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Ready, Fire, Aim: An Immigrant's Tales of Entrepreneurial Terror
by Charles Ota Heller"Under the best conditions, being an entrepreneur can be filled with anxiety and trepidation. Throw in some challenging circumstances, and trepidation turns to downright terror. Charles Ota Heller is a Holocaust survivor who arrived in the US as a penniless thirteen-year-old who spoke two words of English. Exhibiting strength, persistence, and determination, he earned an athletic scholarship to college and obtained three degrees in engineering. He became an academic at the cutting edge of new computer technology and was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. Over the next twenty years as CEO of technology companies and an additional twenty as an investor in, and mentor of, startup companies, Charlie experienced the joys, successes, failures, and terrors of entrepreneurship. When the FBI attempted to shut down his company on a trumped-up charge, memories of World War II and the Gestapo filled him with the terror of uncertainty. He was betrayed by a member of his management team and was deposed from leadership of the company he founded. Then he discovered that his partner in a venture capital fund was dishonest and Charlie had to fight to maintain his own reputation. Ready, Fire, Aim is the story of his riveting journey, told as a powerful, candid, engrossing adventure that will not only entertain but will leave present and budding entrepreneurs with valuable takeaways."
Reagan Diaries, Volume 1: January 1981–October 1985
by Douglas Brinkley Ronald ReaganVolume One of the daily diaries of the 40th President of the United States, Ronald Reagan.
Reagan Diaries, Volume 2: November 1985–January 1989
by Douglas Brinkley Ronald ReaganVolume Two of the daily diaries of the 40th President of the United States, Ronald Reagan.
Reagan Remembered
by Gilbert RobinsonFor the first time in presidential history, the major appointees of a president have come together to share stories and memories of their president, Ronald Reagan. These are never-before-told personal anecdotes from 81 of President Reagan's appointees.Former President George H.W. Bush, Colin Powell, Elizabeth Dole, Steve Forbes, James Baker, and Edwin Meese discuss their relationship with the 40th President of the United States. Democrats and Republicans can agree that Ronald Reagan possessed remarkable humor, courtesy, and consideration for others, natural charm, and a great sense of humor while displaying the toughness that brought an end to the Cold War with the Soviet Union.
Reagan Rising: The Decisive Years, 1976–1980
by Craig ShirleyNew York Times-Bestselling Author: This account of Ronald Reagan’s political comeback—and rescue of the GOP—is “an engrossing, richly detailed saga” (Booklist).Includes a foreword by Pulitzer Prize winner Jon MeachamCharting Ronald Reagan’s astonishing rise from the ashes of his 1976 presidential bid to overwhelming victory in 1980, Reagan Rising shows how American conservatism—and the nation itself—would never be the same.In 1976, when Reagan lost his second bid for the GOP presidential nomination (the first was in 1968), most observers believed his political career was over. Yet one year later, at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, Reagan sounded like a new man. He introduced conservatives to a “New Republican Party”—one that looked beyond the traditional country club and corporate boardroom base to embrace “the man and woman in the factories . . . the farmer . . . the cop on the beat. Our party,” Reagan said, “must be the party of the individual. It must not sell out the individual to cater to the group.”Reagan’s movement quickly spread, championed by emerging conservative leaders and influential think tanks. Meanwhile, for the first time in modern history, Reagan also began drawing young people to American conservatism.But it was not only the former governor’s political philosophy that was changing. A new man was emerging as well: The angry anticommunist was evolving into a more reflective, hopeful, and spiritual leader. Championing the individual at home, rejecting containment and détente abroad, and advocating for the defeat of Soviet communism, his appeal crossed party lines.At a time when conservatives are seeking to redefine their identity in light of the Donald Trump phenomenon, Reagan Rising offers insight into the development of Reagan’s optimistic and unifying philosophy, and offers lessons for both established Republican leaders and emerging hopefuls.“Chronicles the Republicans’ emergence from the wilderness . . . [The author] is a sure-footed and entertaining observer of the hurly-burly of national politics.” —The New York Times“An insightful, thoughtful history that reminds us of the renewal that occurred the last time the Republican Party was near collapse. It is the story of the lifeguard Reagan rescuing a drowning party. If only . . . ” —Landon Parvin, former White House speechwriter for Ronald Reagan
Reagan and Pinochet
by Morris Morley Chris McgillionThis book is the first comprehensive study of the Reagan administration's policy toward the military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Based on new primary and archival materials, as well as on original interviews with former U. S. and Chilean officials, it traces the evolution of Reagan policy from an initial "close embrace" of the junta to a reevaluation of whether Pinochet was a risk to long-term U. S. interests in Chile and, finally, to an acceptance in Washington of the need to push for a return to democracy. It provides fresh insights into the bureaucratic conflicts that were a key part of the Reagan decision-making process and reveals not only the successes but also the limits of U. S. influence on Pinochet's regime - centered around the challenge of creating a viable civilian alternative that was acceptable to both the junta and Washington. Finally, it contributes to the ongoing debate about the U. S. approach toward democracy promotion in the Third World over the past half century.
