Richard M. Nixon: A Life in Full
by Conrad Black
Our Price: $38.99
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $1.58 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Conrad BlackEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-11-11
ISBN: 1586486748
Number of pages: 1168
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Book Reviews of Richard M. Nixon: A Life in Full
Book Review: Weak, boring read, completely biased
Summary: 2 Stars
I had just read the Harry S. Truman biography by David McCullough, a fascinating read, and I grabbed this for an inside look at Nixon. To me, the beginning of this book gets very lost in trying to detail every little piece of information and data, without really telling a story. The Truman biography was extremely interesting and kept me captivated throughout. I keep getting lost in the minute detail the Nixon book brings to minor details. There is a great deal of information here; it is just not presented in an interesting or enlightening manner, and I labored through the first half of this lengthy book.
What became more disturbing to me was the biased slant the book takes in the second half. Mr. Black paints a picture of Nixon being one of the greatest presidents that the US has ever had. According to the author, Nixon had a hand in helping each president following him take office. He had nothing to do with Watergate and had no idea of what it was; he was just trying to support his people. It literally becomes a farce as he paints Nixon as one of the greatest politicians of all time and never once agreeing that he did anything wrong except try and support the people on his staff.
He goes on to suggest that every foreign leader and nation loved Nixon and that they could not understand why Watergate was a big deal. According to the author, the US was the only country who did not like Nixon and Nixon was a chief player in every political event following his resignation from office. I had a very tough time with this book as I did not find it plausible or realistic. There was absolutely no objectivity; it was a complete sales job on why Nixon should be revered as one of the great politicians of all time. He even goes so far to say that aside from Thomas Jefferson, no other president was as popular or as effective as Nixon was following his departure from office. The author never seems to grasp the fact that Nixon was forced to resign the office or face impeachment. I am surprised that a package of Conrad Black Kool Aid was not included with the book.
Summary of Richard M. Nixon: A Life in Full
From the late 1940s to the mid-1970s, Nixon was a polarizing figure in American politics, admired for his intelligence, savvy, and strategic skill, and reviled for his shady manner and cutthroat tactics. In deft, masterful prose, Black separates the good in Nixon-his foreign initiatives, some of his domestic policies, and his firm political hand-from the sinister, with his questionable methods and the collection of excesses and offenses associated with the Watergate scandal. Black argues that the hounding of Nixon from office was partly political retribution from a lifetime of enemies and Nixons misplaced loyalty to unworthy subordinates, and not clearly the consequence of crimes in which he participated.United States Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in United States Books
Carrying The Flag: The Story Of Private Charles Whilden, The Confederacy's Most Unlikely Heroby Gordon C. Rhea
Basic Books; Published: 2003-12-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops:
Black Titan: A.G. Gaston and the Making of a Black American Millionaireby Carol Jenkins, Elizabeth Gardner Hines
One World/Ballantine; Published: 2005-01-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.03
Price in other shops:
Oswald's Tale: An American Mysteryby Norman Mailer
Random House Trade Paperbacks; Published: 2007-01-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.60
Price in other shops:
Renegade: The Making of a Presidentby Richard Wolffe
Broadway; Published: 2010-05-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
Winter Brothers: A Season at the Edge of Americaby Ivan Doig
Mariner Books; Published: 1982-10-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.16
Price in other shops:
When Character Was King: A Story of Ronald Reaganby Peggy Noonan
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2002-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.25
Price in other shops:
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Penguin Classics)by Harriet Jacobs
Penguin Classics; Published: 2000-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.00
Price in other shops:
The Invention of Solitudeby Paul Auster
Penguin; Published: 1988-05-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.68
Price in other shops:
On My Own at 107: Reflections on Life Without Bessieby Sarah L. Delany, Amy Hill Hearth
HarperOne; Published: 1998-01-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $21.99
The Way You Wear Your Hat : Frank Sinatra and the Lost Art of Livin'by Bill Zehme
Harper; Published: 1997-11-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.00
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Coolidgeby Robert Sobel
Regnery History; Published: 2000-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.57
Price in other shops:
Woodrow Wilson: A Biographyby John Milton Cooper Jr.
Vintage; Published: 2011-04-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.07
Price in other shops:
Theodore Rexby Edmund Morris
Random House Trade Paperbacks; Published: 2002-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.95
Price in other shops:
Colonel Rooseveltby Edmund Morris
Random House; Published: 2010-11-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.50
Price in other shops:
Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids: Why Being a Great Parent is Less Work and More Fun Than You Thinkby Bryan Caplan
Basic Books; Published: 2011-04-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $1.95
Price in other shops:
Eisenhower: Soldier and President (The Renowned One-Volume Life)by Stephen E. Ambrose
Simon & Schuster; Published: 1991-10-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.11
Price in other shops:
FDRby Jean Edward Smith
Random House; Published: 2008-05-13; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.98
Price in other shops:
Trumanby David McCullough
Simon & Schuster; Published: 1993-06-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.83
Price in other shops:
An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy, 1917 - 1963 (Morland Dynasty)by Robert Dallek
Back Bay Books; Published: 2004-05-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops:
Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Champion of Freedomby Conrad Black
PublicAffairs; Published: 2005-03-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.73
Price in other shops: