The History Book Club discussion

This is the discussion thread for the June/July Book of the Month Read - Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st- Century Memoir by Madeleine K. Albright.

This discussion kicks off on June 7th.

by Madeleine K. Albright

Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st-Century Memoir

by Madeleine K. Albright

Synopsis:

Six-time New York Times bestselling author and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright—one of the world’s most admired and tireless public servants—reflects on the final stages of one’s career, and working productively into your later decades in this revealing, funny, and inspiring memoir.

In 2001, when Madeleine Albright was leaving office as America’s first female secretary of state, interviewers asked her how she wished to be remembered. “I don’t want to be remembered,” she answered. “I am still here and have much more I intend to do. As difficult as it might seem, I want every stage of my life to be more exciting than the last.”

In that time of transition, the former Secretary considered the possibilities: she could write, teach, travel, give speeches, start a business, fight for democracy, help to empower women, campaign for favored political candidates, spend more time with her grandchildren. Instead of choosing one or two, she decided to do it all. For nearly twenty years, Albright has been in constant motion, navigating half a dozen professions, clashing with presidents and prime ministers, learning every day. Since leaving the State Department, she has blazed her own trail—and given voice to millions who yearn for respect, regardless of gender, background, or age.

Featuring black and white photographs throughout, Hell and Other Destinations reveals this remarkable figure at her bluntest, funniest, most intimate, and most serious. It is the tale of our times anchored in lessons for all time, narrated by an extraordinary woman with a matchless zest for life.

A Lovely Photo of Madelyn Albright

Madeleine Albright served as America’s sixty-fourth secretary of state from 1997 to 2001. Her distinguished career also in-cludes positions at the White House, on Capitol Hill, and as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She is a resident of Washington D.C., and Virginia.

Madeleine Korbel Albright (born Marie Jana Korbelová) was the first woman to become United States Secretary of State. She was nominated by President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996 and was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate 99-0. She was sworn in on January 23, 1997.

Praise

“Former secretary of state Albright weaves geopolitics with her own life story in this intelligent and personable memoir….She proves to be a capacious storyteller, willing to share personal disappointments, such as the dissolution of her marriage, as well as professional accomplishments. This appealing memoir will charm readers interested in contemporary politics and women’s issues.”
- Publishers Weekly

“This passionately told account of Albright’s ‘afterlife’ will inspire readers to become involved in the issues meaningful to them. Recommended for all interested in politics, leadership, and women’s studies.”
- Library Journal (starred review)

Table of Contents

Preface xi

1 Afterlife 1

2 Voice Lessons 14

3 From the Ground Up 28

4 "Do Not Be Angry" 45

5 Quicksand 63

6 Clubbing 79

7 Professor Maddy 96

8 Bulls 111

9 Democrats with a Small d 127

10 A Foothold 148

11 Things Unseen 162

12 Advise and Dissent 183

13 Companions 198

14 Digging Out 213

15 Making of the President 2008 225

16 First Light 244

17 Thought and Purpose 259

18 The Serpent's Tale 274

19 Muscles in Brussels 288

20 A Bigger Sea 307

21 Puzzles 319

22 Inferno 335

23 R-E-S-P-E-C-T 352

24 "You Are Just Like Your Grandmother" 364

25 Leaving 383

26 Cradle of Civilization 403

27 Breathless 421

28 Midnight 440

29 A Warning 455

30 Unhinged 468

31 Renewal 484

32 Shadows and Light 498

Journal of Ruzena Spieglová 513

Acknowledgments 527

Notes 533

Syllabus

Week One: June 8th - June 14th

Preface xi

1 Afterlife 1

2 Voice Lessons 14

Week Two: - June 15th - June 21st

3 From the Ground Up 28

4 "Do Not Be Angry" 45

5 Quicksand 63

Week Three: - June 22nd - June 28th

6 Clubbing 79

7 Professor Maddy 96

Week Four: - June 29th - July 5th

8 Bulls 111

9 Democrats with a Small d 127

Week Five: July 6th - July 12th

10 A Foothold 148

11 Things Unseen 162

Week Six: - July 13th - July 19th

12 Advise and Dissent 183

13 Companions 198

Week Seven: - July 20th - July 26th

14 Digging Out 213

15 Making of the President 2008 225

Week Eight: - July 27th - August 2nd

16 First Light 244

17 Thought and Purpose 259

Week Nine: - August 3rd - August 9th

18 The Serpent's Tale 274

19 Muscles in Brussels 288

Week Ten: - August 10th - August 16th

20 A Bigger Sea 307

21 Puzzles 319

Week Eleven: - August 17th - August 23rd

22 Inferno 335

23 R-E-S-P-E-C-T 352

Week Twelve: - August 24th - August 30th

24 "You Are Just Like Your Grandmother" 364

25 Leaving 383

Week Thirteen: - August 31st - September 6th

26 Cradle of Civilization 403

27 Breathless 421

Week Fourteen: September 7th - September 13th

28 Midnight 440

29 A Warning 455

Week Fifteen - September 14th - September 20th

30 Unhinged 468

31 Renewal 484

Week Sixteen: - September 21st - September 27th

32 Shadows and Light 498

Journal of Ruzena Spieglová 513

Week Seventeen: Book as a Whole and Final Thoughts - September 28th - October 4th

Acknowledgments 527

Notes 533

Sign up here if you plan to participate. I will be not be sending out an event notification nor a broadcast.