Reagan at Reykjavik: Forty-Eight Hours That Ended the Cold War
by Ken AdelmanA dramatic account of the Cold War’s turning point, the 1986 Reagan-Gorbachev summit in Iceland, by a key player in that weekend’s world-changing events.In October 1986, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met for a forty-eight-hour summit in Reykjavik, Iceland. Planned as a short gathering to outline future talks, the meeting quickly turned to major international issues, including the Strategic Defensive Initiative (“Star Wars”) and the possibility of eliminating all nuclear weapons. Both men were at the height of their powers, and they had a rare opportunity to move toward peace. The meeting led to negotiations and concessions that neither side had predicted—and laid the groundwork for the most sweeping arms accord in history, adopted the following year, and the end of the Soviet Union a half decade later.From his position as a participant in these historic events, Ken Adelman, Regan’s arms control director, is able to reveal the motivations, relationships, and conversations that led to the summit’s breakthroughs. His analysis as both a participant and historian provides an invaluable perspective on this uniquely significant episode.Scrupulously researched and based on now-declassified documents, Reagan at Reykjavik tells the gripping tale of the weekend that changed the world. Adelman provides an honest, laser-etched portrait of President Reagan at one of his finest and most challenging moments—and, indisputably, one of the most significant triumphs of his presidency.
Reagan's America: Innocents at Home
by Garry WillsNew York Times Bestseller: A &“remarkable and evenhanded study of Ronald Reagan&” from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Lincoln at Gettysburg (The New York Times). Updated with a new preface by the author, this captivating biography of America&’s fortieth president recounts Ronald Reagan&’s life—from his poverty-stricken Illinois childhood to his acting career to his California governorship to his role as commander in chief—and examines the powerful myths surrounding him, many of which he created himself. Praised by some for his sunny optimism and old-fashioned rugged individualism, derided by others for being a politician out of touch with reality, Reagan was both a popular and polarizing figure in the 1980s United States, and continues to fascinate us as a symbol. In Reagan&’s America, Garry Wills reveals the realities behind Reagan&’s own descriptions of his idyllic boyhood, as well as the story behind his leadership of the Screen Actors Guild, the role religion played in his thinking, and the facts of his military service. With a wide-ranging and balanced assessment of both the personal and political life of this outsize American icon, the author of such acclaimed works as What Jesus Meant and The Kennedy Imprisonment &“elegantly dissects the first U.S. President to come out of Hollywood&’s dream factory [in] a fascinating biography whose impact is enhanced by techniques of psychological profile and social history&” (Los Angeles Times).
