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About

AGE OF DANGER

Bestselling author Thom Shanker and defense expert Andrew Hoehn offer an urgent look at how America’s national security machine went astray and how it fails to keep us safe in their new, timely book AGE OF DANGER.

Again and again, American taxpayers are asked to open their wallets and pay for a national security machine that costs $1.25 trillion to operate. How is it possible that the United States Government gets it so wrong on so many critical issues, and so often? And if our expensive national security machine is not working, what can be done?

Enter Thom Shanker, bestselling author and former New York Times editor, along with Andrew Hoehn, RAND SVP of Research and Analysis and former Pentagon official, who have not only decades of national security expertise between them, but access to virtually every expert with something valuable to say.

Age of Danger is on sale now. Order your copy from your favorite retailer here.

 

If our expensive national security machine is not working, what can be done?

Age of Danger looks at the major challenges facing America—from superpowers like Russia and China to emerging threats like pandemics, cybersecurity, climate change, and drones—and reimagines the national security apparatus into something that can truly keep Americans safe. After several decades focused primarily on the imminent threat of terrorism, it is time for America to once again be forward thinking in its national security, before we lose pace with a new generation of threats. Weaving together expert analysis with exclusive interviews from a who’s who of national security, including Robert Gates, Stanley McChrystal, Eric Schmidt, and Michael Leiter, Shanker and Hoehn argue that the United States must create an industrial-grade, life-saving machine out of a system that, for too long, was focused only on  deterring adversaries and carrying out global military operations.

 

It is a timely and crucial call to action, a call that if heeded, could save Americans lives, money, and our very future on the global stage.

PRAISE FOR

AGE OF DANGER

 “One of the best new books out there right now in national security.”— Andrew Schwartz, The Truth of the Matter Podcast

“A sobering, intelligent analysis from two experts who know whereof they write.”
— Frank Bruni, The New York Times

Consistently interesting on the government’s evolving understanding of these problems and how attitudes and efforts to address them have developed over time.” —Lawrence D. Freedman, historian and author

“Written in a style that will appeal to a wide range of readers, from the layperson to the policy expert, Age of Danger will no doubt help all who care about this nation’s security and prosperity to find a way to make that a reality…[Hoehn & Shanker] have written a book that is truly a must read.

The Cipher Brief

“An instructive deep dive into a system that requires vast improvement efforts.”
— Kirkus Reviews

Hoehn and Shanker make a powerful case …They clearly define a new outlook, and the new set of institutional tools to manage the Age of Danger in which we find ourselves today.”
Chuck Hagel, former Secretary of Defense

“A knowledgeable and convincing tour of where and how America’s safeguards should be strengthened.”
— Publishers Weekly

In this timely volume, two leading experts help us think through new approaches to tune up the vast machine of national security.”

Admiral James Stavridisformer NATO Supreme Allied Commander and author of 2034: A Novel of the Next World War

Creative and thought-provoking, this book is a must read for students, policy practitioners and concerned citizens alike.”

Michele Flournoyformer Under Secretary of Defense for Policy

Age of Danger leaves us with no excuses…This is a clear, direct, and understandable must-read for anyone concerned about the nation’s security.”

William “Mac” Thornberryformer chairman of the House Armed Services Committee

Where to Buy Age of Danger:

About The Authors

Andrew Hoehn, Author of Age of Danger

ANDREW HOEHN is senior vice president and director of research at the RAND Corporation. He is the former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy where he was responsible for developing and implementing US force planning and assessments in addition to long- range policy planning.

Thom Shanker, Author of Age of Danger

THOM SHANKER is the director of the Project for Media and National Security. He is the former national security and foreign policy editor for The New York Times’ Washington Bureau, and he is coauthor of the The New York Times bestseller Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda.

Recent Events & Media:

THE CIPHER BRIEF'S 2023 GIFT GUIDE

Age of Danger is featured in The Cipher Brief’s Best Reads of 2023 Gift Guide! A great holiday gift for the nonfiction readers in your life.

REVIEW: Foreign Affairs

The book is consistently interesting on the government’s evolving understanding of these problems and how attitudes and efforts to address them have developed over time.”

TOWN HALL: LA WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCIL

A discussion moderated by Jim Thomson, LAWACTH Board Member and President Emeritus of the RAND Corporation, with a live audience q&a. 