In the future, I will get back to that practice but right now I am concentrating on getting the discussions begun. It takes a lot of time and effort.

This is a single thread discussion - where you can only discuss the chapters that are assigned on the non spoiler thread - here we insist that you use the spoiler html in order not to ruin the book for anybody else coming along later - so be careful if you go ahead.

If you do not go ahead and you are only talking about the pages in the weekly assignment then you do not have to use spoiler html - otherwise you do.

If you go ahead and you are averse to the spoiler html - you can always post on the glossary thread which is a spoiler thread. Since however - this is a non spoiler thread - if you go ahead of the weekly assignment - then you must simply use spoiler html here.

You can copy and paste below to get your spoiler right:

(view spoiler)[Put Text Here (hide spoiler)]

All, we do not have to do citations regarding the book or the author being discussed during the book discussion on these discussion threads - nor do we have to cite any personage in the book being discussed while on the discussion threads related to this book.

However if we discuss folks outside the scope of the book or another book is cited which is not the book and author discussed then we do have to do that citation according to our citation rules. That makes it easier to not disrupt the discussion.

Folks, please let us know if you will be joining in this Book of the Month read. This will be a book of the month read and it will begin on Monday and you can go at your own pace. However, we do have weekly reading assignments but if you get behind that is fine - you can just post as you get caught up. If you go ahead - you have to use the spoiler html or post on the glossary spoiler thread.

Bentley will be leading the discussion. Everyone is welcome. The Table of Contents and the Syllabus have been posted on this thread.

Kickoff for discussion is Monday - June 8th.

You can post here in the meantime.

Spoiler html is just like bolding or underlining - the only difference is that instead of a b or a u - you use the word spoiler.

If you go ahead of the assigned reading - then this is how the spoiler html would look.

For example:

Introduction
(view spoiler)[This is where your comments go (hide spoiler)]

Remember the following:

Everyone is welcome but make sure to use the goodreads spoiler function if you get ahead of the assigned weekly pages.

If you come to the discussion after folks have finished reading it, please feel free to post your comments as we will always come back to the thread to discuss the book.

The rules

You must follow the rules of the History Book Club and also:

First rule of Book of the Month discussions:
Respect other people's opinions, no matter how controversial you think they may be.

Second rule of Book of the Month discussions:
Always, always Chapter/page mark and spoiler alert your posts if you are discussing parts of the book that are ahead of the pages assigned or if you have become expansive it your topics.

To do these spoilers, follows these easy steps:

Step 1. enclose the word spoiler in forward and back arrows; < >

Step 2. write your spoiler comments in

Step 3. enclose the word /spoiler in arrows as above, BUT NOTE the forward slash in front of the word. You must put that forward slash in.

Your spoiler should appear like this:
(view spoiler)

And please mark your spoiler clearly like this:

State a Chapter and page if you can.
EG: Chapter 24, page 154

Or say Up to Chapter *___ (*insert chapter number) if your comment is more broad and not from a single chapter.

Chapter 1, p. 23
(view spoiler)[I know everything now about chapter one and I am going to post it here - oops I better place this in a spoiler alert so I do not ruin the book for others (hide spoiler)]

If you are raising a question/issue for the group about the book, you don't need to put that in a spoiler, but if you are citing something specific, it might be good to use a spoiler.

By using spoilers, you don't ruin the experience of someone who is reading slower or started later or is not reading the assigned pages.

Thanks.

We are about to begin. We will read and discuss the assigned pages each week. The assignments are usually two chapters but if the page numbers allow - we will do three chapters. Just check the table of contents and the syllabus. I will always post at the end of the evening where I am in terms of moderating. And where I will begin the next day.

Tomorrow I will open up the discussion but for this week you should read up to the end of Chapter Two.

You can read a hardcover, a paperback, you can read the book on Kindle or you can listen to the book on audible. The format is really up to you and every medium is fine for this discussion.

If you read ahead, you can always use the spoiler html and read at your own pace. We just try to make it doable and a pleasant experience without pressure.

Post and introduce yourself and let us know where you are reading from - city (approximate), state or city, town, village (approximate) and in which country. And tell us what interested you about the book and your reason for wanting to read it. Are you an Albright fan or do you just want to learn more; or are you someone who wonders how difficult it must have been to be the first female Secretary of State?

My name is Bentley and I am the founder and group leader of the HBC and I want to welcome you to this Book of the Month Club read. This is the first BOTM formal discussion on a former secretary of state.

I promise you that we will get through this book with flying colors. And I am most excited about reading a book about Albright.

