Reaganland: America's Right Turn 1976-1980
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- Author：Rick Perlstein
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Summary
From the bestselling author of Nixonland and Invisible Bridge comes a complex portrait of President Ronald Reagan that charts the rise of the modern conservative brand unlike ever before。
After chronicling America’s transformation from a center-left to center-right nation for two decades， Rick Perlstein now focuses on the tumultuous life of President Ronald Reagan from 1976–1980。 Within the book’s four-year time frame， Perlstein touches on themes of confluence as he discusses the four stories that define American politics up to the age of Trump。
There is the rise of a newly aggressive corporate America diligently organizing to turn back the liberal tide: powerful unions， environmentalism， and unprecedentedly suffusing regulation。 There is the movement of political mobilized conservative Christians， organizing to reverse the cultural institutionalization of the 1960s insurgencies。 Third， there is the war for the Democratic Party， transformed under Jimmy Carter as a vehicle promoting “austerity” and “sacrifice”—a turn that spurs a counter-reaction from liberal forces who go to war with Carter to return the party to its populist New Deal patrimony。 And finally， there is the ascendency of Ronald Reagan， considered washed up after his 1976 defeat for the Republican nomination and too old to run for president in any event， who nonetheless dramatically emerges as the heroic embodiment of America’s longing to transcend the 1970s dark storms—from Love Canal to Jonestown， John Wayne Gacy to the hostages in Iran。
Hailed as “the chronicler extraordinaire of American conservatism” （Politico）， Perlstein explores the complex years of Ronald Reagan’s presidency offering new and timely insights to issues that still remain relevant today。
After chronicling America’s transformation from a center-left to center-right nation for two decades， Rick Perlstein now focuses on the tumultuous life of President Ronald Reagan from 1976–1980。 Within the book’s four-year time frame， Perlstein touches on themes of confluence as he discusses the four stories that define American politics up to the age of Trump。
There is the rise of a newly aggressive corporate America diligently organizing to turn back the liberal tide: powerful unions， environmentalism， and unprecedentedly suffusing regulation。 There is the movement of political mobilized conservative Christians， organizing to reverse the cultural institutionalization of the 1960s insurgencies。 Third， there is the war for the Democratic Party， transformed under Jimmy Carter as a vehicle promoting “austerity” and “sacrifice”—a turn that spurs a counter-reaction from liberal forces who go to war with Carter to return the party to its populist New Deal patrimony。 And finally， there is the ascendency of Ronald Reagan， considered washed up after his 1976 defeat for the Republican nomination and too old to run for president in any event， who nonetheless dramatically emerges as the heroic embodiment of America’s longing to transcend the 1970s dark storms—from Love Canal to Jonestown， John Wayne Gacy to the hostages in Iran。
Hailed as “the chronicler extraordinaire of American conservatism” （Politico）， Perlstein explores the complex years of Ronald Reagan’s presidency offering new and timely insights to issues that still remain relevant today。
Reviews
Tony Foxhoven
，
This took some effort but I truly enjoyed every page。 This is the end of the 4 part series from Rick about America's turn toward conservatism and even though this is a beast of a book， the blending of politics and pop culture from the 70s is totally enthralling。 It might be worth breaking up， but if you have any interest in this topic at all you will def be satisfied reading this This took some effort but I truly enjoyed every page。 This is the end of the 4 part series from Rick about America's turn toward conservatism and even though this is a beast of a book， the blending of politics and pop culture from the 70s is totally enthralling。 It might be worth breaking up， but if you have any interest in this topic at all you will def be satisfied reading this 。。。more
J。P。
，
Have to work through some really surprising typos - there’s no such thing as a Union 77 station - but it doesn’t detract from the story and the confirmation that the modern conservative movement is based on fear and lies。
Carl
，
Everything you might ever wish to ask about Ronald Reagan & his effects of the Republican Party & the country but were afraid to ask。 & all this covering only the period from the Gerald Ford presidency until Reagan's election to his first term。 This is good stuff & I'd give it a 5 but it's TMI。 It took me forever to get thru the whole thing。 Of course， moving had much to do with that。 Everything you might ever wish to ask about Ronald Reagan & his effects of the Republican Party & the country but were afraid to ask。 & all this covering only the period from the Gerald Ford presidency until Reagan's election to his first term。 This is good stuff & I'd give it a 5 but it's TMI。 It took me forever to get thru the whole thing。 Of course， moving had much to do with that。 。。。more
