5 comments about Exit With Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan (Right Wing in America).

1. The book is just over 200 pages of text, so detail is obviously lacking. In addition some statements/ideas are repeated verbatim, as if I didn't get the point. If you are somewhat interested in the 80's or Reagan this is a decent starting point. Think of it as the Cliff Notes on Reagan.



2. The author only gives credit to Reagan for restoring America's pride. He also presents the same myth about "mortgaging our future" with the national debt. Hey historians, if we've mortgaged our future, why is the economy so strong today? If you make 50,000 with 5,000 in debt, are you better off making 500,000 with 25,000 in debt?



3. After reading this book, I was left to wonder: What did RR really do while president? The book is written from the middle, but with an emphasis toward the positive aspects of RR's presidency, with small amounts of negativity thrown in for balance. The book doesn't talk much about any one subject. A good quick primer on this mediocre president who will go down in history as one of the most divisive, deceptive presidents of our country.



4. If you are searching for an opinionated book on Reagan, than this is not the book to read. If it is general information with a few suprising tid-bits that you seek, than this book is worth your time. Pemberton tries his best to give an objective analysis of Reagan throughout this book. His thesis is that Reagan's up-bringing, job/co-worker influences, and general attitude toward life and the American people shaped his ideas for running the nation. Pemberton covers all the stops, from Reagan's mother's influence, to his radio career, to his acting career, to his governorship, to his presidency. Pemberton gives the facts about the Iran Contra mess and leaves it to the reader to decide Reagan's involvement. If you do not know much about Reagan, and you seek information but not opinions, than this book is an excellent resource that reads well.



5. There aren't too many "fair and balanced" opinions out there on Presidents Reagan, Clinton, and GW Bush. This book on Reagan by Pemberton comes as close as most to some semblance of objectivity. No book comes close to the quality and objectivity of a recent president as does Cannon's "President Reagan: Role of a Lifetime." But Pemberton does a fine job in covering Reagan's entire life in a small number of pages (214 of text).
   
   I used the book in an American government class and I thought it was readable for the students and told the larger story of the 20th century. Reagan's life, whether one agreed with him or not, in many ways represented the story of the 20th century. After WWII, the nation embraced FDR and his policies. In time, with the Great Society and the rise of anti-communism, the nation stepped away from the liberal label. Contrary to what many on the right believe, the nation never embraced conservatism to the same degree it embraced the New Deal, but changes did occurred. And the end of the Cold War was another huge event. The left and right will always argue over the impact Reagan had on the end of the Cold War, but Pemberton did well in presenting the many different theories. He also was quite fair in analyzing Reagan's budget and tax policies, which are also still debated today.

1 comments about Character Above All, Volume 1 (Character Above All).

1. Doris Kearns Goodwin, who is a top rank presidential historian in her own right gives a speech written by David McCullough. Strange. Franklin Roosevelt was a patrician who literally abandoned his own class to defend & help all the people. The masses of America somehow knew this from the start & responded to it. He genuinely like everyone or was very good at giving that impression. Most people loved him. But he never let anyone in, get too close to his heart. He seemed not to have a mean bone in his body. Yet he was made of steel, leading America thru two of its worst crises, one on top of the other. What did he know & when did he know about Pearl Harbor? Hard to say, but in this case, the means definitely justified the ends.

1 comments about The Nixon Presidency: An Oral History of the Era, Revised Edition (Presidential Oral Histories).

1. This is an excellent book. I've been reading up on Nixon as of late, and I thoroughly enjoyed this updated edition. Basically, the book is composed of quotes from various figures organized into sections relating to a topic or question. It does away with boring biographical details and just goes into the real meat of any issue--using the personal observations of those who were there.
   
   It's a great read--you get plenty of insight into Nixon's personality (even what he ate for lunch!), how he operated the White House, how he ran his campaigns, his policy ideas, and ultimately the events that led up to Watergate and his resignation.
   