Q&A: RAND REVIEW

Read RAND’s Q&A with authors Andrew Hoehn and Thom Shanker about Age of Danger. 

PROTECTING AMERICA IN THE AGE OF DANGER: THE GLOBAL DETAIL

A discussion with Hoehn & Shanker. Watch the full talk now.

EXCERPT: IS THE WARNING CLOCK ON OUR NATIONAL DEFENSE RUNNING OUT?

Read an excerpt of Age of Danger in RealClear Defense now.

LIST: THE BEST NATIONAL SECURITY BEACH READS OF THE SUMMER

NEED A GOOD BEACH READ? Things are heating up in the literary world this summer, so in case you’re headed to the beach or the pool to cool off, we thought you might be interested in what national security experts consider the best reads of the summer.” — The Cipher Brief

ARTICLE: NEW PIECE IN DEFENSENEWS BY HOEN & SHANKER

Are cheap drones the answer to tension in the Taiwan Strait?

EXCERPT: CLIMATE SECURITY IS NATIONAL SECURITY

Read an essay adapted from an excerpt of Age of Danger by Andrew Hoehn & Thom Shanker.

PODCAST: HOT WASH

In this episode of “Hot Wash” host John Sorensen speaks with Hoehn and Shanker about the “Warning Machine” and the “Action Machine” in the National Security and Defense apparatus. Where does it fail, what is it missing, and how do we fix it to prepare for new challenges like the pacing threat of China, the potential of new pandemics, cyber and AI, as well as climate change?

PODCAST: SHIELD OF THE REPUBLIC

 The authors of Age of Danger discuss why we are entering an age of greater danger than we have known since the end of the Cold War, the nature of the government’s machinery for warning and action in the national security realm, the feasibility and desirability of “whole-of-government” and “whole-of-society” solutions to these looming national security challenges, the legacy of Andrew Marshall (the director of the Pentagon’s Office of Net Assessment for 40 years), the role of cost-imposing strategies and the use of attritable unmanned aircraft and sensors for deterring the PRC in the Taiwan Strait, the nature of “unobtanium”, and the Russian war on Ukraine.

FEATURED IN THE FLETCHER SCHOOL MIXED MEDIA LIST

“Timely and incisive, this examination of America’s national security machine asks why it so often fails in its mandate to keep the country safe.”

RADIO: NPR MORNING EDITION

Listen to NPR’s Steve Inskeep speak with Thom Shanker about the threats artificial intelligence poses to national security on “Morning Edition”.

NEW REVIEW: THE CIPHER BRIEF

REVIEW – At a time when the United States faces unprecedented threats to its security and prosperity, we all are in search of a book that will help us understand how we arrived at this precarious position, what spectrum of dangers face us, and what this nation must do to most effectively deal with these threats.”

PODCAST: THE CIPHER BRIEF

Listen Andrew Hoehn & Thom Shanker talk with The Cipher Brief  about how to address the challenges the United States faces from Russia and China – and from emerging threats like pandemics, AI-enabled weapons and cybersecurity.

PAST EVENT: POLITICS & PROSE

Hoehn and Shanker discussed Age of Danger at D.C. independent bookstore Politics & Prose on Saturday, May 13th.
Watch the full recording of the event at the link below.

PAST EVENT: TUESDAY, MAY 30TH

Join the Scowcroft Center’s ForwardDefense program for their latest event titled “Prevailing in an Age of Danger.” This event will take place on Tuesday, May 30, 2023 from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. ET in-person and via Zoom

The discussion will feature Thom Shanker & Andrew Hoehn, alongside a distinguished panel of experts, as they discuss how US leaders should craft strategies and policies to prepare for and address emerging security issues. For more info and to sign up for the event, click the link below. 

PODCAST: CHATTER ON BOOKS

“National security veterans of many years, Hoehn and Shanker break down the major challenges the U.S. faces and what should be done about them. The takeaway? Be afraid. And somewhat encouraged.”

PODCAST: THE BURN BAG

Listen to the latest episode of The Burn Bag, featuring conversation with Andrew Hoehn and Thom Shanker on Age of Danger and how they would retool the $1.25 trillion national security machine to be better able at addressing those threats.

Contact

Publicity:
Michael Giarratano
Assistant Director of Publicity
Hachette Books
Michael.Giarratano@hbgusa.com
Representation:
Bonnie Nadell
Hill Nadell Literary Agency
bonnie@hillnadell.com
(310)860-9605