The Chancellor

¿An intimate, insightful portrait of an extraordinarily private leader¿ WALTER ISAACSONFrom the bestselling author of Enemies of the PeopleAn intimate and deeply researched account of the extraordinary rise and political brilliance of the most powerful ¿ and elusive ¿ woman in the world.Angela Merkel has always been an outsider. A pastor¿s daughter raised in Soviet-controlled East Germany, she spent her twenties working as a research chemist, only entering politics after the fall of the Berlin Wall. And yet within fifteen years, she had become chancellor of Germany and, before long, the unofficial leader of the West.Acclaimed author Kati Marton sets out to pierce the mystery of this unlikely ascent. With unparalleled access to the chancellor¿s inner circle and a trove of records only recently come to light, she teases out the unique political genius that is the secret to Merkel¿s success. No other modern leader has so ably confronted authoritarian aggression, enacted daring social poli