Rafael Sanchez
，
Comprehensive view from （slightly） leftish perspective but pretty fair overall
Mattschratz
，
As with the other three books， it's of course very good--presenting the big movement history that culminates in electing Reagan。 As with the other books also， my favorite parts were just the weird bits of business （like Goldwater and peanut butter in the first one）; the one I think about the most here is when Carter at the 1980 DNC passionately invokes the late 1968 Democratic candidate as "HUBERT！ HORATIO！ HORNBLOWER！" As with the other three books， it's of course very good--presenting the big movement history that culminates in electing Reagan。 As with the other books also， my favorite parts were just the weird bits of business （like Goldwater and peanut butter in the first one）; the one I think about the most here is when Carter at the 1980 DNC passionately invokes the late 1968 Democratic candidate as "HUBERT！ HORATIO！ HORNBLOWER！" 。。。more
Eric
，
too damn long。
M。A。 Stern
，
Don’t let the title fool you， this book is only somewhat about Reagan。 It’s as much about major political players of the four years before he came to power-Carter and Ford， Harvey Milk and Phyllis Schalafly， Jerry Brown and John Anderson。 Perlstein manages to weave all of their stories into a larger， cohesive narrative。
Llewellyn
，
A good history of the political shift in the U。S。 told through exhaustive anecdotes of political campaigns and various events of the time， tracking various political ideologues like Nader， Viguerie， Anita Bryant and others。 How the cultural debates of the 60s led to the actual political divides of the late 70s。 The downside is that it's too much anecdote， much of it unnecessary。 Certain things get more attention than others， but still incredible writing on an otherwise ignored era。 Certain secti A good history of the political shift in the U。S。 told through exhaustive anecdotes of political campaigns and various events of the time， tracking various political ideologues like Nader， Viguerie， Anita Bryant and others。 How the cultural debates of the 60s led to the actual political divides of the late 70s。 The downside is that it's too much anecdote， much of it unnecessary。 Certain things get more attention than others， but still incredible writing on an otherwise ignored era。 Certain sections are really eye-opening， giving a full glimpse at how much nonsense there was back then just as there is now， if not more。 。。。more
John Devlin
，
Bushwhacked， hornswoggled…by myself。The one downside of e books are the lengths of some grand paper carcasses are hidden by pixels。Had I known this book was 1，000 pages I’d never have started but once started like most book devotees I was loathe to admit defeat。The author is on the Left and he consistently impugns conservative motives and he loves to add some zinger about some moralizing Christian Politico who gets caught up in some gay dalliance。The reason the book reaches two stars is bc it’s Bushwhacked， hornswoggled…by myself。The one downside of e books are the lengths of some grand paper carcasses are hidden by pixels。Had I known this book was 1，000 pages I’d never have started but once started like most book devotees I was loathe to admit defeat。The author is on the Left and he consistently impugns conservative motives and he loves to add some zinger about some moralizing Christian Politico who gets caught up in some gay dalliance。The reason the book reaches two stars is bc it’s a granular examination of the political landscape。 The tempests in a teapot: Panama Canal， Salt II， briggs initiative all give a reader some perspective。 Social security， solar panels， govt growth， and debt all show not much has changed。Reagan was too old to be president at 68。Forty years later， Biden was 78 and up to the task， yeah right。 。。。more
Brandon
，
If you wonder how the state of U。S。 politics got to its current status in 2021， Reaganland will give you all the background necessary。 Not about politicians really， this book is about the culture wars that still define the times。 Reaganland a comprehensive history of how and why Reagan became president and the defining historical figure of the late twentieth century。 Having grown up during this time period， Reaganland brought back many memories of how fucked up things were。Good Read！
Kyle
，
Great stuff， great end to the quadrilogy。 Two things stuck out。 One being how astonishingly right-wing the mood in America was in the late 70s。 The defeat of the new left， without a coherent replacement， left technocratic liberals and accommodationist unions to face off against a business community that finally got its act together， an evangelical movement that was politically engaged for the first time and absolutely rabid about feminism and gay liberation， and a tightly organized network of co Great stuff， great end to the quadrilogy。 Two things stuck out。 One being how astonishingly right-wing the mood in America was in the late 70s。 