Prophet

The Hatmaker’s Son: The Life of Robert Muller
Douglas Gillies

This powerful biography unfolds with the brisk pace of an engrossing novel.  It tells the story of one man who followed his dream and made a big difference to change the world for the good.  It stands proudly as an example for all of us.

Robert Muller was the quintessential global citizen, long before it was fashionable to make that claim.  Born into an age of turbulence between two world wars on the disputed border between Germany and France, who would become fierce combatants in the years to follow, Robert fought with distinction in the French Resistance, and learned to hate the violence and the killing, so that at the end of it all, he swore he would devote the rest of his life to promote peace.  This biography, skillfully written with a sure hand by Douglas Gillies, takes us inside the struggles of this exceptional young man, who, after his wartime experience, leaves the familiarity of his childhood home and family to join a fledgling new organization, the United Nations, operating at that time in 1948 out of an old war factory at Lake Success in New York in far off America. Little did he know at that time that over the next 40 years he would rise to the highest rank in the UN Secretariat of Assistant Director General and become loved and respected around the world for his brilliance, compassion, and devotion to the cause of peace.  This biography tells the story of the young Robert Muller in which we see clearly the character and courage of the man who would go on to high office.  It speaks to the highest values of our human condition as inspiration to all.