Reagan: The Life

Disclaimer: I am a life-long democrat who never voted for Reagan and actively campaigned against him. I believe that his policies have led to the current state of uncontrollable deficits and the focus of "me" over "we" has done irreparable harm to our social fabric.That said, I have long recognized his success as president and have continually admired his sunny optimism and his uncanny ability to disarm his critics with a witty anecdote or self-deprecating wisecrack. While Obama may have coined the phrase "disagree without being disagreeable", it is Reagan who embodied that principle. Conservative but pragmatic, Reagan knew how to accept half a loaf and call it a victory (a lesson seemingly lost on today's political leaders).These qualities are all on display in Brands' masterful biography. Thoroughly engaging, Brands tracks Reagan from a young poor boy in Illinois through his presidency and beyond. While the book is long, it succeeds by not focusing on unimportant minutiae of Reagan's life (mercifully we don't get a mini-biography of his grand-parents at the start). Instead, each inclusion serves to build on the story of Reagan the man so that by the end the reader feels like he was a member of the family. Yes, there are details of important chapters of Reagan's presidency: the summits with Gorbachev, Iran/contra, the air traffic controllers, budgets & tax cuts, and many more. These, for better and worse, serve to remind us of Reagan's lasting impact on the US and the world. But they also serve to remind us of the strengths and weaknesses of Reagan the man.One of the best presidential biography's available; Reagan the Life is recommended for anyone wanting to understand this most remarkable of men.

Ronald Maximus. Without a doubt one of the two outstanding presidents of the 20th Century. (The other being FDR, ironically, a political opposite of Reagan's unflinching conservatism.) There have been countless biographies of Reagan, of Reagan's presidency, of a core aspect of his administration (Iran-Contra, anyone?); historian/author H.W. Brands comes to the table sans agenda to pen REAGAN: THE LIFE, a comprehensive look at the entirety of Ronald Reagan's life--from his childhood in Illinois; to his radio/acting career; to his leadership of the Screen Actors Guild during the Communist scare; to his spokesman career for General Electric; to his political birth in 1964, when he gave a mesmerizing national speech on behalf of rogue conservative Barry Goldwater; to his governorship of California; to his successful presidency; to his, as Brands puts it, journey to a "ranch in the sky". Carefully researched and thoughtfully written, this biography lets readers get to know Reagan the man.And Brands's primary source? Reagan himself. The 40th president kept a detailed diary, plus, when it came to staying in contact with friends and associates, Reagan was old school: he wrote letters. So Brands mines all of this information in intricate detail, but he also relies on other sources, such as Nancy Reagan's memoirs, the memoirs of other administration members, including Alexander Haig and Donald Regan, and actual interviews with other people who were there in the Oval Office with Reagan, from James Baker to George Schultz. The result? A bird's eye view of the Reagan presidency--successes and all, and warts and all. Brands writes that Reagan's philosophy to governing was twofold: shrink the size of government, and defeat Communism. Everything else was just noise that was delegated to subordinates--and such a hands off management style got him into some hot water; for instance, when upstart Oliver North decided to divert funds Iran was paying for arms shipments in exchange for the release of hostages to the Contra fighters in Nicaragua. And--very subtlety--Brands suggests that during the latter years of Reagan's presidency, his memory was already failing him.Again, all the information is given in a straight-forward manner; Brands is not depicting Reagan in either a positive, or negative light. The writing is clean and precise, with chapters that are alarmingly short. (One chapter was one-and-a-half pages.) For students of the Reagan presidency--or for millennials who weren't around when Reagan's presidency was restoring an American psyche from its former malaise--H. W. Brands's REAGAN: THE LIFE is must-read material. This biography is a solid triple, right down the right field line.~D. Mikels, Esq.

