THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2024 27 Note that we can feature only one book by each author. For inclusion, books must be available for purchase, and we use publisher list prices as of press time in late October. Also note: Inclusion of a book in this collection does not imply endorsement by AFSA or the FSJ. AFSA welcomes the opportunity to share the news of books published by members of the FS community but does not vouch for the contents of the books. is year, in addition to seven works of history or biography and eight books on policy and issues, we have 12 memoirs, 24 works of ction (including eight for children and young adults), six guidebooks and self-help, and two volumes of poetry. We also include a “Grab Bag” section of essay collections, academic books, cookbooks, and others that didn’t quite t any of our standard categories. As always, we also o er a selection of recent books “of related interest” to diplomats and their families that were not written by FS authors. It takes a village to put this collection together. is year, it was assembled by Publications Coordinator and Content Strategist Hannah Harari. ITOW blurbs were written by Deputy Editor Donna Gorman and ORI blurbs by former FSJ Editor in Chief Steve Honley. — e FSJ Team TheForeign Service Journal is pleased to present our 23rd annual Foreign Service authors roundup. With “In eir Own Write,” we celebrate the wealth of literary talent within the Foreign Service community and give our readers the opportunity to support their storytelling colleagues. Many of these titles, in particular the memoirs, are excellent resources for anyone contemplating a career in international a airs. And the list comes to you in time for your holiday shopping. Each entry contains full publication details along with a brief commentary sent to us by the author. All listed prices are for the paperback edition unless there is only a hardcover edition; and where an e-book is available that is noted. is year our list of books written, edited, or translated by Foreign Service personnel and their family members stands at 65. e list is not a de nitive record of works by FS authors. As always, we rely on the authors themselves to bring their books to our attention. If your recent book is not listed here, please let us know, and we can add it to next year’s collection. We accept submissions for the November FSJ all year—for more information, email journal@afsa.org. MEMOIRS Another Brazil Heard From: Voices and Insights from the Brazilian Countryside Susan K. Brems and Fred G. Brems, Olympia Publishers, 2024, $20.99/ paperback, e-book available, 292 pages. Susan and Fred Brems lived in the state of Ceará in northeast Brazil for 17 months, when Susan was posted there as an FSO with USAID from 1989 to 1990. is book is a compilation of letters the couple penned describing their life and work in this little-known enclave, where she was a researcher on fertility and health among rural women and he was a high school teacher. e letters shine a light on the socioeconomic and political landscape of Brazil in the early 1990s, the everyday lives and struggles of the people who lived and worked there, and the couple’s own experiences as residents of such a community. e stark di erences between northeast Brazilian and American cultures are illustrated with deference, humor, and self-re ection. Susan Brems is a retired USAID Senior Foreign Service o cer. During her 25-year career, she served in Lima, La Paz, Managua, Luanda, Lusaka, Manila, and Washington, D.C. Her husband, Fred Brems, is an educator, researcher, and photographer. After retiring in 2017, the couple moved to Durham, North Carolina. An American Tune: A Memoir J. Michael Cleverley, independently published, 2024, $26.99/paperback, print only, 274 pages. An American Tune tells the story of retired Senior Foreign Service O cer J. Michael Cleverley’s nearly 30 years living and working in Europe and Africa, focusing on his assignments as deputy chief of mission in Helsinki, Athens, and Rome. e memoir o ers an insider’s view of critical conjunctures in the years following World War II. Much has changed since those decades—but perhaps not so much as one would think. Many of the issues the Foreign Service wrestled with then, both internally and diplomatically, remain. J. Michael Cleverley served in Rome, Athens, Helsinki, Pretoria, London, and Milan. He holds master’s degrees from
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