Reagan's Disciple: George W. Bush's Troubled Quest for a Presidential Legacy
by Carl M. Cannon Lou CannonAn insightful examination of what remains of the Reagan agenda in the Bush era by a father/son reporting team that has covered six of the last seven presidencies
Reagan's Journey
by Margot MorrellA RENOWNED LEADERSHIP EXPERT EXAMINES THE LIFE OF R ONALD REAGAN, EXTRACTING THE KEY C OMPONENTS OF HIS IMMENSE S UCCESS--PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL--AND OFFERS AN ILLUMINATING MODEL F OR LEADERS AND MANAGERS IN EVERY WALK OF LIFE. Since leaving office, Ronald Reagan has emerged as among America's greatest-- and best-loved--leaders. Today he is known as "the Great Communicator," but in the course of his sixty-year career, Reagan faced obstacles and hardships that could have stalled him at any point along the way. After every disaster, he picked himself up and kept moving forward. How did he manage his career and handle the hurdles involved in transitioning from actor and union official into a public speaker in high demand and from there into an extraordinarily successful politician? What can we learn from the way the perennial "new kid in town" muscled through adversities, maintained his focus, stayed true to his principles, and achieved his goals? In a compelling narrative that is both a motivational leadership teaching tool and a fascinating biography, bestselling author Margot Morrell sheds light on the challenges and heartbreaks that shaped Ronald Reagan. Four times his life slammed into a brick wall: his 1948 divorce from actress Jane Wyman; the termination of his long-standing contract with Warner Bros.; the end of his eight-year association with General Electric; and a hard-fought loss to President Gerald Ford in the 1976 primary campaign. Setting politics and policies largely aside, Morrell highlights the strategies and tactics Ronald Reagan used to transform himself from shy introvert to confident communicator; the methods and tools he employed to keep his career on track; and the skills he developed that led to his many accomplishments. Each chapter of Reagan's Journey is followed by summary bullet points and an essential overview titled "Working It In," to facilitate these lessons into your formation as a leader. Anyone interested in strengthening their leadership and communications skills, becoming more resilient in the face of setbacks, or taking their careers to the next level will find practical and useful lessons in the life of Ronald Reagan.
Reagan's Path to Victory
by Martin Anderson Annelise Anderson Kiron K. Skinner George P. ShultzIn the last years of Ronald Reagan's life, his voluminous writings on politics, policy, and people finally emerged and offered a Rosetta stone by which to understand him. From 1975 to 1979, in particular, he delivered more than 1,000 radio addresses, of which he wrote at least 680 himself. When drafts of his addresses were first discovered, and a selection was published in 2001 as Reagan, In His Own Hand by the editors of this book, they caused a sensation by revealing Reagan as a prolific and thoughtful writer, who covered a wide variety of topics and worked out the agenda that would drive his presidency. What was missed in that thematic collection, however, was the development of his ideas over time. Now, in Reagan's Path to Victory, a chronological selection of more than 300 addresses with historical context supplied by the editors, readers can see how Reagan reacted to the events that defined the Carter years and how he honed his message in the crucial years before his campaign officially began. The late 1970s were tumultuous times. In the aftermath of Vietnam and Watergate, America's foreign and domestic policies were up for grabs. Reagan argued against the Panama Canal treaties, in vain; against the prevailing view that the Vietnam War was an ignoble enterprise from the start; against détente with the Soviet Union; against the growth of regulation; and against the tax burden. Yet he was fundamentally an optimist, who presented positive, values-based prescriptions for the economy and for Soviet relations. He told many inspiring stories; he applauded charities and small businesses that worked to overcome challenges. As Reagan's Path to Victory unfolds, Reagan's essays reveal a presidential candidate who knew himself and knew his positions, who presented a stark alternative to an incumbent administration, and who knew how to reach out and touch voters directly. Reagan's Path to Victory is nothing less than a president's campaign playbook, in his own words.
Reagan's War
by Peter SchweizerReagan's War is the story of Ronald Reagan's personal and political journey as an anti-communist, from his early days as an actor to his years in the White House. Challenging popular misconceptions of Reagan as an empty suit who played only a passive role in the demise of the Soviet Union, Peter Schweizer details Reagan's decades-long battle against communism.Bringing to light previously secret information obtained from archives in the United States, Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Russia--including Reagan's KGB file--Schweizer offers a compelling case that Reagan personally mapped out and directed his war against communism, often disagreeing with experts and advisers. An essential book for understanding the Cold War, Reagan's War should be read by open-minded readers across the political spectrum.From the Trade Paperback edition.the USSR drew the attention of Soviet officials, who began a KGB file on him when he was still governor of California. By the time he was elected president, they viewed him as a serious threat to their interests. Reagan's War shows just how right they were, presenting compelling evidence that Reagan personally mapped out and directed a campaign to bankrupt the Soviet Union and wage an economic and political war against Moscow.In telling the story of Reagan's ultimate triumph, Schweizer also brings to light dozens of previously unknown facts about the Cold War, based on secret documents obtained from archives in Russia, Germany, Poland, Hungary, and the United States. Among his many startling revelations are Kissinger's private deals with Soviet leaders that protected his own political viability while allowing the Soviets to pursue their goals within their own sphere; a North Korean and East German plot to assassinate Reagan in 1983; Reagan's secret funding of Solidarity in Poland; and the behind-the-scenes support Soviets and East Germans provided for European and American peace movements, as well as their clandestine contacts with U.S. government officials.A fresh, often startling look at Ronald Reagan and his central role in winning the war for global dominance in the 1980s, Reagan's War is a major work of twentieth-century history.From the Hardcover edition.
