Diary of a Foreign Minister

Reviewed By  Janet Mawdesley       May 15, 2014

 

Author  Bob Carr

Distributor:     
ISBN:                 9781742234175
Publisher:         New South Publishers
Release Date:    

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Now all the uproar associated with the launch of Bob Carr’s latest book has died down you can sit back and take a look at just what he has offered in the endless amount of words placed on paper.

As a well-respected politician of several decades, and an household name in Australia for the twenty years he held the position of Premier of New South Wales, Carr has held the respect of the Australian Public, not just for his work in the political area but as a man of intellect, integrity and as we are discovering, words.

Just what would provoke this amount of words about his 18 months as the Foreign Minister for Australia under the Rudd/Gillard/Rudd government still leaves one wondering.

For the lovers of political miniature, they will enjoy this carefully documented log of his daily activities for the 18 months of his whirlwind courtship with the leaders of the rest of the World; how he travelled, his workload, what he ate; obviously a man who takes his health and diet very seriously; his general observations of life in other political arenas, coupled with his often very pithy comments on so much of what is fleetingly written across the pages of what, in time, may be called history. Right now it is simply the recent past.

Scattered amongst the trivial are some real gems; lovely waspish comments on various aspects of political life, the people he met and associated with; how other countries and leaders of the world regard Australia.

His very wry and curt comments on the final days of the Labour party’s leadership are well worth reading, as Carr has been a dedicated and loyal Labour supporter since he was 15 years of age, it could be considered he has earned the right to his comments.

Carr’s reflections of the final day of polling in recent Australian elections, seeing the Labour party ousted with little ado, and his term in office drawn to a close are very telling of the man himself.

In Russia on his final trip as Foreign Minister, he is taken to a place of remembrance, Piskarovskoye, where thousands died for the right to have political freedom, and reflects on how trivial his own position, in a time of peaceful political change in Australia with the rest of his life ahead.

Well worth the read, as there are some very salient and interesting facts hidden in the pages, that not only are documented in history somewhere or will be, but help give a better and clearer understanding about the role the Foreign Minister has to play in world politics and the ever changing landscape that is and always will be, world politics.