The Education of an Idealist - Holdun

We are all familiar with the notion that women have to try a little harder if they are to succeed in the workplace. I emphasize the word notion, as I’ve never believed it; indeed, some of the best people I’ve worked with were women, who didn’t appear to make any additional effort in their work environment, beyond showing the leadership and skills expected of smart, intelligent senior executives.

What I believe one can say is that women approach life and all that it encompasses, especially relations with people, differently than do men. And I can think of no better example of that than the person at the heart of this quarter’s book review.

Being raised in Ireland before coming to America with her mother may explain the dogged determination of our author to succeed at whatever she did, be it playing baseball, her favourite sport, covering tragedies in the Balkans as a war correspondent, or campaigning tirelessly for Barack Obama in the primaries and then the presidential election.

Speaking of which, we learn as much about her boss as we do about her. The two were obviously very close, which must have made White House meetings when she was present, difficult at times, given her free spirit and strong views on human rights. And yet, the bonds between them were such that their friendship survived intact.

It was undoubtedly in her capacity as US ambassador to the UN that she came into her element, never afraid to take on her Russian counterpart in the security council or, more impressively, undertake on her own initiative two trips to Africa, first to countries devastated by the Ebola crisis, then to those scrambling to deal with the horrors of jihadist Boko Haram.

Samantha Power, The Education of an Idealist, Dey St.