Reagan's War: The Epic Story of His Forty Year Struggle and Final Triumph Over Communism
by Peter SchweizerRonald Reagan has been considered at best an amiable dunce, a genial actor who simply mouthed whatever slogans his right-wing puppetmasters put in front of him. This book presents Reagan as President and statesman. Reagan's War is the story of Ronald Reagan's personal and political journey, beginning with his days in Hollywood, where he led the movie industry's resistance to an attempted communist takeover of Hollywood unions. The fight against communism changed the whole direction of his life. Schweizer chronicles Reagan's anti-communist crusade from governor of California to the White House. Along the way, Reagan moved from an initial posture of containment to being an advocate of head-on confrontation. Schweizer brings to light dozens of previously unknown facts about the Cold War, based on secret documents obtained from archives in Russia, Germany, Poland, Hungary, and the United States. Among his revelations are a North Korean and East German plot to assassinate Reagan in 1983; Reagan's secret funding of Solidarity of Poland; and the behind-the-scenes support that the Soviets and East Germans provided for European and American peace movements, as well as their clandestine contacts with U.S. government officials.
Reagan: A Life in Letters
by Martin Anderson Annelise Anderson Kiron K. SkinnerRonald Reagan may have been the most prolific correspondent of any American president since Thomas Jefferson. The total number of letters written over his lifetime probably exceeds 10,000. Their breadth is equally astonishing -- with friends and family, with politicians, children, and other private citizens, Reagan was as dazzling a communicator in letters as he was in person. Collectively, his letters reveal his character and thinking like no other source. He made candid, considerate, and tough statements that he rarely made in a public speech or open forum. He enjoyed responding to citizens, and comforting or giving advice or encouragement to friends. Now, the most astonishing of his writings, culled in Reagan: A Portrait in Letters, finally and fully reveal the true Ronald Reagan. Many of Reagan's handwritten letters are among the most thoughtful, charming, and moving documents he produced. Long letters to his daughter Patti, applauding her honesty, and son Ron Jr., urging him to be the best student he can be, reveal Reagan as a caring parent. Long-running correspondence with old friends, carried on for many decades, reveals the importance of his hometown and college networks. Heartfelt advice on love and marriage, fond memories of famous friends from Hollywood, and rare letters about his early career allow Reagan to tell his own full biography as never before. Running correspondence with young African-American student Ruddy Hines reveals a little-known presidential pen pal. The editors also reveal that another long-running pen-pal relationship, with fan club leader Lorraine Wagner, was initially ghostwritten by his mother, until Reagan began to write to Wagner himself some years later. Reagan's letters are a political and historical treasure trove. Revealed here for the first time is a running correspondence with Richard Nixon, begun in 1959 and continuing until shortly before Nixon's death. Letters to key supporters reveal that Reagan was thinking of the presidency from the mid-1960s; that missile defense was of interest to him as early as the 1970s; and that few details of his campaigns or policies escaped his notice. Dozens of letters to constituents reveal Reagan to have been most comfortable and natural with pen in hand, a man who reached out to friend and foe alike throughout his life. Reagan: A Life in Letters is as important as it is astonishing and moving.
