Strangers with Memories
The United States and Canada from Free Trade to Baghdad
Like estranged best friends, two democracies go from sharing their dreams to forgetting what they had in common – and wondering if they can still trust one another.
La description
John Stewart combines an insider’s knowledge, a mole’s perspective, and a historian’s consciousness to explain how two countries that spent the 20th century building a world order together drifted so quickly apart in the early years of the 21st—and how that world order began its current shift. Assessing the major forces and events in North America’s development between 1990 and 2010, this book also details changes at the US embassy in Ottawa during those years and its relationship with US consulates in Canada and with the State Department’s Canada desk.
Reviews
“By drawing on rich, professional anecdotes, a surfeit of primary sources and helpful insights about contemporary North America, Stewart skillfully traces the complicated and increasingly testy trajectory of Canada-U. S. relations. For concerned Canadian and American citizens, scholars and policymakers, this book is as unsettling as it is essential. ” Conference of Defence Associations Institute
"John Stewart had a front-row seat on two decades of recent US-Canada relations, and he was not just a studious observer, but a player as well. Strangers with Memories is thoughtful, wide-ranging, and fluidly written. I was especially impressed with the author’s accuracy in capturing both the mood and detail of the complicated US-Canada relationship despite the number of topics and period of time he covers. " Stephen R. Kelly, Duke University
"A bottom-up inside look at how the U. S. manages (or mismanages) its relationship with Canada . .. recounting Canada's declining relevance to Washington both in the later Clinton years and in the Bush years. " Terry Breese, Deputy Chief of Mission (2007-10)
"John Stewart's book is smart, original, authoritative, and engaging. He takes us into the wheelhouse of Canadian-American diplomacy and offers new, sharp insight. A fine contribution to the literature. " Andrew Cohen, School of Journalism and Communicatio