The defeat of the new left， without a coherent replacement， left technocratic liberals and accommodationist unions to face off against a business community that finally got its act together， an evangelical movement that was politically engaged for the first time and absolutely rabid about feminism and gay liberation， and a tightly organized network of conservative political and funding apparatuses that was reaping the rewards of 20 years of work。 Public mood shifted hard to the right， and conservative organizing both made that opinion seem even further right than it was and absolutely bamboozled complacent liberals and Democratic politicians， who thought the righteousness of their beliefs would win out。 Instead they got outhustled by the conservative PACS and campaigns， and were either voted out or fully caved to the new rising political tide。The second thing was how much Carter sucked。 I knew he was bad， and acted as the tip of the spear on neoliberalism。 But boy did that guy suck。 。。。more
Jerry Bunin
，
This is the concluding book in Perlstein's overall excellent four-volume study tracing the rise of the Conservative Right to dominance in American politics。 These are great books if you are interested in politics， history and America。 The foursome covers the time period from the 1960 to the 1980 presidential elections。 I thoroughly enjoyed this read and found it a fascinating recapitulation of the history I've lived through。 This is the concluding book in Perlstein's overall excellent four-volume study tracing the rise of the Conservative Right to dominance in American politics。 These are great books if you are interested in politics， history and America。 The foursome covers the time period from the 1960 to the 1980 presidential elections。 I thoroughly enjoyed this read and found it a fascinating recapitulation of the history I've lived through。 。。。more
Hayden Cole
，
God Perlstein - still got it。
Josh
，
I'm not prepared to sum up the 3000~ pages Perlstein has finished here besides giving an eager thumbs up。 As for this entry specifically: After the long， long psychological profiles and mounting dread of Invisible Bridge， this （as promised by the title！） returns to the oddly enthralling live curation style of Nixonland to a powerful end。 Reagan's appeal was already dissected in Invisible Bridge， and there's dramatic irony knowing that Carter's presidency is a long series of stepping on rakes wit I'm not prepared to sum up the 3000~ pages Perlstein has finished here besides giving an eager thumbs up。 As for this entry specifically: After the long， long psychological profiles and mounting dread of Invisible Bridge， this （as promised by the title！） returns to the oddly enthralling live curation style of Nixonland to a powerful end。 Reagan's appeal was already dissected in Invisible Bridge， and there's dramatic irony knowing that Carter's presidency is a long series of stepping on rakes without any of the built-in poetry of Goldwater's ignored movement-launching or everything Richard Nixon， but as usual （with a thousand pages）， Perlstein still fully commits to a full portrait of the era which I never realized I ignored as much as I did。 How much Doonesbury did this guy have to read？ 。。。more
Mike
，
#1* Reagan contested Ford in '76 until Ford won party nomination and then didn't campaign at all for Ford。 Reagan blamed everything but himself for Ford's narrow loss to Carter。* Republicans thought Reagan was done and the party needed younger less conservative members to be viable in '80* New development of ideology mattering less than feelings。 Youth of 70's indifferent to politics， civics and focused on business and themselves。 Presidents now packaged as likable and coverage becomes contrived #1* Reagan contested Ford in '76 until Ford won party nomination and then didn't campaign at all for Ford。 Reagan blamed everything but himself for Ford's narrow loss to Carter。* Republicans thought Reagan was done and the party needed younger less conservative members to be viable in '80* New development of ideology mattering less than feelings。 Youth of 70's indifferent to politics， civics and focused on business and themselves。 Presidents now packaged as likable and coverage becomes contrived。 。。。more
Ben Schmidt
，
perlsteins books can be a little exhausting， just a sheer firehose of period details with various threads that jump around。 but it's still a useful way to absorb a time。 consider a culture war issue of the time， whether to give the Panama Canal back to Panama （"there's no Panama Canal 。。。 there's an American canal in Panama！！"）。 or the way Carter absorbed the rights austerity measures that didn't even work。 or something as small as Dan White successfully killing Harvey Milk and merely getting ch perlsteins books can be a little exhausting， just a sheer firehose of period details with various threads that jump around。 but it's still a useful way to absorb a time。 consider a culture war issue of the time， whether to give the Panama Canal back to Panama （"there's no Panama Canal 。。。 there's an American canal in Panama！！"）。 or the way Carter absorbed the rights austerity measures that didn't even work。 or something as small as Dan White successfully killing Harvey Milk and merely getting charged with manslaughter， becoming a folk hero to the rights obsession with countering gay rights。 like i always say， nothing is new， it's all happened before。 。。。more