I am from the Metro NYC area and I enjoy thoroughly big cities but likewise I also enjoy country settings, roads and vistas. I love the ocean and being by water in general. And I seem to love all things paper. Getting a kindle was tough when you love the smell and the feel of books. But honestly it has been easier when you are moderating many different books at the same time and need to keep all your notes straight.

2020 has been quite a year - we have had an impeachment, we have had the discovery of killer hornets, we have had a serious and on going pandemic (the Coronavirus or Covid 19), we have seen the release of documentation that provides validity on the sightings of UFOs, we have seen global protests regarding racial issues and we have seen space travel once again take a giant step in the US. And it is only the beginning of June! Many of us have been sheltering in place and are washing our hands more in one day that we previously did in a week and our hands are showing it too. We are now wearing masks, shields, gloves and have sanitizer in a variety of shapes and sizes.

We are saddened at the loss of so many wonderful people from this pandemic and we are saddened of late regarding the death of George Floyd.

So turning our attention to books and to discussions is very much welcomed. And to discuss this memoir with our global membership is exciting for me.

Please introduce yourself and tell us why you are interested in reading about Madame Secretary Albright. Be sure to also tell us from what corner of the globe you are from - town, village, city and country or if you are from the US - city and state. We love to know where each of us is reading from. It can be of course be approximate.

It is always best to post and introduce yourself so folks know who you are when you post and feel more comfortable about posting back. We always introduce ourselves at the beginning of each discussion so folks know who is participating and we can get to know each other through the site.

And Lorna, one of our assisting moderators, will be my backup.

Welcome to all.

Regards,
Bentley

We kick off on June 8th!

Our first week's reading assignment is as follows:

Week One: June 8th - June 14th

Preface xi

1 Afterlife 1

2 Voice Lessons 14

Please post and introduce yourself and it is never too late to join a discussion or a read at The History Book Club - so do not be shy.

How do you participate when you join a discussion?

* First, introduce yourself - say hello to everyone and the moderator so that they know you are there.

* Every week we will be posting new material regarding that week's reading assignment - so there will be lots to talk about. Each week just pick something that interests you in the chapter or in the ancillary material that you would like to comment on and post about that. You can answer and respond to one of the discussion questions and you can post as often and as much as you want or even just once for the assigned reading. If you stay with the assignments and you are on a single thread discussion like this one is - you do not need to use any spoiler html unless you go ahead. And then that is really easy. And you do not need to do citations on the book and author we are discussing - you only have to cite other books and authors; but never the one we are talking about. So there is nothing that should be holding anybody back and we are here to help. In fact, the sky is the limit on what you can discuss regarding any chapter.

Here is an example if you go ahead - then you must use the spoiler html: (don't have to - if you stay with us - but that is the option)

Chapter 10
(view spoiler)[I went ahead and I have this to say about this chapter. (hide spoiler)]

You can discuss anything on any of the pages that you are reading and you will always get a response. This discussion has sixteen weeks so you can post just once each week if you like - and just let us know what you are thinking about the book, what you are liking about each chapter or not and/or respond to a discussion question posted by the moderator or just tell us how you are doing! We try to keep things - easy, simple and not taking a lot of time.

*On the last week - we ask everyone who participated or read the book to just post an independent and honest review - your rating is up to you and this is your own recommendation - we only ask that folks are civil and respectful; but what you feel about any book is very much a personal experience so we leave it up to you. We just ask that you do not add links. Just do a copy and paste of your review and place it on the Book as a Whole and Final Thoughts thread. There is (of course) no self promotion.

And that is about it! It is easy to participate. Enjoy.

Madame Secretary Albright and her successor Secretary Powell

In interviews - Madame Secretary Albright said that this book has as its major theme - how people of all descriptions can work together for common goals. How do you feel Albright has demonstrated that theme in her life and work? And what do you think the average person can accomplish by working together with others for America's success and goals?

From her acknowledgements - which we are not assigned - Madame Secretary stated that:

The central theme of this book is about how people of all descriptions can work together for common goals against a background of accelerating history. It is about trying to make sense of the world we have while attempting to contribute in small ways (though, as large as we can make them) to something better. To all who are present in these pages, whether in name or spirit, may all your destinations be happy ones and thanks for being part of the tales I tell.

Source: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. 337). Harper. Kindle Edition.

Link:
Link:

From 1997 to 2001, under President William J. Clinton, Albright served as the 64th United States Secretary of State, the first woman to hold that position. During her tenure, she worked to enlarge NATO and helped lead the Alliance's campaign against terror and ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, pursued peace in the Middle East and Africa, sought to reduce the dangerous spread of nuclear weapons, and was a champion of democracy, human rights, and good governance across the globe. From 1993 to 1997, she was America's Permanent Representative to the United Nations. Since leaving office, she founded the Albright Stonebridge Group and Albright Capital Management, returned to teaching at Georgetown University, and authored five books.

Hello everyone. My name is Lorna and I am one of the assisting moderators in the History Book Club. I am looking forward to joining all of you from Denver, Colorado. Incidentally, when Madeleine Albright immigrated from Czechoslovakia to the United States with her family in 1948, they settled in Denver. Her father, Josef Korbel was a professor in international studies at the University of Denver. He later founded the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver.

