The American Ambassador: A Novel - Softcover

Just, Ward

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0618340785 ISBN 13: 9780618340781

Publisher: Mariner Books, 2003

Synopsis

“Ward Just is not merely America’s best political novelist. He is America’s greatest living novelist.”—Susan Zakin, Lithub  

“A gripping international thriller” about a Foreign Service officer—and the son who turns to terrorism to spite him (Los Angeles Times).

William North Jr. inherited his father’s keen political instincts and passion for justice. But the last time Ambassador North saw his son he seemed like a stranger—and a hostile one at that. Now, just as North prepares to take a new post in Germany, reports emerge that Bill Jr. is aligned with a German terrorist organization.
 
Suddenly, a private conflict between father and son escalates to a matter of national security. North is faced with a terrifying dilemma as loyalty to family and country are directly at odds.
 
The American Ambassador is at once a riveting tale of suspense and a thoughtful meditation on the fragility of Western values in an age of terrorism.
 
“Haunting and persuasive . . . Charged with authenticity . . . A splendid book that is both thoughtful and fast-moving.” —The New York Times

 

About this title

About the Author

WARD JUST's novels include Exiles in the Garden, Forgetfulness, the National Book Award finalist Echo House, A Dangerous Friend, winner of the Cooper Prize for fiction from the Society of American Historians, and An Unfinished Season, winner of the Chicago Tribune Heartland Award and a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize.

From Library Journal

In a hospital because of the lingering effects of an old wound, William North reflects on his 20-odd years as a successful Foreign Service officer. Now his career and all that he values are threatened by his own son. As a member of a West German terrorist gang, Bill, Jr., has become the ultimate expatriateintent on destroying both his father and his fatherland. In dramatic episodes of political conflict (ranging from Africa to Georgetown to West Berlin) and in scenes of quiet domestic tragedy, Just's narrative is eloquent and convincing. He combines a suspenseful plot with a sensitive examination of characters and their divergent values, shifting point of view so that the reader can feel both the pain of the father and the nihilistic anger of his son. Albert E. Wilhelm, English Dept., Tennessee Technological Univ., Cookeville
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0618340785
• ISBN 13: 9780618340781
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 336