Buckley

The Life and the Revolution That Changed America

By: Sam Tanenhaus

Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner

“A magnificent achievement—a long, gripping, and enthralling account of the life of America’s premier conservative polemicist of the twentieth century.”—Max Boot, author of Reagan: His Life and Legend

“A rich, immersive biography exposes the roots of the modern conservative movement through the life of the firebrand writer and commentator who shaped it.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, The Economist, The Financial Times, Telegraph (UK), Christian Science Monitor, Air Mail, Prospect Magazine

LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD

In 1951, with the publication of God and Man at Yale, a scathing attack on his alma mater, twenty-five-year-old William F. Buckley, Jr., seized the public stage—and commanded it for the next half century as he led a new generation of conservative activists and ideologues to the peak of political power and cultural influence.

Ten years before his death in 2008, Buckley chose prize-winning biographer Sam Tanenhaus to tell the full, uncensored story of his life and times, granting him extensive interviews and exclusive access to his most private papers. Thus began a deep investigation into the vast and often hidden universe of Bill Buckley and the modern conservative revolution.

Buckley vividly captures its subject in all his facets and phases: founding editor of National Review, the twentieth century’s most influential political journal; syndicated columnist, Emmy-winning TV debater, and bestselling spy novelist; ally of Joseph McCarthy and Barry Goldwater; mentor to Ronald Reagan; game-changing candidate for mayor of New York.

Tanenhaus also has uncovered the darker trail of Bill Buckley’s secret exploits, including CIA missions in Latin America, dark collusions with Watergate felon Howard Hunt, and Buckley’s struggle in his last years to hold together a movement coming apart over the AIDS epidemic, culture wars, and the invasion of Iraq—even as his own media empire was unraveling.

At a crucial moment in American history, Buckley offers a gripping and powerfully relevant story about the birth of modern politics and those who shaped it.

The reader of this audiobook is incredible

The reader of this audiobook is incredible. He does pitch perfect voices for Buckley, Reagan and others

Life Well Led

A fantastic read of an phenomenal individual. Bill Buckley reminds me of my dad; this book was comforting to me

Balanced biography of complex, decent man.

The depth of research into the man’s thinking, background and human relationships. The author’s descriptions of the relevant social and political context. All of this made the book riveting. And the author’s descriptions did not shy away from Buckley’s flaws or gaffes, many of which Buckley himself acknowledged. This is the highest form of biography. Fair, thorough and informative.

Rich, lengthy but too brief at the end

Excellent performance in the narration - capturing the essence of Buckley, allies and adversaries. There is unnecessary brevity in covering 1980 triumph to 2008 death in the last 2 brief chapters of this door stopper of a book. Lots of good detail on WFB formative years, the Buckley family and the tumultuous first 20 years of NR. Definitely a good,valuable listen for any WFB fan but could have been released back in 2010 - shortly after death - with the same content. A qualified thumbs up. P.S I’m glad there was no attempt to directly tie WFB and the conservative movement to the advance of Trumpism. (as the PBS doc did).

Excellent biography and retelling of recent political history

The book seems extremely well-researched, the story told in a compelling manner, the subject himself of course fascinating and particular - and through him, we learn about recent political history and what it means to be an engaged, intelligent, believing human being, thinker, and writer.