Brock Jahnke
，
Time and again Perlstein simplifies the byzantine， elaborates on the overlooked， and rectifies the popularly misunderstood。 This series—beginning with Before the Storm， blooming with Nixonland， linked critically by the Invisible Bridge—does better than any I've ever come across of painting a vivid depiction of the cultural landscape of a particular time， demystifying the contemporary political situation， and illustrating how deeply and devilishly the two are entwined。 This book culminates that s Time and again Perlstein simplifies the byzantine， elaborates on the overlooked， and rectifies the popularly misunderstood。 This series—beginning with Before the Storm， blooming with Nixonland， linked critically by the Invisible Bridge—does better than any I've ever come across of painting a vivid depiction of the cultural landscape of a particular time， demystifying the contemporary political situation， and illustrating how deeply and devilishly the two are entwined。 This book culminates that saga in every understanding of the word。 。。。more
Jackson Cho
，
Not as good as Perlstein's previous books。 Would have liked to see more about the other candidates running and I felt like it wasn't as insightful in showing the world views of the losing candidates as in Before the Storm。 Also several little errors that editors should have gotten。 Still a great finish to a fantastic series。 Not as good as Perlstein's previous books。 Would have liked to see more about the other candidates running and I felt like it wasn't as insightful in showing the world views of the losing candidates as in Before the Storm。 Also several little errors that editors should have gotten。 Still a great finish to a fantastic series。 。。。more
Lucas Suter
，
Just as exhaustively researched as Nixonland only longer。 The book's descriptions of the rise of the Republican right are very familiar to anyone who's lived through the past 10 years， my only complaint is its pacing drags in the middle。 Just as exhaustively researched as Nixonland only longer。 The book's descriptions of the rise of the Republican right are very familiar to anyone who's lived through the past 10 years， my only complaint is its pacing drags in the middle。 。。。more
Brian Willis
，
After four books totalling 2，982 pages of text by my count （call it 3，000）， Perlstein lays his great epic of the rise of New-Conservatism to rest。 For two decades， he chronicled two decades of that movement that continues to ripple through our political fabric today。So， the above numbers will give any reader pause。 Especially if you don't need to wait for the last two to arrive for years as I did so that I could take a breath。 That is a lot of political history and those are a lot of pages。 I "o After four books totalling 2，982 pages of text by my count （call it 3，000）， Perlstein lays his great epic of the rise of New-Conservatism to rest。 For two decades， he chronicled two decades of that movement that continues to ripple through our political fabric today。So， the above numbers will give any reader pause。 Especially if you don't need to wait for the last two to arrive for years as I did so that I could take a breath。 That is a lot of political history and those are a lot of pages。 I "only" had to read 2，500 pages in an English major class covering the Victorian novel！ But this was well worth it， as Perlstein bridges the evolution of the Republican party from the party of Eisenhower and Nixon to that of Reagan， and Gingrich， and eventually the MAGA crowd。 Those last 40 years are implied throughout these four books， but you can see the seeds embedded deep in the radical soil。I distinctly remember reading the first book， "Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus"， partially， in a scrap yard as my father and I laid our trusty old brown 1983 Ford truck to rest。 He was laid off from Ford in 1980 as part of the economic crisis that is laid out in this book leading to the election of Ronald Reagan。 Indeed， my earliest political memory is November 4， 1980， when we glumly accepted his victory on election night。 That is where this narrative essentially ends （with a page long notice of the end of the 60s on December 8， 1980 and the fur coats draping Inaugural Ball coatrooms as Reagan took office）。 That book detailed the reaction to JFK in the early 60s which led to "radical" Barry Goldwater's ascendancy into the nominee of the Republican Party despite his bona fide credentials as a far right Republican （government in all its forms was the enemy - no desegregation， no Social Security， but nuke the Ruskies）。 The John Birch society and especially Phyllis Schafly （both of whom make appearances throughout the series） denigrated the fall of American morality as they saw it: racial integration and intermarriage， men who grew their hair long， women daring to search for meaning outside the home， birth control， the Equal Rights Amendment （still not ratified in 2021）， abortion， and many public issues that we take for granted as guaranteed today。 It led to a massive landslide by LBJ， partially by a grieving nation honoring JFK but also a ratification of the New Deal and progressive policies。