Bentley, thank you for your nice introduction and putting all of the events of 2020 into some kind of perspective. It is because of all of tumult that we are experiencing world-wide, that I feel that Madeleine Albright's latest memoir is so important. The former secretary of state has long been a valued and a powerful voice on the world stage, with a particular interest in mentoring young people wanting to enter public service, particularly women. It should be a very timely and interesting book.

Lorna, so the Korbel's (Albright's maiden name and family) were pretty close to you. I guess the acorn did not fall to far from the tree.

You are welcome Lorna - and you make an excellent point as to how her memoir focuses on an important main idea - "how people of all descriptions can work together for common goals against a background of accelerating history. It is about trying to make sense of the world we have while attempting to contribute in small ways (though, as large as we can make them) to something better.

Yes, I agree that Albright has always been a strong proponent of helping minorities achieve success and women.

I am looking forward to the read too Lorna. Thank you.

Dedication - To Life

What can we say about a life that was well lived - and yet yearning to see what lies around the corner?

The Epigraph from Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st-Century Memoir was a beautiful description of the basic theme of the book and is quite thought-provoking.

Havel writes: "What I love about the theater are arrivals, departures, and returns, entrances and exits, from the wings to the stage, and from the stage to the wings. It’s like going from one world into another.

And on stage, I love gates, fences, walls, windows, and, of course, doors. They are the borders between different worlds, cross-sections of space and time that carry information about their contours, their beginnings, and their ends.

Every wall and every door tells us that there is something on the other side of it, and thus they remind us that beyond every “other side” there is yet another “side” beyond that one. Indirectly, they ask what lies beyond the final “beyond” and thus broach the theme of the mystery of the universe and of Being itself. At least I think they do. —VÁCLAV HAVEL, from Leaving, a play (2008)

Who is Vaclav Havel?


President Václav Havel

Václav Havel (Czech pronunciation: [ˈvaːtslav ˈɦavɛl]; 5 October 1936 – 18 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, writer and former dissident, who served as the last President of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992 and then as the first President of the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2003.

As a writer of Czech literature, he is known for his plays, essays, and memoirs.

His educational opportunities having been limited by his bourgeois background (when freedoms were limited by the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic), Havel first rose to prominence as a playwright.

In works such as The Garden Party and The Memorandum, Havel used an absurdist style to criticize communism.

After participating in the Prague Spring and being blacklisted after the Soviet bloc's invasion of Czechoslovakia, he became more politically active and helped found several dissident initiatives, including Charter 77 and the Committee for the Defense of the Unjustly Prosecuted.

His political activities brought him under the surveillance of the secret police and he spent multiple periods imprisoned, the longest being nearly four years, between 1979 and 1983.

Havel's Civic Forum party played a major role in the Velvet Revolution that toppled communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989. He assumed the presidency shortly thereafter, and was re-elected in a landslide the following year and after Slovak independence in 1993.

Havel was instrumental in dismantling the Warsaw Pact and expanding NATO membership eastward.

Many of his stances and policies, such as his opposition to Slovak independence, condemnation of the Czechoslovak treatment of Sudeten Germans after World War II, and granting of general amnesty to all those imprisoned under communism, were very controversial domestically.

As such, at the end of his presidency, he enjoyed greater popularity abroad than at home. Havel continued his life as a public intellectual after his presidency, launching several initiatives including the Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism, the VIZE 97 Foundation, and the Forum 2000 annual conference.

Havel's political philosophy was one of anti-consumerism, humanitarianism, environmentalism, civil activism, and direct democracy. He supported the Czech Green Party from 2004 until his death.

He received numerous accolades during his lifetime including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Gandhi Peace Prize, the Philadelphia Liberty Medal, the Order of Canada, the Four Freedoms Award, the Ambassador of Conscience Award, and the Hanno R. Ellenbogen Citizenship Award.

The 2012–2013 academic year at the College of Europe was named in his honor. He is considered by some to be one of the most important intellectuals of the 20th century.

The international airport in Prague was renamed to Václav Havel Airport Prague in 2012.

Remainder of article:


Discussion Topics and Questions:

1. Your thoughts about the Dedication, the Epigraph and the beginning of the book?

2. Isn't life all about beginnings and endings, new arrivals and grief over departures. Every ending brings a beginning and so on. At least that is what we hope happens. And what about the final "beyond" - the universe. Many of us do not have our parents or our grandparents around and we miss them tremendously; but we carry on hoping that something is behind that next door. What are your thoughts about the Epigraph?

More:


Other materials added to Glossary thread.

Sources: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. vi). Harper. Kindle Edition, Wikipedia, Remix, Havel Channel

And so we begin:


The Twelve Labors of Hercules

Preface

"SINCE ANCIENT TIMES, we humans have had much to say about Hell.

Hercules’ twelfth labor was to subdue the multiheaded hound that guards its gates. Dante used the inferno as the starting point for one of literature’s epic journeys. Mark Twain advised us to go to paradise for the climate but to the other place for more interesting company.

