An intimate and perceptive biography of Zbigniew Brzezinski – one of America’s greatest and most influential geopolitical thinkers.

'For anyone who wants to understand the history of America and the world, this is a useful and important book' ANNE APPLEBAUM
'A biographer of genius ... One of the sharpest political pens of our day' WILLIAM DALRYMPLE
'A towering achievement. A book which is founded on deep scholarship, yet so accessible and readable from the very beginning that it feels more like a historical detective story' RAGEH OMAAR

Zbigniew Brzezinski was a political strategist who rose to prominence as an intellectual architect of US foreign policy during the Cold War. As National Security Advisor to President Jimmy Carter and a trusted advisor to US presidents from John F. Kennedy onwards, Brzezinski’s expertise helped shape global strategy at critical moments - most significantly as a key figure in the downfall of the Soviet Union.

A Polish émigré who witnessed the devastation of his homeland during both Nazi and Soviet occupations, Brzezinski became one of the West’s foremost scholars of totalitarianism. His nuanced understanding of the importance of ‘speaking the enemy’s language’, coupled with his close friendship with Pope John Paul II was instrumental in preventing a Soviet invasion of Poland. While Nixon and Kissinger, his lifelong rival, famously opened China to the West in the early 1970s, it was Brzezinski and Carter who strengthened US-China relations, further shifting the global balance of power away from Moscow. Beyond the Cold War, Brzezinski continued to influence foreign policy, notably in shaping the nation’s response to the 9/11 attacks. Yet his legacy remains underreported, leaving gaps in our understanding of Cold War history and its aftermath.

Edward Luce, celebrated columnist and political writer, restores Brzezinski’s rightful place in history. Through a sweeping narrative that spans much of the 20th century, Zbig offers a gripping account of Brzezinski’s life and, in doing so, narrates a compelling re-examination of the end of the Cold War.

"Edward Luce has written an impressive account of Brzezinski’s life in vivid colours, having had access to the man himself in life and his diaries and papers since his death. No biography of Brzezinski is likely to surpass this one in empathy … A long but enthralling biography" - Literary Review

"Luce’s Life of Zbigniew Brzezinski ... is a highly readable reminder of how US and global politics looked and felt before the cold war ended. Brzezinski is portrayed vividly, warts and all. Deeply and meticulously researched, Zbig lays out its subject’s ascent, the tumult of the Carter years and what followed" - Guardian