Circle William: A Novel - Hardcover

Harlow, Bill

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0684850397 ISBN 13: 9780684850399

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 1999

Synopsis

Jim Schmidt is a master of spin. As White House press secretary, his job is to cajole, sweet-talk, and otherwise persuade the nation's most powerful journalists to play a story the way the White House wants it played. Jim's younger brother, Bill, is equally skillful, but in a different realm. He's the charismatic captain of the USS Winston Churchill, and he leads an able but rambunctious crew with a penchant for causing well-publicized "liberty incidents" around the Mediterranean. Both men instinctively understand their jobs, but more important, they understand power and how it works: He who controls the facts controls the response. So when the United States learns of a Libyan plot to drop a planeload of chemical weapons on the Israeli Knesset, the brothers - thousands of miles apart - unexpectedly find themselves working together to defuse the plan. Their first step is to set "Circle William, " a Navy phrase meaning to prepare for chemical, germ, or nuclear attack. As Jim huddles with the country's top defense and intelligence officials to plot a viable strategy to prevent the strike, Bill, on the front lines of the crisis, prepares to implement the plan. Complicating their mission is the inconvenient presence of Sue O'Dell, a smart "Washington Post" Style reporter who wants to write a feature on the commander and his notorious ship.

About this title

Review:

Marlin Fitzwater former White House press secretaryBill Harlow has captured the essence of almost every personality type the White House and Navy have to offer, with the uncanny authenticity of a man who knows both institutions intimately. True Washington insiders will recognize every character in "Circle William." And he put them to great use, in a first-rate tale of high seas adventure and high White House intrigue.

From the Author:

Insiders look at the White House, military, and terrorism.
"Circle William takes place in the White House, the Pentagon, and onboard a U.S. Navy ship in the Mediterranean. Many previous thrillers have used similar settings. What makes this book unusual is that the author has worked in all those locations. As a Navy Captain, Assistant White House Press Secretary, Pentagon Spokesman, and U.S. Navy spokesman in London, I was fortunate enough to see and do some extraordinary things. I've tried to give the reader a sense of what life is like when you are at the center of power and all hell breaks loose.

Circle William is my first novel. I worked on it nights and weekends during my last year in uniform. After completing the first draft, I got up my courage to show it to a well-known journalist with who I have worked. He read Circle William in a single night and said he loved it. He asked if I minded if he mentioned it to his publisher. Mind? Within days a copy of the manuscript was in the hands of an editor at Scribner. He too read it in a single sitting and told me my story was going to be a book. Within a matter of weeks I had a more accurately, I have taken a new one. After retiring from the Navy I became the chief spokesman for the Central Intelligence Agency.

The term "Circle William" refers to steps Navy ships take when they are preparing to defend themselves against chemical, biologicial or nuclear attack. The book "Circle William" is about two brothers, one the White House Press Secretary and the other the commanding officer of the destroyer USS WINSTON CHURCHILL. Together they try to defend against a threat of a Libyan chemical weapons attack. I became a great admirer of Winston Churchill during the three and a half years when I was posted to London. The U.S. Navy is building a ship which will bear Churchills name. The ship will enter service late in the year 2000.

Drawing upon my 25 years in the U.S. Navy and especially the four years I spent in the White House, I have tried to paint a realistic picture of how the highest levels of government deal with a life or death crisis. I have been gratified by the praise that "Circle William" has received. Bob Woodward of right, and the White House right. I love this book. It's a terrific read -- all done with great seriousness while capturing the humor in the personalities who reside in some of the places of power or semi-power." The book has also been read by President Clinton and former Presidents Bush and Carter. I hope you too will find "Circle William" factual, fast paced, and fun.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0684850397
• ISBN 13: 9780684850399
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320