In slang, we use the H-word to describe something that can be given or raised, or that can zoom about on wheels. It is also the name of a town in Michigan that, on occasion, actually does freeze over. More to the point, I have so often said, “There’s a special place in Hell for women who don’t help other women,” that Starbucks put the declaration on a coffee cup—hence the title of this book.

Source: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. ix). Harper. Kindle Edition.

Discussion Topics and Questions:

1. What were your thoughts regarding the preface itself? What were your interpretations of the statement: "Although we are inescapably mortal, not every destination is final.

2. Why do you think the ancient Greeks employed two masks—those of tragedy and comedy—to reflect the human drama?

3. Did you delight in Albright's tale of her encounter with British customs? "Do you know who I am?"

4. Feel free to discuss your thoughts on any aspect of the first week's reading.

Source: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. ix to xi). Harper. Kindle Edition.

Today's progress - June 9th:

Week One: June 8th - June 14th

✓Cover - completed

✓Title Page - completed

✓Dedication - completed

✓Epigraph - completed

✓Preface - completed - The moderator has completed adding discussion questions and ancillary material to all of the above - please feel free to discuss and respond to any of the discussion topics and/or questions

1 Afterlife 1 - not yet begun

2 Voice Lessons 14 - not yet begun

Good night!

Bentley

Chapter Overviews and Summaries

Chapter One - Afterlife

What does Albright do next?

Chapter Two - Voice Lessons

Albright finds her sea legs with the Washington Speakers Bureau.

And so we begin:



One
Afterlife

"JANUARY 2001 MARKED the beginning of a new century and the conclusion of my service as America’s sixty-fourth secretary of state.

I rarely admit to feeling tired, but I was by then a little overcooked. Years of rushed plane trips, not enough exercise, too many official dinners, and bowls of taco salad when flying home had taken a toll on the contours of my Central European body.

I was growing the way a mature tree does: out not up. A Washington columnist, trying to be funny, compared me to an igloo.

Although I realized that I could benefit from a less rigorous schedule, I didn’t want my job to end. I loved every frenetic minute, the nonstop parade of questions, the ever-shifting mix of people with whom to share ideas, and above all the conviction that what I said and did had significance beyond my own personal fence lines. An exciting position replenishes the energy it consumes. Each morning, a brain alive with plans drew me from my slumber. Gulping coffee, I placed phone calls, jotted notes, and inhaled the narcotic aroma of breaking news. To awaken to an unfolding international clash or opportunity and know that you might have a say in its outcome is addictive—and addicts, when deprived of their regular fix, search for a new buzz.

Discussion Topics and Questions:

1. What transferrable skills had Secretary of State Albright learned on the job and what options did she entertain when thinking what life would be for her now?

2. Why did President Clinton envy those foreign leaders whose terms would outlast his? Was Albright now more understanding of the envy that he had of those who had more time in their positions?

3. What were some of the images that came to mind when Albright looked back over her time as Secretary of State?

4. How did Albright make a newly sworn in citizen feel right at ease?

5. What were your thoughts about the note that Albright left for Colin Powell?

6. What pain and emotional trauma had Albright faced that she felt totally unprepared for? And how did that open up new vistas for her?

7. Was there anything surprising about Albright's background that you were unaware of?

8. Knowing that France played a role in helping a fledgling country fight for its independence against Britain during the American Revolution - how meaningful is the Statue of Liberty to our country? What were your thoughts about the following paragraph?

"It is not a gift from the millionaires of France to the millionaires of America, but a gift from the whole people of France to the whole people of America.” In response to this appeal, more than 125,000 citizens, including many schoolchildren, sent in their pennies and dimes, saving a project that, had it failed, would have deprived the world of its most compelling symbol of freedom.

9. What hurdles was Madeleine facing trying to transition to her next opportunity and do you think that she has any regrets or trepidation about what lies ahead for her?

Source: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. 1 and 6). Harper. Kindle Edition.

Madeleine Albright with a smiling Putin

Madeleine Albright with Henry Kissinger

Joseph and Madeleine Albright

Madeleine Albright and her three daughters

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Madeleine Albright, President of Kosovo Hashim Thaci walk during the 20th anniversary of the Deployment of NATO Troops in Kosovo in Pristina, Kosovo June 12, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga

Link:

Three former secretaries of state and one television one

And so we begin:

Chapter Two:

Voice Lessons


If I were an Uber driver, would you give me 5 stars?

"THE WEEK AFTER leaving office, I vacationed at a health spa in the Baja California region of Mexico with two longtime friends. We stayed in a small adobe villa and, during group exercise sessions, called on our creaky bodies to hop, stretch, and lift.

We ate green vegetables, drank herbal tea, and paid close attention on hikes when Noah, our guide, pointed out unusual geological formations and coyote scat. We were there for only a few days, but I took the opportunity to clear my head except for random thoughts about the new president, U.S.-Mexico policy, and regrets over never having learned Spanish.