Then， "Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America"。 If history is written by the victors， this book tells the story of conservatism in the abyss， reeling from the landslide victory of LBJ and the rise of ratified Civil Rights into law as well as the Great Society （these were the years where public benefits programs run by the government saw their absolute zenith - even more than the New Deal）。 Oh yeah， and the cultural ascendancy of the 1960s。 To paraphrase Hamlet， how did we go from this to this？ How did Richard Nixon pull off the political comeback of a lifetime？ What forces bubbled within the Republican Party （and decimated the Democratic one） to lead to Nixon's election？ To his popularity？ The book ends in 1970， frozen before Watergate， with Law and Order the words of the day and truly reactionary politics leading the way to rejecting Woodstock with the shootings at Kent State。 A certain actor turned Governor of California is leading the vanguard。 So does the escalation of the Vietnam War， promised to be ended by Nixon， into carpet bombing of Cambodia。"The Invisible Bridge: The Fall of Nixon and the Rise of Reagan" does exactly that， tie the self immolation of Nixon's Presidency with the Watergate scandal （well detailed there） into the ascendancy of the forces that would rally around the charisma of Ronald Reagan to "lead" the party。 The book ends in 1976， as Reagan loses to Ford by the most miniscule of margins and the Democrats turn to their own outsider in Jimmy Carter。 The John Birch Society and Phyllis Schafly metastasized into much more overtly hostile forces inhospitable with the role of government in American life。 The battle over Roe v。 Wade is worth the price of admission alone。Then "Reaganland: America's Right Turn: 1976-1980"。 There simply isn't a more complete and detailed analysis of American politics during the Carter Presidency。 Everybody makes an appearance， from George H。W。 Bush （obviously） to Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld， to Roger Stone and Paul Manafort （worked on Reagan's campaign） to Bill Clinton and Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump。 Clinton's only losing campaign was for re-election in 1980 （doomed with the Democratic party）， Bernie's began in 1980， and Trump's public profile began in 1979。 While I initially thought Perlstein was going the cross the T's and dot the I's much more forcefully， he doesn't need to。 By the time Reaganland is finished， the hypocrisy of the Religious Right， the money behind conservative forces， the hatred of progressivism， the superficial salesmanship of American values without core policies in place other than the （more often than not） selfishness of tax cuts for me but not for others， and the supremacy of the loudest voice in the room。 It's not hard to see where the future after this book lies: the amplification of those voices at Fox News （CNN only makes its start here with the Iranian hostage crisis） and the wholesale embracement of demagogues like Donald Trump， forsaking morality if the price paid leads to victory。 It's a four volume series that details how the Conservative brand bought modern victory at the price of its own soul。That durable old "Brown Bomber" from Ford survived for 25 years。 The "New Right" or "neoconservative" movement has lasted much longer。 But the Brown Bomber did more to make my life a better and more loving place。 40 years after the end of the events in the book， are you better off now than you were 40 years ago？ Is America？ I'm not sure we are。 These books tell how we got there。 Here。 And beyond。 。。。more
Jill Stevenson
，
Well this explains a lot！ Fascinating history of the rise of the religious right。
Art
，
Perlstein is one of my favorite authors。。。。。I rank him up there with Chernow when it comes to the quality of his prose and thoroughness of research。 Whether you're Democrat or Republican this book is a must read to better understand today's political landscape。 Warning。。。。。it's a long one。。。。。914 pages excluding acknowledgements， notes and index。。。。。。so settle in and enjoy。。。。you won't be disappointed。 As an aside， it's rare I read anything of length and don't incessantly crab about how it shoul Perlstein is one of my favorite authors。。。。。I rank him up there with Chernow when it comes to the quality of his prose and thoroughness of research。 Whether you're Democrat or Republican this book is a must read to better understand today's political landscape。 Warning。。。。。it's a long one。。。。。914 pages excluding acknowledgements， notes and index。。。。。。so settle in and enjoy。。。。you won't be disappointed。 As an aside， it's rare I read anything of length and don't incessantly crab about how it should've been edited down by 100 pages or so。 Not so with Reaganland。 My only complaint with the book falls on the publisher。。。。Simon and Schuster。。。。where was your proofreader？ There were more typos， omitted words and duplicated words than any book I have read in the past 10 years。。。。you do your author a great disservice！！ 。。。more
Matt Schiavenza
，