Reagan: An American Journey
by Bob SpitzFrom New York Times bestselling biographer Bob Spitz, a full and rich biography of an epic American life, capturing what made Ronald Reagan both so beloved and so transformational. <P><P>More than five years in the making, based on hundreds of interviews and access to previously unavailable documents, and infused with irresistible storytelling charm, Bob Spitz's REAGAN stands fair to be the first truly post-partisan biography of our 40th President, and thus a balm for our own bitterly divided times. <P><P>It is the quintessential American triumph, brought to life with cinematic vividness: a young man is born into poverty and raised in a series of flyspeck towns in the Midwest by a pious mother and a reckless, alcoholic, largely absent father. <P><P>Severely near-sighted, the boy lives in his own world, a world of the popular books of the day, and finds his first brush with popularity, even fame, as a young lifeguard. Thanks to his first great love, he imagines a way out, and makes the extraordinary leap to go to college, a modest school by national standards, but an audacious presumption in the context of his family's station. From there, the path is only very dimly lit, but it leads him, thanks to his great charm and greater luck, to a solid career as a radio sportscaster, and then, astonishingly, fatefully, to Hollywood. And the rest, as they say, is history. <P><P>Bob Spitz's REAGAN is an absorbing, richly detailed, even revelatory chronicle of the full arc of Ronald Reagan's epic life - giving full weight to the Hollywood years, his transition to politics and rocky but ultimately successful run as California governor, and ultimately, of course, his iconic presidency, filled with storm and stress but climaxing with his peace talks with the Soviet Union that would serve as his greatest legacy. It is filled with fresh assessments and shrewd judgments, and doesn't flinch from a full reckoning with the man's strengths and limitations. <P><P>This is no hagiography: Reagan was never a brilliant student, of anything, and his disinterest in hard-nosed political scheming, while admirable, meant that this side of things was left to the other people in his orbit, not least his wife Nancy; sometimes this delegation could lead to chaos, and worse. <P><P>But what emerges as a powerful signal through all the noise is an honest inherent sweetness, a gentleness of nature and willingness to see the good in people and in this country, that proved to be a tonic for America in his time, and still is in ours. It was famously said that FDR had a first-rate disposition and a second-rate intellect. <P><P>Perhaps it is no accident that only FDR had as high a public approval rating leaving office as Reagan did, or that in the years since Reagan has been closing in on FDR on rankings of Presidential greatness. <P><P>Written with love and irony, which in a great biography is arguably the same thing, Bob Spitz's masterpiece will give no comfort to partisans at either extreme; for the rest of us, it is cause for celebration.
Reagan: His Life and Legend
by Max BootSon of the Midwest, movie star, and mesmerizing politician—America’s fortieth president comes to three-dimensional life in this gripping and profoundly revisionist biography. <P><P> In this “monumental and impressive” biography, Max Boot, the distinguished political columnist, illuminates the untold story of Ronald Reagan, revealing the man behind the mythology. Drawing on interviews with over one hundred of the fortieth president’s aides, friends, and family members, as well as thousands of newly available documents, Boot provides “the best biography of Ronald Reagan to date” (Robert Mann). <P><P> The story begins not in star-studded Hollywood but in the cradle of the Midwest, small-town Illinois, where Reagan was born in 1911 to Nelle Clyde Wilson, a devoted Disciples of Christ believer, and Jack Reagan, a struggling, alcoholic salesman. Boot vividly creates a portrait of a handsome young man, indeed a much-vaunted lifeguard, whose early successes mirrored those of Horatio Alger. And contextualizing Reagan’s life against American history, Boot re-creates the world in which Reagan transitioned from local Iowa sportscaster to budding screen actor. <P><P> The world of Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1950s would prove significant, not only in Reagan’s coming-of-age in such classics as Knute Rockne and Kings Row but during the twilight of his film career, when he played opposite a chimpanzee in Bedtime for Bonzo, and then his eventual emergence as a television host of General Electric Theater, which established his bona fides as one of the leading conservative voices of the time. Indeed, the leap to California governor in 1966 seemed almost preordained, in which Reagan became a bellwether for a nation in the throes of a generational shift. <P><P> Reagan’s 1980 presidential election augured a shift that continues into this century. Boot writes not as a partisan but as a historian seeking to set the story straight. He explains how Reagan was an ideologue but also a supreme pragmatist who signed pro-abortion and gun control bills as governor, cut deals with Democrats in both Sacramento and Washington, and befriended Mikhail Gorbachev to end the Cold War. A master communicator, Reagan revived America’s spirits after the traumas of Vietnam and Watergate. But Boot also shows how Reagan was armored in obliviousness. He traces Reagan’s opposition to civil rights over forty years, reveals how he neglected the exploding AIDS epidemic, and details how America experienced a level of income inequality not seen since the Gilded Age. <P><P> With its revelatory insights, Reagan: His Life and Legend is no apologia, depicting a man with a good-versus-evil worldview derived from his moralistic upbringing and Hollywood westerns. Providing fresh examinations of “trickle-down economics,” the Cold War’s end, the Iran-Contra affair, as well as a nuanced portrait of Reagan’s family, this definitive biography is as compelling a presidential biography as any in recent decades. <p> <b>New York Times Bestseller</b>
