kevbot9000 reviewed The Cold War by John Lewis Gaddis
Review of 'The Cold War' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
For most of the book it is what it sets out to be, a decent sketch of the major players and themes that run through the cold war. The reason I rated it at two stars instead of the three or four is due to the portrayal of Ronald Reagan.
Throughout the book a conservative bias is present but doesn't unduly affect the quality of the book. Before Reagan the presidents and other actors have their successes and failures examined in enough depth to give a reasonably accurate picture of their role. Once Reagan appears this goes out the window.
The view turns into hagiography of the worst sort, stopping short only of declaring Reagan the sole contributing factor in winning the Cold War. Between ignoring his role in bringing a nuclear war closer to reality than any time since the Cuban Missile Crisis and upholding his increased defense spending …
For most of the book it is what it sets out to be, a decent sketch of the major players and themes that run through the cold war. The reason I rated it at two stars instead of the three or four is due to the portrayal of Ronald Reagan.
Throughout the book a conservative bias is present but doesn't unduly affect the quality of the book. Before Reagan the presidents and other actors have their successes and failures examined in enough depth to give a reasonably accurate picture of their role. Once Reagan appears this goes out the window.
The view turns into hagiography of the worst sort, stopping short only of declaring Reagan the sole contributing factor in winning the Cold War. Between ignoring his role in bringing a nuclear war closer to reality than any time since the Cuban Missile Crisis and upholding his increased defense spending as a paragon of good government when it merely amplified the already endemic fraud and corruption present in the Pentagon. This is before considering the author holding the Strategic Defense Initiative up as the highest sort of strategic thinking. The project had little chance of success, an enormous price tag, was easily countered by cheap countermeasures, and did not prevent all feasible delivery methods. The argument the author makes based on Reagan's push of the SDI is so egregious that it undercuts his credibility in the rest of the book.
Chunks of this book are worth reading, providing interesting bits of George Kennan, among others. Sadly the Reagan bits prevent me from recommending it for anyone.
