The book describes the life of U.S. diplomats against a backdrop of serious political or military events, such as the bombing of offshore islands between mainland China and Taiwan; the civil war and landing of U.S. Marines in Beirut, Lebanon; the overthrow of First Secretary Khrushchev; the alleged coup in Guinea resulting in the house arrest of U.S. diplomats. I give my vision of the role of a U.S. diplomat, with his battles and his accomplishments, and describe the transformation of the role of the spouses. I studied the history, the specific cultural traits, the language, and the major art forms of each country. "Nicole Logan gives us insights into the political situation in many of the countries in which she lived. She is particularly effective in describing the social crosscurrents underlying political developments, something we see all too rarely in analyses of world events." --Former U.S. Ambassador Roger Kirk.