   All the big boys are interviewed--Colson, Dean, Halderman, Erlichman, etc. But still, nobody can figure out who ordered the break in. They're all still blaming eachother.
   
   The theories on who Deep Throat was are funny in the context of his recent admission. Haig almost nails it. Everyone else is way off.
   
   Anyway a great read--I'm now going through the rest of the Oral History books these authors have written. I hope they do more!

No comments about Frederic Chopin As A Man And Musician.

No comments about The squire of Warm Springs: FDR in Georgia, 1924-1945.

2 comments about Letters to Kennedy.

1. JFK, a magical name in history. This book provides a way to investigate this man's life from other people's letters. You may want to read it.



2. This is a compilation that in and of itself is quite mundane. The letters are not the most eloquent nor powerful prose that you are likely to have read. However, this is the correspondence of two of the biggest figures of their age.

   The letters regarding the Vietnam war are the most interesting and provide some recognition of the clarity & forsight of Galbraith's mind.

   Buy this book if you are interested in these men and the age of Camelot.

2 comments about Nehru: A Political Life.

1. It's not a bad book, but it's very repetitive and not terribly insightful. It reduces Nehru's coming to power to his connection to Gandhi, underexplains Nehru's relationship to a series of domestic crises in India, and really doesn't explain many of the dynamics of independence and its aftermath. It's a quick, easy read, though.



2. I have just finished reading this book and it certainly not a book I would recommend to anyone. I know it is political biography rather than just a biography but nonetheless I thought it was terribly boring. It is not an easy read for a person who wishes to get to know Nehru. At times I thought I was reading a history of Indian politics.

3 comments about John Quincy Adams: A Personal History of an Independent Man (Signature Ser.)).

1. After seeing the movie Amistad I was curious about this president who was pretty much passed over in our history books. This Hecht book satisfied all my curiosities plus some I didn't think of. She covers the public and personal lives of JQA. All the public figures of the time, great and near great, American and European, walk through these pages. And, yes, the Amistad story is there. I have limited vision so I save wear and tear on my eyes each day in order to be able to read this great book in bed before I go to sleep. Minor criticism: I have to keep paging back to determine the year of given happenings. The author could have repeated dates a little more generously. Otherwise it would be a five-star!



2. After seeing the movie Amistad I was curious about this president who was pretty much passed over in our history books. This Hecht book satisfied all my curiosities plus some I didn't think of. She covers the public and personal lives of JQA. All the public figures of the time, great and near great, American and European, walk through these pages. And, yes, the Amistad story is there. I have limited vision so I save wear and tear on my eyes each day in order to be able to read this great book in bed before I go to sleep. Minor criticism: I have to keep paging back to determine the year of given happenings. The author could have repeated dates a little more generously. Otherwise it would be a five-star!



3. While her book is the best I have found on this former President, I find she is the best on the politcal side and presents him in a much better light than Nagal does in his book. When I compare the two books Nagal tries and fails to present Adams as a malajusted man who blames all his problems on his mother. To get a true idea about him you must read both books.

5 comments about Bush Country: How Dubya Became a Great President While Driving Liberals Insane.

1. An Untalented Young Mr. Podhoretz owes his position to his father. By himself he is a shallow thinker of a strange category of neocons who would like us to invade the world (themselves, they would not serve) and invate the world.
   A strange policy of keeping our borders open, so that any terrorist can and does enter upon payment of $5K to coyote, while at the same time have our army in Arab lands defending their borders.



2. Three years on, with Podhoretz himself repudiating Bush's views, and with Bush's approval ratings hovering around 30%, it seems clear that Bush cannot be considered a "Great" anything, let alone a leader of the 21st Century. The failures of his Administration are too lengthy and obvious--not to mention depressing--to document. It is small wonder that this hagiography has plummeted down the Amazon sales list like a lead brick dropped from a plane.
   
