Ronan Farrow traces the decline of diplomacy since 9/11, superseded, as he argues, by reliance on military force or the threat of it. There is no doubt that Farrow believes that the Trump Administration’s contempt for diplomacy has exponentially escalated the decline of American power and influence around the world, but the author also finds plenty of blame to go around in the Bush, Clinton, and Obama Administrations. Particularly poignant is his depiction of the generation gap between Pres. Obama and Vietnam War-era diplomats like Richard Holbrooke, but Farrow argues that even Pres. Obama grew into his role as diplomat-in-chief. There’s no evidence here that Pres. Trump has that capacity for growth; his ideologically driven withdrawal from the world—or outsourcing bits of diplomacy to businessmen, family members, or campaign hacks—has starved Trump diplomacy of experience, knowledge, and tact. It’s a bleak picture, especially given the prospect of Chinese predominance.