Description
Presentation copy of Present at the Creation by Dean Acheson, inscribed to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Edward J. Perkins.
Octavo, xiv, [4], 798 pp. Blue cloth, title in gilt on spine. Lacking first edition statement on copyright page, number line starting at 2. Occasional underlining and notes from Ambassador Perkins, yellow post-it notes at various points. In publisher’s dust jacket, $15.00 retail price on front flap, touch of toning to spine, a near fine example.
Inscribed to Ambassador Edward Perkins while serving as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations by the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, Joseph Verner Reed, Jr.: “For Ambassador Edward J. Perkins and Lucy Perkins, I admire and appreciate you both as you two effectively represent, celebrate and also embody classical American strength and virtues. Your friend, Joseph Verner Reed. Under-Secretary-General United Nations IX-92.”
Dr. Edward J. Perkins (1928-2020) served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, as well as Liberia, South Africa, and Australia throughout his 25-year foreign service career. In 1986 President Ronald Reagan appointed Perkins to serve as ambassador to South Africa in hopes of fending off a congressional override to his veto of economic sanctions against the country. It was a controversial decision amidst apartheid in South Africa, and many Black leaders urged Perkins to not take the role. Perkins accepted the position and served until 1989, one year before Nelson Mandela was released from prison. He was appointed U.N. Ambassador by George H. Bush in 1992, serving for one year.
The author of this book, Dean Acheson (1893-1971) served as Secretary of State for President Harry S. Truman. He was instrumental in defining foreign policy for the United States during the Cold War. Acheson’s memoir, Present at the Creation, won the Pulitzer Prize for history in 1970.