   In years to come, I suspect that many conservatives will attempt to explain that they really, truly didn't like Bush, or trust him, or believe that he was a "real" conservative in the Reagan mold--we can already see the revisionism beginning as I write this. But when there are books like this out there, it's going to be mighty difficult for Podhoretz and his ilk to run away from their record. I suspect, however, that they will try anyway.



3. Sure, this tome deals with its chief subject quite nicely. But what I really would like to see (in subsequent editions?) is a version that uses more absorbent paper.
   Seriously, one reads, or more appropriately goes through, this book in that "special" room. Is it too much to ask for paper with greater absorbency?
   Think of the readers, and their needs for cleanliness when contemplating the legacy of this character.



4. As I distinctly recall, Bush's campaign slogan was NOT "I will drive liberals insane". It was "I'm a uniter, not a divider."



5. I heard an interview on Christian radio with the author plugging the book. I knew nothing about the book, and doubted many people held the views expressed at this point in history. So naturally I came onto Amazon to see just how old this book is. 2004. Another example of Christian radio's utter lack of concern whether what they throw on the air is true or correct, just put on anything that happens to be laying around however old and currently inapplicable. It was allegedly a call in show also, they did not bother to mention that calls would not be taken because it was previously recorded...or that it was recorded long ago, or that the speaker did not currently subscribe to the beliefs expressed. Don't believe a thing on "Christian" radio, don't donate money, or patronize their advertisers. They are hypocrites, they are not doing the Lord's work.

5 comments about Harry Truman and the Human Family.

1. A local author known to me has written an engaging book. It is a beautiful testimony to the fact that politics can be about the pursuit of high ideals. Frank captures so well the interdependent dance between people, their leaders and their values. What I love most is how easily people of varying degrees of prominence move in and out of the story Frank weaves. He creates the proof that we are one wonderful human family - flaws and all!



2. In all of Frank K. Kelly's books, especially this one, he writes with the objectivity of a seasoned reporter and the heart of a compassionate observer.

   Truman's humanity is profoundly related to us in this carefully crafted work. We now know a softer and warmer side of Harry Truman because Kelly has been able to focus attention on a major aspect of a very complex man.

   This is a report of the observations of a man who had long-term personal contact with Truman and is uniquely qualified to present a perspective of him in context with the times.

   The book itself is a good read because of Kelly's story telling style and his organizational skills with regard to documenting historical information.




3. I found the book compelling. It is a warm, human book, capturing well what seems today as the innocence of an earlier time. With touching humility, Kelly brings to life Truman's humanity and the deep sense of responsibility he felt as president to help create a truly democractic society. Kelly's many personal anecdotes and reflections take the reader back into this simpler world and helps create hope for the future of real democracy.



4. This book is by an insider in the 1948 campaign that everyone thought that Truman would loose. Mr Kelly gained a lot of respect for Mr. Truman as an honest man in a flawed system. Truman didn't seek the presidency but was thrust into it by the death of Roosevelt. President Truman had a vision for America and America's position in the world. Special interests in Congress blocked many of Truman's dreams. Mr Kelly's later disallusionment with the Washington scene echoes the chaos we see today in Washington.

   Mr. Kelly sheds light on Truman's difficult decisions to use the atom bomb, the atmosphere around Jor Mc Carthy,the Berlin Airlift, the occupation of Japan, the Korean War and many less well known actions by President Truman. This was for me the most enjoyable bok on Truman since "Plain Speaking" by Merle Miller.




5. Too often the political process is something that takes place far outside our own lives, which is why voters tend to be either emotional partisans of their celebrity heroes or apathetic or cynical. Frank Kelly's understanding of one very human and accessible man, Harry Truman, made me rethink what the American Presidency is about. By interweaving his own lifestory with the Truman presidency, Kelly creates an absorbing drama into which we are all swept. He sees politics not as a game, but as the means to realizing a nation's highest potential. Yes, he is an idealist, but we have too few of those. Kelly's vision of one president and his world-changing decisions is transferable to every presidency. As we prepare to elect a new man to that office, there's no more appropriate reading for us than Kelly's book.