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Title: Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power by Lou Cannon ISBN: 1-58648-030-8 Publisher: PublicAffairs Pub. Date: 16 September, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $30.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (9 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Sober, fair, intelligent work.
Comment: Remember all the commotion when DUTCH, the biography of
Ronald Reagan written by Edmund Morris, was released?
Morris had played an unforgiveable trick on his readers by
fictionalizing large sections of his book, arguing that
it was the only way he could come to grips with or partially
explain certain aspects of Reagan's life and psyche.
By so doing, Morris may have made a ton of money just from the
publicity such an unusual approach generated, but he made
his work utterly worthless, and in no small way, damaged forever
his reputation as a historian (I, for one, will never read
another book by him simply because I would find it hard to
know what is real and what Morris has made up).
Lou Cannon, on the other hand, who has been following Reagan
since his California days, is a student in the old, honored
traditional school of political biography. His research is
copious, his writing compelling (I actually think he becomes
a better writer with each book), and his judgements are
fair; so fair, in fact, that this book will probably
anger those who idolized Reagan as well as those who detested
him. For everyone else, Cannon's book is an instructive
exploration of how one of the most successul American politicians of the American Century worked.
It is hard to come away from this book without the impression
that some political leaders just have sharper political
instincts than others; that it is an art, not a science, and
perhaps cannot be taught.
It is also hard, upon reaching the end of Cannon's latest,
to not feel that the writer represents the best of political
journalism, the kind once defined by Theodore White in his
famous "Making of the President" series, and, today, perhaps
only by David Broder.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand
how effective political leadership in a democratic republic works, and why Reagan (hint: he was often underestimated by
his foes) thrived so well in our particular form of
celebrity-driven politics.
Rating: 4
Summary: Detailed, sympathetic but not uncritical account
Comment: Cannon began reporting on Reagan as a journalist in California, and the depth of his knowledge about the President is significant. This book expands on the earlier section of his presidential biography "Ronald Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime" and focuses mainly on Reagan's governorship in California and the interlude before he became President. It is an interesting insight into Reagan's early experience in the political process, and ably characterises how Reagan sought to run an administration. The insights into Reagan's (generally positive) environmental record whilst in Sacramento are also particularly illuminating for those only familiar with his subsequent legacy as President - and Cannon offers some slightly scary insight into how this change in policy approach may have been wrought by a casual delegation approach from Reagan himself. The writing is generally sympathetic to Reagan without being overtly biased in a political sense. The book provides a helpful background to understanding the Reagan Presidency and several of the key players around Reagan who came to Washington from California.
Rating: 2
Summary: Could be better
Comment: This doesn't inspire me the way it should. I want to see how Reagan became the greatest president that ever ruled the earth. There should be more details on how his way of thinking was formed, so that we can teach our children in the same way.
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Title: President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime by Lou Cannon ISBN: 1891620916 Publisher: PublicAffairs Pub. Date: 04 April, 2000 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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Title: Reagan: A Life in Letters by Kiron K. Skinner, Annelise Anderson, Martin Anderson, George P. Shultz ISBN: 074321966X Publisher: Free Press Pub. Date: 23 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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Title: Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Champion of Freedom by Conrad Black ISBN: 1586481843 Publisher: PublicAffairs Pub. Date: November, 2003 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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Title: How Ronald Reagan Changed My Life by Peter Robinson ISBN: 0060523999 Publisher: Regan Books Pub. Date: 05 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Grand Old Party : A History of the Republicans by LEWIS GOULD ISBN: 0375507418 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 04 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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