From the publisher: "Drawing on her own memory, her parents’ written reflections, interviews with contemporaries, and newly-available documents, former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright recounts a tale that is by turns harrowing and inspiring. Before she turned twelve, Madeleine Albright’s life was shaken by some of the most cataclysmic events of the 20th century: the Nazi invasion of her native Prague, the attempted genocide of European Jewry, the allied victory in World War II, the rise of communism, and the onset of the Cold War. These events of enormous complexity are shaped by concepts familiar to any growing child: fear, trust, adaptation, the search for identity, the pressure to conform, the quest for independence, and the difference between right and wrong. Albright and her family’s experiences provide an intensely human lens through which to view the most political and tumultuous years in modern history."

Ginger says: I’m on record as only making pleasurable New Year’s resolutions. Throughout the years, I’ve made it my goal to wear real pajamas, drink only out of my finest tea cups all year long, and watch all the rom-coms I’ve missed. But this year, I decided to finally put to good use all the brooches I’ve been collecting since childhood. And I’ve turned to the late diplomat Madeleine Albright’s memoir-in-pins for inspiration. She talks about politics, of course, but through the lens of when she decided to wear a snake brooch to a particular meeting, or a piece of turquoise to honor her guests at another assembly. I’m starting to see the way you can say so much without having to move your mouth. Instead, read my pins.