Reagan: The Hollywood Years
by Marc EliotRonald Reagan was one of the most powerful and popular American presidents. The key to understanding his political success and the remarkable likability and effortless charisma that made it possible is hidden in his early years as a Hollywood movie star. Other biographers and Reagan in his two memoirs have skimmed over the thirty years he spent as an actor, union activist, and ladies' man. Now, for the first time, in this highly entertaining and provocative new work, acclaimed film critic and historian Marc Eliot reveals the truth of those formative years and presents a far different and infinitely more detailed portrait of Reagan than ever before. Based on original research and never-before-published interviews, documents, and other materials, Eliot sheds new light on Reagan's film and television work opposite some of the most talented women of the time, including Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, and Ginger Rogers; his starlet-strewn bachelor days when his name was linked with Lana Turner and Susan Hayward; his first, rocky marriage to actress Jane Wyman and his career-making second marriage to Nancy Davis; his controversial eight years as the president of the Screen Actors Guild; his friendships with Jimmy Stewart and William Holden; his place in the "Irish Mafia" alongside Pat O'Brien, Spencer Tracy, Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, and Errol Flynn; and the crucial role of super-agent Lew Wasserman, who was instrumental in developing the persona that would prove essential to Reagan's future as a world leader. Set against the glamorous and often combative background of Hollywood's celebrated Golden Age, Eliot's biography provides an exceptionally nuanced examination of the man and uncovers the startling origins of the legend. From the Hardcover edition.
Reagan: The Inside Story (The Presidents)
by Edwin Meese IIIFormer attorney general Edwin Meese III offers unequaled insight on the career and policies of his friend and former boss, Ronald Reagan. <P><P> From Reagan's days as governor of California to his two terms in the White House, Meese was his highest-ranking political confidant—the official closest to Reagan not only through length of service but also through mutual comprehension of the problems that concerned the nation. <P><P>Meese tells the Reagan story as it happened, refuting many common misconceptions about America's fortieth chief executive and providing new revelations about the Iran-Contra affair, the so-called Boland amendments, and more.
Reagan: The Life
by H. W. BrandsFrom the two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, bestselling historian, and author of Our First Civil War—and "the rare academic historian who can write like a bestselling novelist" (USA Today)—comes an irresistible portrait of an underestimated politician whose pragmatic leadership and steadfast vision transformed the nation.In his magisterial new biography, H. W. Brands brilliantly establishes Ronald Reagan as one of the two great presidents of the twentieth century, a true peer to Franklin Roosevelt. Reagan conveys with sweep and vigor how the confident force of Reagan&’s personality and the unwavering nature of his beliefs enabled him to engineer a conservative revolution in American politics and play a crucial role in ending communism in the Soviet Union. Reagan shut down the age of liberalism, Brands shows, and ushered in the age of Reagan, whose defining principles are still powerfully felt today.Employing archival sources not available to previous biographers and drawing on dozens of interviews with surviving members of Reagan&’s administration, Brands has crafted a richly detailed and fascinating narrative of the presidential years. He offers new insights into Reagan&’s remote management style and fractious West Wing staff, his deft handling of public sentiment to transform the tax code, and his deeply misunderstood relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, on which nothing less than the fate of the world turned. Look for H.W. Brands's other biographies: THE FIRST AMERICAN (Benjamin Franklin), ANDREW JACKSON, THE MAN WHO SAVED THE UNION (Ulysses S. Grant), and TRAITOR TO HIS CLASS (Franklin Roosevelt).
Reagan: Volume 1 (Reagan: What Was He Really Like? #1)
by Curtis PatrickIntimate behind-the-scenes recollections of Ronald Reagan by those who knew him during his early political career in California—photos included! People often wonder: &“What was Reagan like privately?&” &“How did he treat his children?&” &“How did he handle pressure?&” &“How did he handle danger?&” &“How did he treat his staff?&” &“How did he handle difficult, almost impossible to deal with, legislators?&” This book collects reminiscences from those who were there, working in a wide variety of positions, recounting how the former actor, governor of California, and future president of the United States used humor to disarm his most ardent critics and tenacious opponents. In this book, you&’ll discover observations about the close bond between Ronald and Nancy Reagan; the gentlemanly character of the governor who &“never equated disagreement with disloyalty;&” the way Reagan thrived on being underestimated; the untold story behind the secret plan hatched by former Air Force Secretary Thomas C. Reed and a handful of dedicated insiders to launch Reagan&’s unequivocal, arguably first campaign for President of the United States in 1968; and much more.
