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There is an unseemly amount of armchair-quartering backing (which I have never seen before, and never want to see again in a biography) as the author imagines himself as amongst major historical figures, advising what they "should" have done. This was my first biography of Nixon, and I picked it up in hopes of educating myself as to an impactful presidency. Considering that his advice extends even to wishing that Nixon had succeeded in the Watergate coverup, we're lucky he wasn't there to advise, as he so obviously, desperately wishes. I think as a reader I was as open-minded as they come, and when the author set about to "right" the wrongs of "Nixon-bashers," I considered that perhaps I entered into a more rounded approach to a complex man. As the book progressed, I read with mounting distaste as the author attacked with bizarre vitriol the "rabid journalists," the "sniveling liberals," and the like. The author, as with a delusional Nixon, doesn't seem to see what all the fuss is about as the Watergate unfolds and creates a rightful uproar. To portray a complex person as simply a villain is of course too simple, but the author has some bashing of his own to do, and this felt an ugly, biased, angry book that I would recommend against very strongly.
I have read a considerable amount of presidential biographies and this one was excruciatingly laborious to get through.
I own 7 books specifically about Richard Nixon, plus many others that include him in their content, and this is in the "Top Two," along with "Nixon - A Life" by Jonathan Aitken. I find it curious that both Aitken and Conrad Black are British citizens, by the way. I'd like to think that, even 34 years after his resignation from office and more than a decade after his death, domestic prejudice still exists to the extent that only a foreigner can write a truly objective account of this man, his life, and his accomplishments, as Lyndon Johnson once said, ".warts and all." This book is a valued addition to my library and I highly recommend it to any serious history aficionado. At 1,059 pages, it is for the very serious.
I was once told by an expert on Richard Nixon that to get a fair biography of President Nixon you needed to find ones that did not try to be psychological and ones written by Brits. He is a Brit and he presents the facts and historical context of Nixon fairly.Recently Dallek wrote an excellent book on Kissinger and Nixon, but as good as the book was it was held back by the authors obvious dislike of both men. Previously Jon Aitken Richard Nixon: A Life fit that bill but it is outdated already. Conrad Black's new book does fit this bill today. Still a great book but biased a bit for me.Black has filled the void with an up to date, well written, well researched, and fair and balanced.Yes the book is a bit long, but quite worth the read. Black is not afraid to be critical of Nixon, but lots of authors do that, what I liked about this book is that it was not afraid to show the good things Nixon did, which many authors do not like to do.I really liked this book despite its length and with a British author it provided a bit of neutrality that many American books on Nixon lack.
I have been reading Presidential biographies over the last few years beginning with Washington and just completed this one on Nixon. Certainly Nixon abused his presidency, but so did the other Presidents in the 1960's (JFK and LBJ), and Black doesn't let that fact go unnoticed. This one by Conrad Black is an excellent read (his one FDR is also excellent). The author takes the approach of giving you detailed information and facts and allows you to decide whether decisions and actions were good, bad, indifferent, etc. If you are looking for a quick summary of Nixon's life and presidency this is not the book for you. If you are looking, however, for an exhaustive biography of Nixon this is the book for you.
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