Fo z o rM<br >l)urit~g 191~2 and 1983， those of us who earn our livelihoods<br >clldcd()~ il].~， 1o adv;.tllCe the practice of n]anagenlenl had tO con-<br >tent ourselves with sideline persf)ectives on the epic corporate<br >drama then unf<)lding withita AT&T.<br > From the outside we could， of course， track the main events<br >~)tthc government s suit leading to the divestiture agreement. And<br >duc in no small part to excellent reporting in the nation s media，<br >~ ，ve could tk)ll()w the malaifold financial， organizational， and mar-<br >k~:tlflacc conscctucnces flowit-~g from the accord.<br > What wc did not have v~ere any real insights as to how dives-<br >timrc， in all its daunting complexity， was being planned and orga-<br >l~izcd， or hoxv it inighI ever be managed in so short a period under<br >SUCh cxll(q/le prCSSlll es.<br > Nc>v， with Brooke Tunstall s rifle account， we at last have a<br >lirsth:md perspective a highly readable chronicle of the manage<br > ment of dixestiturc. 1)isco~zpz~，cting Parties provides an insider s<br >icxvp<)int on cxents that will be of intense interest to the man<br >agcmcm commut~ity: the t)lanning m-~d execution of the break up，<br > vii<br >