Reaganland is the fourth and final volume in Rick Perlstein's epic series on the rise of the American conservative movement from 1964 to 1980。 For a book with Reagan's name in the title， Reaganland occurs entirely before the 40th president's two terms in office; instead， it might be the most comprehensive account ever of the presidency of Reagan's predecessor， Jimmy Carter。This is not an accident。 The swirling forces that Reagan harnessed reached a crescendo during the last years of the 70s， the Reaganland is the fourth and final volume in Rick Perlstein's epic series on the rise of the American conservative movement from 1964 to 1980。 For a book with Reagan's name in the title， Reaganland occurs entirely before the 40th president's two terms in office; instead， it might be the most comprehensive account ever of the presidency of Reagan's predecessor， Jimmy Carter。This is not an accident。 The swirling forces that Reagan harnessed reached a crescendo during the last years of the 70s， the decade of oil crises， inflation， Watergate， and America's humiliating defeat in Vietnam。 It was the 70s， not the 80s， when supply-side economics became gospel among the American right and when the religious right became fully aligned with the Republican Party。 The basic compact established during the New Deal era — that it was the government's responsibility to shepherd a more perfect union — began to collapse。 It is only now making a comeback。Perhaps the most fascinating part of Reaganland comes at the very end， in the final days of the 1980 presidential campaign。 Perlstein writes that Carter's preparations for his sole debate with Reagan — immortalized by the Gipper's "there you go again" quip — were inadequate。 Reagan was a lightweight with a shaky grasp of the facts and with positions that were considered， at the time， extremist。 Carter naturally assumed that， sunlight being the best disinfectant， Reagan's appeal would crater under scrutiny。 It didn't happen。 Reagan's supporters didn't know or care that their man was full of shit。 They just liked him。 And that's all that mattered。 Sound familiar？The conventional wisdom is that Carter was undone by the Fed's prioritization of inflation control over lowering unemployment， and by the Iranian hostage crisis and the failure of his rescue operation。 Carter was also a stubborn， proud man who squabbled with fellow Democrats and was frequently his own worst enemy。 But a large part of why he lost has nothing to do with policy。 It was Carter who told Americans that they had to make sacrifices in order to help combat the country's energy crisis。 He spoke of the virtue of frugality and temperance and people doing their part。 And it was Reagan who decided that none of this was necessary。 Americans could have what they wanted， when they wanted it， and they didn't need to apologize for anything — even the war in Vietnam。 The only thing Americans needed was their government to get out of the way， and the market would take care of everything。It's far too early to declare that Reaganism is finished。 But it's refreshing that Biden， who was already in his second Senate term when Reagan was elected， is again reviving the language of doing one's part for the country， and that the government's role in helping people's lives is indispensable。 The intellectual heft behind Reaganism， such as it was， is now a spent force; conservatism circa 2021 is nothing but racial grievance。 That doesn't mean it isn't potent， even if resentful whites are a smaller proportion of the American population than before。Perlstein's achievement with Reaganland， and with his tetralogy， is monumental。 Conservatism is the story of the last 40 years of American politics， and we will never again be left wondering how it gripped American Society with such first。 We can't say we weren't warned。 。。。more
Ted Hunt
，
This is a difficult book to review because there is a lot that I liked about it， but it also had some things that disappointed me。 It addresses four years in the life of the nation （1976-1980） and it takes over 900 pages to do it。 On the positive side， the author has obviously spent a tremendous amount of time researching the little "vignettes" that his books are know for， stories that really show- in big and small ways- how the nation's politics and culture was turning hard in a conservative di This is a difficult book to review because there is a lot that I liked about it， but it also had some things that disappointed me。 It addresses four years in the life of the nation （1976-1980） and it takes over 900 pages to do it。 On the positive side， the author has obviously spent a tremendous amount of time researching the little "vignettes" that his books are know for， stories that really show- in big and small ways- how the nation's politics and culture was turning hard in a conservative direction。 But there were times when I found myself slogging through descriptions of events that tended to bog the story down without adding any additional insight to the narrative。 I really think that a third of this book could have been edited out and the story would not have lost any of its quality （it probably would have been a better book）。 One thing that I really liked was how many of the names that popped up in this book still resonate in our own world: Roger Stone， Paul Manafort， Joe Biden， Jerry Brown， Orrin Hatch， and Pat Robertson， among others。 