The making of a public man.

• Author: McMahan, Vance

The Making of a Public Man.

The Making of a Public Man. Sol M. Linowitz. Little, Brown, $19.95. Sol Linowitz is a lawyer with a good resume. In his spare time, he's worked for five U.S. presidents, in jobs ranging from associate general counsel in the Office of Price Administration to, more recently, President Carter's special representative to the Panama Canal Treaty and Middle East peace negotiations. He helped build a small company in the unknown field of electrography into the international corporation, Xerox.

Unfortunately, having an impressive resume doesn't mean you can tell an interesting story. It is unclear why Linowitz wrote this book, for most of the important events he describes have been covered more interestingly elsewhere. Only in a desultory and limited way does Linowitz discuss the attitudes, values, and experiences that motivated him to devote so much time to public service. For example, while proclaiming a deep involvement in Judaism, he doesn't reveal in any detail the effect of his faith on his life.

What is interesting about the book, and about the author's life, is the manner in which experience in government and business complement each other. During his wartime stint in the Office of Price Administration, Linowitz hammered out rent control policies and renegotiated contracts with government suppliers. He used this government experience when he moved over to Xerox, where he negotiated the intricate licensing of xerography patents. In turn, as the key actor in setting up Xerox International, Linowitz's...