I returned to Washington a little unwound, if not fully refreshed, and eager to commence my new life. Joined by fellow alumni from the State Department, I set up a temporary office in a law firm. At first the pace was slow. My days no longer began with CIA briefings or extensive lists of phone calls to return. Instead of presiding at a senior staff meeting from one end of a huge oval table, I sat at a small square desk flanked by a couple of (usually empty) chairs. We had planning sessions, but these were leisurely; there was no need to rush to the next appointment. The tempo would soon accelerate, but at the beginning, we all went out for lunch each day and headed home, even in February, before dark.

Source: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. 9). Harper. Kindle Edition.

More:
Pakistan - Madeleine Albright arrives (she went to Pakistan in 1997 and 2000 as Sec. of State)
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright flew into Pakistan late Monday (17/11) on a visit intended to underscore Washington's renewed engagement with southern Asia. Pakistani Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub Khan was at an air force base to welcome Albright, the first Secretary of State to visit Pakistan since George Shultz who came here in 1983.

Link:
Link:

Discussion Topics and Questions:

1. Why was Secretary of State Madeleine Albright apprehensive about the Washington Speakers Bureau? Here she had been the Secretary of State and had spoken to global leaders and their assembled audiences. What was different about this?

2. How odd it must have been for Secretary Albright to be driving herself without any special security detail? Isn't it odd that Secretary of States do not get continued security detail for a certain length of time and a retirement salary? Your thoughts?


Link:

"A speechmaker’s gravest sin is to leave the listener indifferent. I was determined not to be dull. - Secretary of State Madelyn Albright

Marie Jana Korbelová May 15, 1937 Prague, Czechoslovakia



More:
This Day in History
Link:

by Madeleine K. Albright

Source: Youtube, History.com

Madeleine Albright's father - Josef Korbel with Tito


Josef Korbel with Josip Broz Tito, then head of the Yugoslav Federal People's Republic. Korbel who had been a close aide to Czchoslovak Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk in the WWII government-in-exile in London, became first Czechoslovak post-war ambassador - (Photo by: Sovfoto/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Albright's Family Tragedy Comes to Light
By Michael Dobbs
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 4, 1997

Madeleine Korbel Albright was almost 2 years old when her parents whisked her out of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, less than two weeks after the Nazi occupation, giving up their life as a prominent Czech diplomatic family and saying goodbye to many relatives. Eventually, she and her parents came to America, where Madeleine followed in her father's footsteps into a diplomatic career that culminated two weeks ago when President Clinton made her the first female secretary of state.

Albright has spoken movingly of her past and of the importance that her family's experience with Nazis and later Communists has had on her political views. But she says she never was aware of what happened to family members who stayed behind in Czechoslovakia: Research by The Washington Post shows that more than a dozen relatives, including three grandparents, were killed as Jewish victims of the Holocaust.

In an interview last week, Albright, who was raised a Roman Catholic and now is an Episcopalian, said her father and mother never talked to her or her two siblings about the relatives' fate or their Jewish background. She said she found the new information "fairly compelling" but wanted to conduct her own research into her family and its fate. "Obviously it is a very personal matter for my family and brother and sister and my children," she said.

"The only thing I have to go by is what my mother and father told me, how I was brought up," Albright said.

She said her parents said of her relatives only that they died "during the course of the war."

Albright defended the choices her parents made and said she cannot question their motivation. "I believe that my parents did wonderful things for us," she said.

The new information was uncovered during research for an article for The Washington Post Magazine, scheduled for publication Sunday, about Albright's family's experiences in Czechoslovakia in the late 1930s and 1940s. The information is based on documents in German, Czech and Jewish archives, Auschwitz transportation lists, and interviews with friends and family members in Europe.

Captured Nazi documents now in the possession of Holocaust researchers show that close relatives of Albright's who remained behind in Czechoslovakia during World War II – including the grandparents, her uncle and aunt, and a first cousin – died in Nazi concentration camps. Albright, who was born in Prague in 1937, spent the war years in London, returning with her family to Czechoslovakia in 1945 after its liberation from the Germans. Her parents were granted political asylum in the United States in 1948 after a communist coup in Czechoslovakia.

Albright comes from a family of Czech Jews who owned a building materials business before World War II, according to interviews in the family's home village. Albright's father probably embraced Roman Catholicism around the time of the war, according to Josef Marek, who worked closely with Albright's father immediately after the war.

Like many other assimilated Czech Jews, Albright's father, Josef Korbel, considered himself a Czechoslovak patriot first and rarely referred to his religious background. Under the racial laws introduced by the Nazis following the takeover of Czechoslovakia, however, a family like the Korbels would have been considered 100 percent Jewish.

"I have always thought of myself as a Czechoslovak Catholic," Albright said in the interview Thursday. "My parents were of the generation who thought they were the children of a free Czechoslovakia, the only democracy in central Europe. This was their pride [and] that is what I grew up with."

Albright said that she had received a number of letters with information about her family background since the 1989 collapse of communism in Czechoslovakia and particularly since 1993, when her name began appearing in the papers as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Some of the letters contained erroneous information, such as the claim that she was born in Belgrade.

