The Reagan I Knew: 0 - Hardcover

Library Journal "Buckley has written an enjoyable account of the Reagan years and the camaraderie he shared with the Reagans." National Review "There are layers of bittersweet melancholia in Bill Buckley's memoir of his 30-year friendship with Ronald Reagan. The Reagan I Knew is Buckley's final book; indeed, he was working on the finishing touches the day he died in February. The memory of Reagan, and especially the elan of ascendant conservatism in the 1970s and 1980s that Buckley's memoir rekindles, burns hotter now that conservatives find themselves in the political wilderness again." Philadelphia Inquirer "The story of the Buckley-Reagan friendship is a compelling one, and the book is an entertaining look back at the Reagan era." Arkansas News "Like any memoir, there are remembrances containing wonderful details, but Buckley adds to its richness by including a vast array of personal letters, including those between Buckley and Nancy Reagan--they shared a tight bond." Deseret Morning News "In this slim, often intimate, sometimes poignant book, Buckley, who died last February, chronicles the rise of Reagan, his governorship, his presidency and his sunset years" "Library Journal" "Buckley has written an enjoyable account of the Reagan years and the camaraderie he shared with the Reagans." "National Review" "There are layers of bittersweet melancholia in Bill Buckley's memoir of his 30-year friendship with Ronald Reagan. "The Reagan I Knew" is Buckley's final book; indeed, he was working on the finishing touches the day he died in February. The memory of Reagan, and especially the elan of ascendant conservatism in the 1970s and 1980s that Buckley's memoir rekindles, burns hotter now that conservatives find themselves in the political wilderness again." "Philadelphia Inquirer" "The story of the Buckley-Reagan friendship is a compelling one, and the book is an entertaining look back at the Reagan era." "Arkansas News" "Like any memoir, there are remembrances containing wonderful details, but Buckley adds to its richness by including a vast array of personal letters, including those between Buckley and Nancy Reagan--they shared a tight bond." "Deseret Morning News" "In this slim, often intimate, sometimes poignant book, Buckley, who died last February, chronicles the rise of Reagan, his governorship, his presidency and his sunset years" "Booklist" "A deeply subtle account, full of insights not only into Ronald Reagan but also William Buckley, his longtime friend, supporter, and (occasional) critic." "Washington Times" "Their many admirers will find this book a pleasure to read from cover to cover, for two great conservatives live again in its pages." " The New York Times Book Review" "The Reagan I Knew provides a case study on the relationship between intellectuals and power, and specifically on the marriage between right-wing thinkers and populist politicians that has defined the modern right from the Goldwater era to our own." "The American Spectator" "The Reagan I Knew is successful on several levels. For th "Library Journal" "Buckley has written an enjoyable account of the Reagan years and the camaraderie he shared with the Reagans."

An intimate portrait of Ronald Reagan, from his political mentor, ally and friend, William F. Buckley Jr.William F. Buckley Jr. first met Ronald Reagan in 1960, when Reagan, then a well-known actor, was assigned to introduce Buckley to an audience of Californian doctors. On discovering that the microphone couldn't be turned on without breaking into a locked control room, Reagan climbed out of a window in his tuxedo, cat-walked some thirty yards to the correct window, broke a pane with his elbow, let himself in and turned on the mic. He then proceeded to deliver a warm and flawless introduction. It was, Buckley came to realise, a perfect Reagan moment.This book, a reminiscence of thirty years of friendship, is full of such moments. Buckley and Reagan were more than political allies: they and their wives were also close friends, who holidayed together and shared inside jokes. Reagan, in Buckley's view, was the most genuine of politicians: he acted out, in the smallest details of his life, the same ideals he brought to governing America. "Under Reagan, Buckley" argues, the US was about something. It had a sense of mission it has not enjoyed since. This book is a personal and political appreciation by an author uniquely qualified to speak to both aspects of the subject.