Rarely do I every buy new, full-price books. There is such a plethora of great material to be purchased at a discount at so many different types of outlets and I tend to fall into the “frugal” category where reading is concerned. I made an exception for this book, and I’m not really sure why. Whatever the case, I’m very glad I did. This was a wonderfully entertaining book.It’s always a good sign when you read a book that is almost 800 pages, yet you feel like you wanted so much more upon completion. Books of great length are not that uncommon when written about key figures in history. Example: I just finished a fourth volume of President Lyndon Johnson (the fifth hasn’t been written yet), and the man doesn’t even become president until after about 3,000 pages. So, yes, this book did give the impression of being somewhat succinct.Fortunately, the parts detailing Reagan’s presidency fill up about 80% of the pages in this account. Having said that, you could make the argument that this book is more of a biography of Reagan the President, as opposed to Reagan the man. If you’re wanting to read about, for example, his career as an actor, his tenure as Governor of California, or his candidacy for President during the seventies, you’re likely to be severely disappointed. The book spends just enough information on these events so we can learn about the character of the man. It’s almost as if the author realizes that before we can appreciate and understand what type of president he was, he needs to give us a little background on some of the key events prior to 1980.We learn he grew up poor with an alcoholic father, worked scale as a radio baseball announcer, became a very successful B movie actor, was a New Deal Democrat (he voted for FDR four times), was heavily involved in the actors union, was a successful governor, and hated communism. I’ll say it again – he hated communism. We also learned that he truly was a great communicator who loved the stage. Although there are some that dismiss this characteristic as unimportant as a key political figure, I would strongly disagree. Attitude and confidence can go a long way when being a leader, and Ronald Reagan had these attributes when he stepped into the office of president after a post-Watergate, “malaise” infected era of his country’s history.Even though the majority of this book covers the presidency, there are still several examples where the reader wants more than what they are given. All of the major events are covered, and the biggest ones do get a lot of detailed attention. His greatest success (the Icelandic summit with Gorbachev) and his worst failure (Iran-Contra) get many chapters devoted to both. But some things that were memorable (good and bad) seem to only warrant a paragraph or two at most - such as the James Watt fiasco. I don’t ever remember reading the word “Reaganomics” even once, although there is some information about his efforts to get the economy back on track and changing the tax code.I was also impressed by the author’s ability to not bog down the reader with governmental jargon. He seems to be aware that most people don’t have a strong understanding of some key events (example: most people, even back in 1983, couldn’t tell you the difference between the Contras and the Sandinistas when discussing Nicaragua). You never feel overwhelmed with information and/or people. He keeps the supporting cast manageable to where the uninformed reader doesn’t have to try to memorize and learn names they’ve never heard (this was a problem I had when I read The Reagan Diaries a few years ago).We also learn (or are verified with what we already knew) that Reagan wasn’t a particularly good and/or emotional family man. He and wife Nancy adored one and other, but we rarely read about anything when it comes to the Reagan children and what kind of relationship there was. He could be somewhat distant when dealing with emotions, and apparently only let very few into his inner circle of feelings.All in all most agree that he was a very successful president. Oh, sure, many on the far left hated him, but no Commander in Chief has complete harmony amongst the subjects (See also FDR and JFK). His jingoism could be too much for some, but most would argue that such characteristics were crucial during the time in the country’s history. You also learn that the man truly wanted the best for America and he was never out to hurt anybody. He truly believed that his job was to inspire confidence, encourage all to do their best, and protect the country from outside countries with conflicting ideologies.Blameless? No. Perfect? Never. Most would argue that despite the drawbacks of some of the major events, the man brought the country back on track. Not everyone will ever fully agree to that statement, but that’s just how life is. Especially in the turbid world of politics.Wish there could have been another volume or two.

Along with Nixon and LBJ Reagan is the most fascinating president to read about probably because they all come from nothing to claim America's top prize. I've read a number of biographys before of Reagan but nothing that ever answered the fundemental question I have: why do American's rate this president so highly? That understanding changed with this book.The book covers all of Reagan's life with obviously his presidency taking centre stage. Within the presidency key issues are looked at in particular detail, the Iran-Contra affair, the Gorbachev meetings, the assassination attempt.I don't share the belief that Reagan was a great president but I can see why American's do he gave them back their self belief after the trauma's of Vietnam and the 1970's in general and perhaps more importantly cut their taxes and as the book says how can you not like the guy. What I do admire about Reagan was that without a doubt he was a conviction politician who never lost site of his principles and the Great Communicator certainly knew how to put that message across.If you want to understand Reagan then you have to read this excellent book.

Reagan by H.W. Brands is a very good biography about arguably the dominant political figure in recent American politics. It is well-written, detailed and informative. In my opinion it is also remarkably balanced in its treatment of a President whose reputation, legacy and policies still elicit strong opinions. The Reagan in this book is neither the conservative icon of myth nor the caricatured inflexible ideologue of his opponents. Instead it is a portrait of a politician; a man of firm views but nevertheless willing to compromise in order to get things done.. Overall, it is a first class biography about the actor turned President who, for good or ill, reshaped America.

I read this shortly after reading Niall Fergusson's biography of Kissinger. Brands is light years short of the talen of Fergusson. Much of the book is a compilation of sppeeches from Reagan and others. It is woefully short of meaningful analysis his life and contribution to world history.

A lively account of Reagan's life and huge contributions to the world, wards and all. A good read.

As per volume size it is better to get hardback. Best Reagan research commenced up to date. Recommended.