In this context, Albright had also received "the occasional letter which would say something about the fact that my family was of Jewish origin," she said. "This obviously has become more intense the more my name has been in the paper and [in connection with] my current job [as secretary of state]."

Jewish Origins Cited

The question of Albright's religious background was raised in December by Arab newspapers, which cited unsourced reports of her Jewish origins as a basis for attacking her nomination as secretary of state. Questioned about these reports, State Department officials said she had been raised a Roman Catholic and had converted to Episcopalianism following her 1959 marriage to Joseph Medill Patterson Albright, scion of a wealthy newspaper family.

Some Albright relatives and family friends in what is now the Czech Republic said they had long known of her relatives' fate. "My children know very well about every detail," said Dagmar Simova, Albright's first cousin, who stayed behind in Czechoslovakia after the 1948 coup and has had only sporadic contact since then with the American branch of the family.

When Simova learned in the summer of 1945 that her parents and sister – Albright's aunt, uncle and cousin – had died in the Holocaust, Albright was only 8 years old and was considered too young to be told, Simova said.

Family members who died during the Holocaust included Albright's two paternal grandparents, Arnost and Olga Korbel, according to documents made available by a Holocaust research center supported by the Prague Jewish community. The documents and a family friend suggest that Albright's maternal grandmother, Anna Spieglova, was killed by the Nazis as well.

The records, which are based on transportation lists captured from the Nazis at the end of World War II, show that some of Albright's relatives were killed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. Others died of typhoid and malnutrition at a holding camp at Terezin, where Czech Jews were kept before being sent to Auschwitz.

In an unpublished, unfinished 11-page family narrative made available by Albright, her mother made no reference to relatives who died in the Holocaust. In the memoir, written after Josef Korbel's death, in 1977, Mandula Korbel attempted to describe his "turbulent life." The memoir ends abruptly in 1945, just before the Korbel family returned to Prague from London.

The manuscript describes in detail how Albright's parents succeeded in leaving Czechoslovakia in March 1939 with their nearly 2-year-old daughter, 10 days after the Nazi invasion. Mandula Korbel recalled that her husband returned to Prague from England just two days before the invasion.

"With the help of some good friends and lots of luck and a little bribery . . . we managed to get the necessary Gestapo permission to leave the country," wrote Mandula Korbel, who died in 1989.

Roundup of Czech Jews

Albright's chances of surviving the Holocaust had she and her parents stayed in Czechoslovakia would have been very slim. The German authorities insisted that registrars provide detailed records of everyone of Jewish descent.

Josef Korbel's file at the Foreign Ministry contains a birth certificate issued in March 1941, describing him as "Jewish."

Of the 80,000 Czech Jews who were rounded up and sent to Terezin in 1941 and 1942, the survival rate was approximately 10 percent. Most of the survivors were young men and women who were "selected" to perform various menial tasks at Auschwitz rather than being sent directly to the gas chambers.

While the subject of the Holocaust was evidently too painful for the Korbels to discuss with their children, they apparently did discuss the matter with friends in Yugoslavia, where Josef Korbel served as a diplomat both before and after World War II. Brief references to the tragedy have appeared in the Yugoslav press, based on the reminiscences of a now-deceased Yugoslav journalist, Pavle Jankovic, who was very close to the Korbel family.

Of all the Jewish communities in Eastern Europe, the Czech Jews were probably the most assimilated. Survivors of the Holocaust recall that the Czech Jews went to their deaths at Auschwitz by bursting into song. Roughly one third sang a Jewish anthem; another third sang the Internationale, the anthem of the communist movement; the remaining third sang the Czechoslovak national anthem.

© Copyright 1997 The Washington Post Company

Madeleine - age 10 - Switzerland

In Berkhamsted, (front, from left) George Korbel, Alena Korbelová, Madeleine Albright; (back) Ola Korbelová, Dašá Deimlová, Mandula and Josef Korbel (Albright's father)

Madeleine Albright's parents, Josef and Mandula Korbel

Madeleine Albright and her sister, Kathy, prepared for flow

Madeleine Albright is flanked by her grandmothers, Růžena Spieglová (left) and Olga Körbelová - both of her grandmothers were killed most likely at Auschwitz

Madeleine Albright in The Huffington Post newsroom.
(Damon Dahlen, AOL)

"Without the WSB engagements, I wouldn’t be able to respond to more than a small fraction of the thousands of letters and requests I receive each year; nor could I find time to prepare the many speeches I give for free to public interest groups of every description."


Liza Romanow is Director of Communications to the Chair at ASG. In this role, she manages Dr. Albright’s public events, speaking and media requests, domestic and international trip development, and engagement in a variety of other outside activities.

Discussion Topics and Questions:

1. Were you surprised that Secretaries of State receive nothing after serving their country? Yet they are expected to keep up with their public requests, mail and pro bono work as if they were? Public office in the US is a lot to give. Were there any other parts of the chapter that were surprising? A senator after five years is eligible for some pension depending upon their age.