It's clear that today's cultural divide has been emerging for decades and that Ronald Reagan was more of a "vessel" for the resentments and goals of the growing conservative consensus （much like the role the previous president served to a similar group of Americans）。 Unfortunately， as was true of Perlstein's other books， there are far too many factual errors。 Here are a sample of the ones that I caught: New York has 29 Electoral votes， not 21。Dan Quayle elected to Senate in 1980， not 1976Susan B。 Anthony was not at Seneca Falls in 1848Plessy v， Ferguson was in 1896， not 1897Lenin died in 1922， not 1942CIA operative Kermit Roosevelt was Teddy’s grandson， not FDR’s nephewOmaha Beach was in 1944， not 1945I could not take the time to double check every questionable claim in the book- it took long enough simply to read it。 If one were to undertake this book， it should be approached as one would approach a movie about history: it can provide the reader/viewer with the broad brush strokes of the events and trends， but don't count on it for accuracy。 On the back of the dust cover is a quote about the from the Wall Street Journal: "Hard to top for entertainment value。" I agree; it is an entertaining read （if overlong）， but it doesn't reach any deep or unique conclusions。 Like a movie when the lights come on， when the reader reaches the end of the book （election night 1980）， the book is over without any sweeping conclusions or insights。 Too bad; it is a missed opportunity。 。。。more
Brian
，
Another Perlstein work that I couldn't out down， even if I had to pause to hold my thoughts om some of the first-person commentaries and sermon segments， as someone in my mid 40s， it seemed less like history and more like a conversation we might have today。 Another Perlstein work that I couldn't out down， even if I had to pause to hold my thoughts om some of the first-person commentaries and sermon segments， as someone in my mid 40s， it seemed less like history and more like a conversation we might have today。 。。。more
Aaron
，
Simply breathtaking
Kevin Jennings
，
Another great take on American History in the not so distance past。 Very helpful in understanding the path the led us to our current political situation。
Robert P。 Hoffman
，
Really the one book in the series that drags a bit。 Whereas his other books were filled with great insight （especially the first volume） this volume tends to repeat themes developed in previous books and while giving a competent narrative of the years， doesn't add any insight into how Reagan won the election。The author did do a good job of showing the rise of the religious right and how that resulted in evangelicals deserting Carter for Reagan。 He also shows that the ineptitude and incompetence Really the one book in the series that drags a bit。 Whereas his other books were filled with great insight （especially the first volume） this volume tends to repeat themes developed in previous books and while giving a competent narrative of the years， doesn't add any insight into how Reagan won the election。The author did do a good job of showing the rise of the religious right and how that resulted in evangelicals deserting Carter for Reagan。 He also shows that the ineptitude and incompetence of Carter and his closest aides who treated leaders of his own party with competent and did everything he could to provoke Kennedy into running against him。What I am struck by his quickly the attacks on gays have lost their political effectiveness。 That change in attitude is striking and I hope someone analyzes how that happened。Overall worth reading but not at the level of his other books。 。。。more
Rick
，
Kudos to Rick Perlstein for writing an outstanding work that details what is usually an overlooked time; the Jimmy Carter administration。 He goes into great detail showing how the era was changing and how the new wave of conservatism was overtaking the liberal beliefs of the time， it did so in a fashion that was constant and which the media could not see。 I have two complaints， observations really， the first is that it does devote too much time to the rise of conservatism at the expense of other Kudos to Rick Perlstein for writing an outstanding work that details what is usually an overlooked time; the Jimmy Carter administration。 He goes into great detail showing how the era was changing and how the new wave of conservatism was overtaking the liberal beliefs of the time， it did so in a fashion that was constant and which the media could not see。 I have two complaints， observations really， the first is that it does devote too much time to the rise of conservatism at the expense of other things， especially in foreign relationships。 Though he does give a good amount of coverage to the Camp David Accords。 The relationships with our allies is one I would have liked to see more of， especially the administrations dealings with NATO and OPEC。 Second there were some sloppy typos。 For example calling Pierre Trudeau the president of Canada is one。 Still this is a great book and I highly recommend it for those really into history！ 。。。more
Marc Schneider
，