Window Seat on the World - by Glen Johnson (Paperback)

About the Book

For four years, reporter Glen Johnson accompanied John Kerry as he became the most-traveled Secretary of State in history. Window Seat on the World is an all-access look at life inside the nation's first cabinet agency.

Book Synopsis

Reporter Glen Johnson was covering politics for the Boston Globe when he received a job offer that would embed him in the world of protocols, planes, and global peacekeeping. For the next four years, he accompanied John Kerry as he became the most-traveled Secretary of State in history.

The former journalist kept notes while Kerry worked out a power-sharing agreement in Afghanistan, negotiated with the Israelis, convinced Iran to get rid of its nuclear weapons program, developed a counter-ISIS coalition, and brokered climate change agreements, including the 2015 Paris Agreement. Kerry also confronted two lingering challenges: how to cooperate with an assertive China and a Russia that sidestepped its own wrongdoing but felt aggrieved and justified to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.

Window Seat on the World is an all-access look at life inside the nation's first cabinet agency: the complexity of State Department protocols, the grueling schedules, the delicacy of engagement with world leaders and foreign cultures, and the dedication of a longtime public servant and his team to the practice of diplomacy.

Review Quotes

"Window Seat on the World is a whirlwind tour of four consequential years of American diplomacy, written with the unique insights of a veteran journalist who had a front-row seat... An invaluable book for anyone who cares about America's role in the world and the dedicated public servants who carry our mission abroad."
--Andrea Mitchell, Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent, NBC News

"A firsthand account showing that high stakes politics are ultimately about people; the ones making decisions and those who are impacted. . . including me!"
--Jason Rezaian, Washington Post columnist and author of Prisoner: My 544 Days in an Iranian Prison

"A vivid, human, insider's account of Kerry and the Obama administration's dealings with Iran, Russia, China, climate change, and other global challenges."
--John Farrell, bestselling author and former Deputy Washington Bureau Chief of The Boston Globe

"Glen Johnson's Window Seat on the World gives us a rare, inside look at diplomacy as it is practiced at the highest level. An important and revealing read."
--Ambassador (ret.) Nicholas Burns, ​Professor, Harvard University, former Under Secretary of State, former State Department Spokesman

"Writing with the skill of a former news reporter and the access granted a staff member, Johnson provides fresh perspective on John Kerry's remarkable career of public service, including descriptions of his patience, creativity, and the special skills he brought to a job perfectly suited to his background."
--Ambassador (ret.) Alan Solomont, ​Dean, Tisch College of Public Service, Tufts University, former Finance Chairman, Democratic National Committee

Glen Johnson covered five presidential elections over three decades reporting for The Boston Globe, Associated Press, a string of local newspapers, and the historic City News Bureau of Chicago. He served as US deputy assistant secretary of State for strategic communications from 2013 to 2017 under an appointment by President Barack Obama, and took over 100,000 photos of Secretary Kerry during their international travels. Johnson proudly graduated from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. He now lives outside Boston.

About the Author

Glen Johnson covered five presidential elections over three decades reporting for the Boston Globe, Associated Press, a string of local newspapers, and the historic City News Bureau of Chicago. He served as US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Strategic Communications from 2013 to 2017 under an appointment by President Barack Obama, and took over 100,000 photos of Secretary Kerry during their international travels. He now is a writer, consultant, and teacher living outside Boston. Johnson proudly graduated from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin.