How Ronald Reagan Changed My Life

Rating:
Summary: My son's middle name is Reagan
Review: As I am writing this review I am listening to the Reagan Funeral. When I read this book written by Mr. Robinson I was inspired beyond all measure. My wife and I were expecting our first child and I told my wife due to the writing of this book we will name our son witht he middle name Reagan. She agreed! This book opened my eyes and my heart to a world from which I lived in, but could not comprehend. Mr. Robinson thank you for writing such a book! Mr. Reagan thank you for your leadership. My son was born May 26, 2004, and his name is Luke Reagan Burkholder.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful warm, and witty book
Review: How Ronald Reagan Changed My Life

One of the most engaging and enjoyable books I have ever read, Peter Robinson's third book tells how his life was impacted on a personal level by President Reagan.

Mr. Robinson has a very charming and self-effacing style, never trying to inflate his own importance, and readily admitting to the foibles of a young, and extremely lucky speechwriter landing a dream job, seemingly by accident. I cannot recall reading a book that made me smile virtually from start to finish. Especially to be admired is his honesty in recognizing his own good fortune throughout the book, wandering trough history almost with a sense of wonder. Not many people who have a chance to serve in a presidential administration would admit to trying to remove the "Mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall" line from the speech. (Or admit that they tried rewriting the line to read "Herr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!") Addressing his own weaknesses and failings, he shows how Reagan taught him to rise above them.

I must confess to being an admirer of our 40th President, and have read many of the books written about his life and Presidency. Peter Robinson's point of view is refreshingly different. The lessons he learned from watching Ronald Reagan really are the simple, but important, lessons of life.

Finally, this book does not pretend to be something that it's not. The author is very upfront about his admiration and love for Ronald Reagan, which, for example, makes his discussion of Reagan as a father very difficult for him, but also very necessary.

But this book really isn't just for admirers of President Reagan. If you know a kid in college, buy this book. I only wish it were around 20 years ago for me.

Rating:
Summary: Read this book!
Review: I read an average of 2 books per week, and of the 100 or so I've read in the past year this is without a doubt my favorite. What I particularly enjoyed about this book is that it isn't another history lesson on how R.R. ended the cold war. It's a character study of two people, the President and the author, and how a young man is forever changed by his association with the President. There is some history in there, but it doesn't give that "text book" feel. This is a truly engrossing story and you will find it very difficult to put this book down. When you're finished you'll feel good about Ronald Reagan, Peter Robinson, your country and yourself. Read this book, and enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Get to Know One of Our Greatest Presidents
Review: I thought Peggy Noonan's book about Reagan, "When Character Was King" was the definitive book on the subject until I read this one. Peter Robinson explains why this deceptively simple man is one of our greatest presidents.

Reagan's ability to communicate with the public, hold to his conservative ideals, deal with subordinates, delegate authority and change history are explained clearly.

Most famous and powerful men do not make good family men. Reagan was no exception. Robinson allows how Reagan could have been a better father. But Reagan also had the qualities that make for greatness. He never lost sight of his ideals. He dealt with people in every station of life fairly and equally. Reagan's optimism comes through here and his dedication to hard work.

Ronald Reagan truly believed in the power of the individual. He rejuvenated conservativism when it was at its low point.

Above all President Reagan believed in America--her goodness and essential decency--two qualities that this man possessed in abundance.

Peter Robinson explains why Reagan changed his life. We can all use the same knowledge to change ours.

Rating:
Summary: Get to Know One of Our Greatest Presidents
Review: I thought Peggy Noonan's book about Reagan, "When Character Was King" was the definitive book on the subject until I read this one. Peter Robinson explains why this deceptively simple man is one of our greatest presidents.

Reagan's ability to communicate with the public, hold to his conservative ideals, deal with subordinates, delegate authority and change history are explained clearly.

Most famous and powerful men do not make good family men. Reagan was no exception. Robinson allows how Reagan could have been a better father. But Reagan also had the qualities that make for greatness. He never lost sight of his ideals. He dealt with people in every station of life fairly and equally. Reagan's optimism comes through here and his dedication to hard work.

Ronald Reagan truly believed in the power of the individual. He rejuvenated conservativism when it was at its low point.

Above all President Reagan believed in America--her goodness and essential decency--two qualities that this man possessed in abundance.

Peter Robinson explains why Reagan changed his life. We can all use the same knowledge to change ours.

Rating:
Summary: a young man's hero
Review: No matter your politics HOW RONALD REAGAN CHANGED MY LIFE is worth reading, worth learning from. Peter Robinson has a fluency & articulateness that is both charming & informative. What he has to tell, to teach, is eminently useful as we go about our lives earning our quota of daily bread, & perhaps most importantly, how to live a fully savored & flavored life.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends HOW RONALD REAGAN CHANGED MY LIFE as a keeper. A book every young professional could do with reading. It is profound & humorous, interesting & whimsical, filled with vignettes & cameo appearances, history & philosophy...all written with a light touch.

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Summary: One of the Most Inspiring of Books about Ronald Reagan
Review: Peter Robinson takes a close look, a very intimate look at the things Ronald Reagan stood for and 10 of his maxims that effected a life change in Robinson and in Robinson's view, a whole nation.

