Review: For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War

For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War by Melvyn P. Leffler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A thorough examination of the Cold War from the WW II roots through to the dissolution of the USSR and German reunification under Gorbachev. This is largely told through the series of American presidents on one side and Soviet leaders on the author through summitry and other communications and interaction. There are some maps and lots of references and bibliography making this a scholarly work. The one thing that I realized through this is that U.S.-China relations from the 50s on through the Cold War were much about pulling China toward the U.S. and thus away from the Soviet sphere.

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