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Well worth your time.brings lot of history to mind with what I wasliving comparing it with what these two fellows were doing. What a wonderful book.full of imformation you wouldn't know aboutwithout reading this book.
Would this book have turned out differently had WFB lived to complete it, quite possibly.One item here of real interest to me was not only the number of notes and letters between WFB and Nancy Reagan but also the image left in my mind of the intelligence and sense of humor Mrs. We are told this is the book WFB was working with at time of his death, will there be others, possibly so. In some ways that isn't very much but in other ways a great deal. Other than occasional mention, the wife of WFB is not represented in these letters, notes, and calls.Semper Fi.
Her letters as well as Reagan's show the affection each had for the other.It's a slim volume which will not take the average reader long to go through, but for me it remains an interesting book that was well worth my time. Other than a few items impinging on their individual personal lives I really did not learn much, but it was very enjoyable spending time with these three people. They seem to have had a very good friendship. Reagan has quite a few messages here between WFB and herself.
While there are a few personal items tucked into these letters they can be seen to be pretty middle of the road stuff. Without counting the letters it does seem that Mrs. I also agree this book should not be labeled a 'bad' book to the average reader, for the 'good' or 'bad' tag would mainly depend on a reader's expectations for the book.I had read something about each of these men and came to the book to see what WFB had to say about Ronald Reagan. Reagan has.
From WFB's perspective many times the phone calls missed getting a connection. Their 'friendship' seems to me more of a professional meeting of the minds revolving around their needs at various times. Two men who had a 25 year acquaintance brought together mainly by their professional crossings, having respect amd fondness for each other certainly, but mostly sent notes, letters, and oft times phone calls.
Unlike many Reagan tributes, the book is compact and easy to read. Not all of the letters are really interesting, but you can sample the style and skip pages or even chapters. Little nuggets and anecdotes will get your attention. I disagree that it is a bad book. It is just not in the heavyweight division. It is a collection of notes and letters that was likely put together after Mr Buckley's death. It does not promise more than it delivers. I appreciated a chance to be introduced to President Reagan's informal writing that holds its own vis-a-vis Buckley the intellectual.
Too fondly, in this reader's opinion.This reads more like a social column than a serious look at Ronald Reagan and his policies. 27, 2008), and while he was always a quick writer, this book reads like it was thrown together at the last moment.
Sad to say, this book should never have been published. The book is gossipy in nature; and it offers little new on the Reagan presidency.
Bill Buckley should have quit when he was ahead.Buckley had a marvelous career as a conservative icon, and he was one of the major reasons that Republican conservatives like Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan ran for the highest office in the land (Reagan got there; Goldwater lost to Lyndon B. Buckley reprints far too much of the correspondence between himself and Reagan (and Nancy - to whom he consistently sends "pots of love"), and it is surprising how superficial that correspondence is.Buckley wrote this book in the final months of his life (he died on Feb.
Johnson who was swept back into office in a wave of sympathy emanating from the JFK assassination).In his 55th (and probably his final) book, THE REAGAN I KNEW, Buckley looks back fondly at the Reagan Administration.
Buckley was very, very close to both Reagan and his wife, Nancy, and a large part of this book is spent in chronicling the social activity between the conservative columnist (and his wife) and the Reagans.
And a substantial amount are letters between WFB and both Ron and Nancy (with her, WFB had an open and tame, yet surprising, flirtation). And I can't say I'm entirely satisfied with the book. Glimpses of Ronald Reagan thru his interactions with journalist William F Buckley. I can't say I got a better sense of Reagan than I had before. It's primarily a book to fill out your inventory -- to fit between the larger books you might have on Reagan or by Buckley. More like a strobelight than spotlight with a smallish number of chapters telling of some experience between the two -- the most substantial being their disagreement and debate over the Panama Canal.There is suprisingly little original material in this already skimpy book. Much of it consists of extracts from articles or speeches written by WFB, or from his TV show FIRING LINE.
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