Reagan: Volume 2 (Reagan: What Was He Really Like? #2)
by Curtis PatrickBehind-the-scenes anecdotes and first-person recollections from forty-nine diverse people illuminate their personal relationships with Ronald Reagan. What was Ronald Reagan like in private? How did he treat his children? How did he handle pressure? This collection of intimate remembrances of the late President&’s staffers, colleagues, and friends sheds new light on the life and career of the immortal &“Gipper.&” See how Reagan used humor to disarm his most ardent critics and tenacious opponents. Marvel at his gift for persuading difficult, almost impossible to deal with legislators. Learn the untold story behind the secret plan hatched by former Air Force Secretary Thomas C. Reed and a handful of dedicated insiders to launch Reagan&’s first campaign for president of the United States in 1968. Many of author Curtis Patrick&’s interview subjects were members of Reagan&’s original 1966 campaign for governor of California. Some came aboard soon after the election and were appointed to fill key positions in the governor&’s cabinet and to head up state agencies and departments. For the most part, except in a few cases, these interviewees had never been recorded or published before. &“Curtis, I not only like your book; I love it!&” —Edwin Meese III, former US attorney general
Reaganland: America's Right Turn 1976-1980
by Rick PerlsteinA NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2020 From the bestselling author of Nixonland and The Invisible Bridge comes the dramatic conclusion of how conservatism took control of American political power.Over two decades, Rick Perlstein has published three definitive works about the emerging dominance of conservatism in modern American politics. With the saga&’s final installment, he has delivered yet another stunning literary and historical achievement. In late 1976, Ronald Reagan was dismissed as a man without a political future: defeated in his nomination bid against a sitting president of his own party, blamed for President Gerald Ford&’s defeat, too old to make another run. His comeback was fueled by an extraordinary confluence: fundamentalist preachers and former segregationists reinventing themselves as militant crusaders against gay rights and feminism; business executives uniting against regulation in an era of economic decline; a cadre of secretive &“New Right&” organizers deploying state-of-the-art technology, bending political norms to the breaking point—and Reagan&’s own unbending optimism, his ability to convey unshakable confidence in America as the world&’s &“shining city on a hill.&” Meanwhile, a civil war broke out in the Democratic party. When President Jimmy Carter called Americans to a new ethic of austerity, Senator Ted Kennedy reacted with horror, challenging him for reelection. Carter&’s Oval Office tenure was further imperiled by the Iranian hostage crisis, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, near-catastrophe at a Pennsylvania nuclear plant, aviation accidents, serial killers on the loose, and endless gas lines. Backed by a reenergized conservative Republican base, Reagan ran on the campaign slogan &“Make America Great Again&”—and prevailed. Reaganland is the story of how that happened, tracing conservatives&’ cutthroat strategies to gain power and explaining why they endure four decades later.
Reagan’s Mythical America
by Jan HanskaAmerican Storyverse introduces narratology as a relevant approach to the study of any US President, but especially Ronald Reagan. While initially much of the research conducted into the Reagan presidency was highly critical, many of the books written lately have been more like hagiographies. Reagan has been subjected to almost a worshipful attitude in the past two decades (see e. g. D'Souza 1997, Kengor 2006, Wallison 2003), and only recently more level-headed and objective studies have begun to emerge (see e. g. Wilentz 2008). There is a need to keep researching Reagan, but by taking new stances and original approaches. Hanska introduces a new interpretation of Reagan's success that goes beyond explaining his rhetoric. He takes a more comprehensive view by arguing that Reagan's political leadership focused on the use of stories as factual tools of policymaking. Reagan was a man fond of stories and his tendency to illustrate even the most confounding political challenges in short anecdotes and parables are an example of his ability as a storyteller. But that was not the whole scope of his narrative-based policies. The main argument is that with the aid of multiple stories about America, the American Way of Life and especially the American Dream Reagan narrated into existence a mythical America, which could be characterized as America where all its highest aspirations and ideals were manifested. This was not the world Americans lived in, but with aid of the ability of stories to create alternative realities or storyworlds (Herman 2004) of their own Reagan managed to alter the perception of people about the country they lived in. Instead of the mere storyworld that is built in the narrates interaction with the story Hanska introduce a concept of 'storyverse' to illustrate how such a complex and multifaceted storytelling as Reagan's was able to knit storylines into a 'storyweb' where common-sensical, ideological, cultural, political, mythical and even religious beliefs worked as snares to draw the audience into accepting one storyline and by following it deeper into the narrative superstructure were enticed to accept more and more beliefs without even consciously noticing their influence. Reagan's mythical America was not the United States of America that exists with clear boundaries on the map, but rather an imagined community that people were happy to inhabit. It was a place of everyday heroism and good deeds, love within families and communities, a land where indeed there always was a 'new morning for America. ' The skillful storytelling created an entire storyverse of belief of what it meant to be an American and a part of this mythical community and by maneuvering people in and out of different storyworlds within the entire metanarrative Reagan was able to immerse the citizenry in his storyverse and exclude politically disadvantageous factors almost completely. Of course, just as in every story, the audience needs to accept it as worth listening to, and this requires belief. This explains why Reagan was simultaneously loved and hated by the citizens. There was no middle ground. If one chose not to accept Reagan's political vision of America as fundamentally 'true, ' they were strongly opposed to all Reagan stood for.
Real American: A Memoir
by Julie Lythcott-Haims“Courageous, achingly honest." —Michelle Alexander, New York Times bestselling author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness“A compelling, incisive and thoughtful examination of race, origin and what it means to be called an American. Engaging, heartfelt and beautifully written, Lythcott-Haims explores the American spectrum of identity with refreshing courage and compassion.”—Bryan Stevenson, New York Times bestselling author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and RedemptionA fearless debut memoir in which beloved and bestselling How to Raise an Adult author Julie Lythcott-Haims pulls no punches in her recollections of growing up a biracial black woman in America.Bringing a poetic sensibility to her prose to stunning effect, Lythcott-Haims briskly and stirringly evokes her personal battle with the low self-esteem that American racism routinely inflicts on people of color. The only child of a marriage between an African-American father and a white British mother, she shows indelibly how so-called "micro" aggressions in addition to blunt force insults can puncture a person's inner life with a thousand sharp cuts. Real American expresses also, through Lythcott-Haims’s path to self-acceptance, the healing power of community in overcoming the hurtful isolation of being incessantly considered "the other." The author of the New York Times bestselling anti-helicopter parenting manifesto How to Raise an Adult, Lythcott-Haims has written a different sort of book this time out, but one that will nevertheless resonate with the legions of students, educators and parents to whom she is now well known, by whom she is beloved, and to whom she has always provided wise and necessary counsel about how to embrace and nurture their best selves. Real American is an affecting memoir, an unforgettable cri de coeur, and a clarion call to all of us to live more wisely, generously and fully.
Real Birth: Women Share Their Stories
by Robin GreeneIntimate and intensely personal, the forty-five first-person narratives contained in Real Birth: Women Share Their Stories offer readers a window into the complex and emotionally exciting experience of childbirth. Women from a full range of socioeconomic backgrounds and circumstances recount the childbirth choices they've made and the ways those choices have played themselves out in the real life contexts of their everyday lives. Readers meet women from all over the country who speak to us directly--no interviewer intrudes, no judgments intrude, and no single method of childbirth is advocated. Instead, these women offer us their candid experiences, presented clearly and unflinchingly. Medically reviewed by physicians Dr. Richard Randolph for the first edition and Dr. Deborah Morris for this second edition, Real Birth offers readers a plethora of correct information as well the kind of real scoop that other books and health care professionals are often reluctant to reveal. The result is a well-grounded book that reaches across the boundaries of childbirth literature. Real Birth is introduced by Ariel Gore, journalist, editor, writer, and founding editor/publisher of Hip Mama, an Alternative Press Award-winning publication about the culture of motherhood. Also included are an extensive glossary of medical terms, a thoroughly researched selective bibliography, and a list of resources of interest to pregnant women and new moms.