William F. Buckley: What George W. Bush Could Learn from Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson

A nice read and a good follow-up to Christopher Buckley's book about his mother and father. The Buckeley family was certainly a group of originals and William F. Buckley, Jr. was a standout. I am more of a East Coast Liberal Republican (ala Rockefeller) but understanding more conservative views is helpful. Right of center to a degree fits my belief system with some exceptions. Most questions require clarification..."Depends" is a normal follow-up to most questions. Mr. Buckley required few "depends"...he always had a ready answer and a cogent one. I read and listened to him for many years with my dictionary in hand. This book added to my understanding. I wish we had a clear Conservative voice today. Most seem like yellers more than thinkers. The Left is no better. Both cause me to grind my teeth. May William F. and his wife rest in peace. Read the book for more insight into what made the man.

I couldn't disagree more with cxlxmx's review of this book. John Judis has written a remarkably interesting book about one of the most important figures in the history of modern conservatism. It would be fair to say that William F. Buckley was the most important figure in the political history of the Right, as he provided an intellectual infrastructure for right wing thought. I read this book as part of a seminar I took in graduate school during the 90s, and fully expected to dislike William F. Buckley, given my own liberal politics. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Buckley played an important role in attempting to discredit the more crackpot elements within the Right, in particular, the John Birch Society. I was so intrigued by this idea, that I ended up writing my M.A. thesis on the Birch Society. This book was the original inspiration for my research. Judis gives a fair and fascinating account of a very interesting and misunderstood figure. I would recommend this book to anyone, and I believe it is an excellent source for understanding how Conservatives captured control of the federal government during the Reagan years and maintained their grip on power into the present day.

It's been ages since I read this book, but WFB's death yesterday has got me browsing through books by or about Buckley, and I was reminded how much I liked Judis's book. It's a pleasure (and seemingly so unusual nowadays) to get to read someone writing respectfully about someone with whom he strongly disagrees, whether it's the leftist Judis writing about Buckley, or Buckley himself writing moving obituaries of those on the left. From the perspective of a WFB fan who finds hagiographies tiresome, this book was a real treat, and I recommend it highly.

Great book; very objective, almost a love feast of fascinating Buckley quotes, but also very critical. I recommend Mr. Judis' biography of William F. Buckley, Jr. as a great way to understand the course of American conservatism in the last century, going strong into this one.