2. Albright states - "It took me a long time to find my voice, which is why I’m not going to be silent now about the things that I care about." What did she mean by that statement?

3. Were you surprised that someone like Anwar Sadat who was the former president and martyr for peace is not well thought of in Egypt? Or any of the other examples that Albright gave?

More:
Albright's Consulting Group
Link:

Sources: Albright, Madeleine. Hell and Other Destinations (p. 14). Harper. Kindle Edition, Albright's Consulting Group, PBS

Today's progress - June 11th:

Week One: June 8th - June 14th

✓Cover - completed

✓Title Page - completed

✓Dedication - completed

✓Epigraph - completed

✓Preface - completed - The moderator has completed adding discussion questions and ancillary material to all of the above - please feel free to discuss and respond to any of the discussion topics and/or questions

✓1 Afterlife - completed - The moderator has completed adding discussion questions and ancillary material to all of the above - please feel free to discuss and respond to any of the discussion topics and/or questions

✓2 Voice Lessons - completed - The moderator has completed adding discussion questions and ancillary material to all of the above - please feel free to discuss and respond to any of the discussion topics and/or questions

Good night!

Bentley

Please feel free to post anything about the chapters up through page 27 without any spoiler html. If you go ahead - you must use spoiler html or post on the glossary thread. Try your hand at the questions or feel free to discuss your own topic regarding what we have covered thus far.

Next week's assignment is as follows:

Week Two: - June 15th - June 21st

3 From the Ground Up 28

4 "Do Not Be Angry" 45

5 Quicksand 63

Chapter Overviews and Summaries

3 From the Ground Up 28

Secretary of State Albright considers opening up a consulting firm. The firm acquires its first customer and Albright and company start their venture in pharmaceuticals and assist with the war on HIV/AIDS.

4 "Do Not Be Angry" 45

In this chapter, we learn about a previous secretary of state, John Sherman who served under President William McKinley. Sherman wanted to write a memoir; but had no takers - so Secretary of State Albright wanted to learn from his experience and not make it hers. How to write that memoir proves a learning experience.

5 Quicksand 63

Secretary of State Albright is preparing to meet National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice for dinner. The dinner would be delayed. Albright commented that when George W. Bush as president appointed an African American secretary of state as well as appointing and being the first to choose an African American woman as national security advisor; that this was a good moment for the party of Lincoln. The terrorist attack of 9/11 would set the stage for the George W. Bush presidency.

Please feel free to post anything about the chapters up through page 27 without any spoiler html. If you go ahead - you must use spoiler html or post on the glossary thread. Try your hand at the questions or feel free to discuss your own topic regarding what we have covered thus far.

Next week's assignment is as follows:

Week Two: - June 15th - June 21st

3 From the Ground Up 28

4 "Do Not Be Angry" 45

5 Quicksand 63

See you next Monday! - In the meantime feel free to post as much and as often as you wish - introduce yourself and jump into answering any of the questions.

In beginning Hell and Other Destinations I thought that the dedication, To Life by Madeleine Albright was perfect since this book was written as she stepped down from the state department in her mid-sixties knowing that she still had much to offer. This is a book reflective of that time period in her life as she searched for other ways to make a difference in the world.

However, I was especially drawn to the Epigraph by Vaclav Havel, lines from the play, "Leaving" where one talks about the theater and its many "arrivals, departures and returns, entrances and exits, from the wings to the stage, and from the stage to the wings." What a beautiful metaphor for life and for Madeleine Albright's memoir at this stage in her life, particularly as the Epigraph goes on to describe the stage with "gates, fences, walls, windows, and, of course, doors." As it is talking about borders and walls and what lies on the other side to be explored. I loved the significance of this beautiful epigraph on the life of, not only Madeleine Albright, but also of Vaclav Havel.

Madeleine Albright, at the age of two, emigrated with her family from Czechoslovakia to the United States. It was later learned that her extended family in Europe all died in Nazi concentration camps. Vaclav Havel was a very important political leader and a powerful voice in Central Europe during this time, as he rejected Communist rule and ideology, whether it be in his many books and plays, or as a leader in the worker's resistance. Havel eventually became the first president of post-communist Czechoslovakia and when the country split in 1993, he became the first president of the Czech Republic. A few years ago, we had the pleasure of spending a week in the beautiful city of Prague, able to immerse ourselves in the history of this beautiful city.

Beautiful post and yes beautiful Prague. By the way - I never realized Albright's connection to Havel until starting to read this book. If you scroll back there is a photo of a very young Madeleine with her two grandmothers - both who perished during the Holocaust. Very sad.

Hi I'm Kathy joining the book club from Vermont USA. I just started the book today and I'm already almost through Chapter 5. The book is very enjoyable to read. I usually don't read memoirs but Madeleine Albright's style is engaging and witty. I've always had enormous admiration for her and have watched her many times getting interviewed about various international affairs. I've always respected her opinions and insights.

Getting to know her better by reading one of her memoirs will be a rewarding experience and I'm glad I decided to join this book club thread. Thanks for recommending this book!