by Max Boot
First published 2024
Ronald Reagan emerges from Depression-era poverty in the Midwest to become Hollywood's brightest star before transforming into America's fortieth president. Max Boot spent a decade crafting this portrait, conducting over one hundred fresh interviews and examining thousands of previously unavailable documents. The author, a former Republican policy advisor, presents Reagan without excuse or apology. He reveals a man of stark contradictions whose mysterious nature captivated the nation even as it puzzled his inner circle. Boot traces Reagan's moralistic upbringing and how it shaped his black-and-white view of the world. The biography examines Reagan's role in conservative politics, his economic policies, his leadership during the Cold War's final chapter, and the Iran-Contra scandal. Boot argues that Reagan's enigmatic quality became central to his political magnetism. This account captures both Reagan's public triumphs and private complexities, showing how a poor boy from the heartland became the telegenic leader who reshaped American conservatism.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, political-science, presidents, 21st-century, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enigmatic-protagonist, rags-to-riches
Setting: Midwest, Hollywood, America
Period: Great Depression, Cold War
880 pages · Hardcover · Liveright