. I think it would be especially enjoyable and interesting if you were an adult and paying even marginal attention to current events during the 90s.Well done, Madame Secretary!

I found this book inspiring! First, the story is about the best virtues of America namely, a light in this dark world, and a force for human rights. It inspired me because it is about an immigrant girl/woman who is gifted intellectually and is driven to be all she she can be because of the principals bestowed on her by her parents.The early part of the book describes her success as a student who is recognized and mentored by college professors and the political contacts she makes that propel her to be the first female Secretary of State.After describing how she achieved the important position in the Clinton administration, she begins a narrative of the issues, crises, war, genocides that she and the President faced over the second term of his Presidency. Her story is quite compelling and in light of our current administrations missed steps, should be read as template of how foreign policy is supposed to work. This fact alone makes this book a required read for knowledge about the History of the later part of the 20th century and the diplomacy that worked and failed in spite of the efforts of the Clinton administration.Because of some prior experience, I found the narrative regarding Kosovo and Bosnia quite interesting. This administration made some of the early contacts with North Korea and this alone should be required reading for whats left of our current State Department. I believe a next step after having read this autobiography should be to read a biography of Madeleine Albright. I believe it is possible that she was too close to some situations and therefore may have had difficulty being an impartial witness.She packs this book with incredible detail that might not be captured in other narratives, thus making this an important eyewitness commentary on the history of these troubled times . She also paints the Presidency of Bill Clinton, even after living through the sex scandal that almost got him impeached, in a very positive light in addition to the foreign policy successes, she highlights his domestic achievements. If you like history, foreign relations, a good autobiography than this book is for you.

Albright's memoirs are poignant, funny, reflective, irreverent, and above all, enlightening. She said in the beginning that she didn't want to just describe events and her role in them, but to really engage with everything that happened, and she succeeded immensely. Sprinkled with wit and humor, Albright takes us through her time before serving President Clinton and then her role as UN Ambassador and Secretary of State. Though very much written in 2003, she weighs the good and the bad of her time at the forefront of American foreign policy and ultimately concludes America's positive contributions outstrip its negative ones. Perhaps most touchingly, for me and other young women out there, is Albright's engagement with gender expectations: what did it mean for her to be a mother, how did men treat her differently, and what was the significance of being the first female Secretary of State? Albright's memoirs are at their finest when she recounts the numerous times women and girls told her what she meant to them. Albright remains an icon for young women everywhere and it is touching that she realizes this.

I LOVED this book! Perhaps, I'm a little biased because I love Madeleine Albright and more than lean left politically, but this book is really well written. Obviously, this book is rather dense. She covers not only her story, but more than half a century of global history as well. Obviously, it's a lot to follow, but Madeleine Albright presents this history through her own personal experiences with anecdotes and a very direct style of writing. It's a surprisingly easy read given the tough subject matters (Rwanda, Somalia, the Balkans, Communism in Eastern Europe, the Israel-Palestine conflict, etc.) thanks to her familiar writing tone. It feels more like she's telling you her story in a cafe rather than like reading a textbook full of dry facts.She also acknowledges the unique challenges she faced because of her gender without dwelling on them. She acknowledges that it was a step for gender equality, but it doesn't fix the entire system. I appreciated that; it was a very grounded assessment of her historic tenure as Secretary of State.

Madeleine Albright is a helluva woman. She has such an inherent sense of groundedness. It helps, too, that she is smarter than almost everyone else. In this memoir, Albreight manages to capture her voice and transmit her warmth, humor and sense of political fairness. She admits when she resorts to dirty tricks! This is a fascinating read just to learn about her life--an extraordinary journey in itself, but taken within the historical context of her ascension into politics, it is compelling. She is able to condense intricate political intrique into concise and often humorous stories. Who knew that tempestuous leaders of the world, tyrants and free thinkers, could be so funny and charming? I love her relationship with the late Jessie Helms, and who knew that old bear could be so charming?

The Women's National Book Association sent this book to the White House today (March 7) in honor of Women's History Month: https://www.wnba-centennial.org/book-...From the Women's National Book Association's press release:Madame Secretary: A Memoir by Madeline Albright, the first woman to be U.S. secretary of state, is a memoir of her path to this important position, filled with extensive insights into international affairs, hotspots in U.S. foreign policy, and how Albright navigated the delicate diplomacy required in her role as chief diplomat.

Madeleine Albright jumped to the top of my Most Admired Women list after I got into this fascinating story of her personal and political lives. She is brilliant, industrious and resilient- and weathered passages that would have brought many people down for good. She is a huge contributor to international diplomacy and a worthy feminine model, and this volume does a good job of describing why.