Final Cover Art for "US Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory"

I am delighted to finally unveil the updated cover art for my forthcoming book, US Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory.

Over the past several months I have been working with the team at Manchester University Press to arrive at this dynamic, impactful design that perfectly encapsulates what the book seeks to convey. They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but in this case I am prepared to make an exception!

I hope you will consider pre-ordering the book, which is available at all leading outlets, and discovering the hidden policy initiative that binds the Trump adminstration to that of Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon.

Advance Praise for "US Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory"

I am delighted that people are starting to say some very nice things about my forthcoming book, US Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory, to be published on May 5 by Manchester University Press.

Fredrik Logevall, the Pulitzer Prize winning author and Harvard University professor, observed that the book was a "provocative and insightful examination of the Madman Theory as it developed under Richard Nixon and helps drive policy in the second Trump administration today."

John Bew CMG, Professor of History & Foreign Policy at King’s College London, the Prime Minister’s Foreign Policy Advisor (2020-2025), and award winning author of Citizen Clem, and Realpolitik: A History, noted that the book was a “provocative, non-partisan examination of the development and enactment of the madman theory as US grand strategy that places contemporary policy debates within a comparative historical framework.”

Tom Wells, esteemed author of Wild Man: The Life and Times of Daniel Ellsberg and the forthcoming The Kissinger Tapes: Inside His Secretly Recorded Phone Conversations, referred to the book as being a “perceptive, intelligent, and engaging history of the intellectual roots and uses of threats of extreme military force by the Eisenhower, Nixon, and Trump administrations.”  

Amie Parnes, the brilliant Senior Correspondent at The Hill, and co-author of several remarkable books, including Fight: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House and Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the White House noted how the book “traces the arc of American foreign policy through the lens of leaders who blurred the line between unpredictability and calculated madness.” She praised the way the text “deftly explores how the “madman” approach—long dismissed or misunderstood—was not just theater, but grand strategy.” Praising the prescient time of the publication, she concluded that it was “essential reading for anyone trying to make sense of the last sixty years of American power—and where it’s headed next.”

Brian Klaas, contributing writer at The Atlantic, Professor of Global Politics at University College London, and author of Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters, Corruptible: Who Gets Power and How It Changes Us, and The Despot's Apprentice: Donald Trump's Attack on Democracy, observed that “Donald Trump has blown up the traditional world order, detonating everything we thought we knew about US foreign policy. James Boys explains how and why that has happened by drawing on Madman Theory and exploring whether there can ever be a method to apparent diplomatic madness. Fascinating, essential reading to understand grand strategy in a world upended by Trump. Boys is an authoritative, riveting guide.”

Be sure to pre-order your own copy and draw your own conclusions on a book that provides a roadmap for Donald Trump’s actions as president and the impact that this is having on the world around us.

New Book Now Available for Pre-Order

I am delighted to reveal that my new book, US Grand Strategy & the Madman Theory, which will be published shortly by Manchester University Press, is now available for pre-order from all leading bookstores. This includes, but is not limited to the following stores, all of which can be clicked upon to purchase the book right now:

Barnes & Noble

Waterstones

Hatchards

Foyles

Amazon UK

Amazon USA