His premise was that he wanted to tell his daughter about his former boss. She was nine years old when Mr. Reagan's 90th birthday rolled around and did not understand his importance to her nation and to her dad.

Robinson's book although a little unsung in the world of great books, is a tribute to a great man yet, it will also influence any who read it apply the Ten Maxims that are the subjects for each chapter.

The Ten Maxims Are in My Words:

When life gets difficult, dig in.

Do the work you are intended to do.

Life is a stage, act now.

What you say matters.

Use the brain you have been given.

Take things in stride.

Marry the right person and it will help your life.

Remember to pray daily.

Use your God given talents to influence the world around you.

You are important and can make a difference.

These maxims of life, seen through the life and actions of one of Americas greatest presidents are ours to learn, to understand and even to use.

This is a great book. I will give this as a gift to my friends.

Rating:
Summary: A synthesis that works
Review: Robinson's book is equal parts a memoir from his time in the White House as a young speechwriter for the Reagan administration, a core-sample biography of the 40th president, and Chicken Soup-like advice for the young professional. By juxtaposing Reagan's work habits in the White House (he was an avid reader and writer, and was very hands-on when it came to his speeches) and bringing up the formative experiences of Reagan's life, you get a portrait - not a comprehensive one, but an indicative one - of a president who was working very hard to make it look very easy. Drawing a contrast to Martin Sheen's portrayal of a fictional president on television, Robinson highlights the contrast between image and reality:

"My mistake lay in assuming that the intensity must reach a peak or climax in the person of the President. If the people who worked for him were driven and harried, it stood to reason that the President himself must be the most driven and harried of all. "The West Wing" makes the same assumption. Just look at the way Martin Sheen plays the role of chief executive. The man's anguished soul searching never lets up.

"Yet in the Reagan White House, the intensity didn't peak in the person of the President. It evaporated..."

With the enigma that still seems to surround those who search for the "real Reagan", a portrait of his life and work put in contrast to the author, an underling in the White House who was at the beginning stages of his professional career, provides a fresh comparison that helps the reader learn about Reagan's better qualities and why they should be emulated.

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Summary: How did Reagan do it?
Review: The central question of Robinson's book is, "How did Reagan do it?"

Robinson's personal observations while working for President Reagan along with interviews with friends and associates provides insight into the virtues and character of Ronald Reagan from which we can all learn. A prospective view, as it were, of Reagan's life for use today.

Robinson assumed Reagan's serenity was a result of his luck in life's lottery. A closer examination of the facts revealed a different case. Reagan's father was an alcoholic in a small Midwestern town at a time when the children of alcoholics "suffered a particular kind of hell."

Reagan's first wife, Jane Wyman, divorced him resulting in "the worse trauma of Reagan's life."

And then his movie career ended in his early forties leading to a television career (then considered a lesser medium) because he "needed the work."

Robinson's conclusion? "He was serene because he's been unlucky, learning to bring good from bad so thoroughly that he retained his equanimity even after an attempt on his life."

Through a series of aphorisms Robinson draws lessons from the life of Ronald Reagan: "When life buries you, dig." "Do your work." "Life is a drama. Do something." "A bias for action." "Words matter." "You have a head. Use it." "Easy does it." "Laughter is a profession of faith." "Say your prayers." "You matter."

Reagan's former work as a lifeguard and actor figured prominently in the development of his character. As a lifeguard he had saved the lives of seventy-seven swimmers in the Rock River. In contrast to Marxism's belief in the inevitability of history, Reagan had personal experience that one person can make a difference in the lives of others and in history.

As an actor Reagan became accustomed to the idea of alternative endings. A fellow speechwriter put it this way, "He understands open-endedness and contingency. He sees life is a drama in which a lot of scenes still haven't been written."

During Robinson's tenure at the White House there was posted on a White House bulletin board a card which read, "Pray as if everything depended on God. Work as if everything depended on you."

This unattributed aphorism of faith and free will was first coined by St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. Robinson writes of that motto, "That, I thought, was a neat summary of the way Ronald Reagan led his life, and ever since I've recognized that habit or pattern of life as an ideal."

The United States was blessed to have Ronald Reagan serve as our fortieth President. As his old adversary Mikhail Gorbachev stated, "If someone else had been in his place, I don't know if what happened would have happened."

Rating:
Summary: This book changed MY life.
Review: The moment I saw Peter Robinson on a television program touting this book, I knew I had to own it. While I was a child growing up during the Reagan administration, even then I was keenly aware of how great and enigmatic the fortieth president was. This book did give an excellent insider's view of the Reagan White House, including great stories and 'naming names' if you will. Yet Robinson also explored Reagan's weaknesses - his trouble connecting with his children as well as trusting those under him during Iran-Contra, even though his gut told him otherwise.

Bottom line - As great as Ronald Reagan was, he was still human with faults and imperfections all his own. The important lesson is not what happens when you fall - we all do - but how you respond. Reagan came back from an assassination attempt and political scandal. He had a job to do and a Cold War to win. You need only to look at the people who lined the streets and filled the rotunda during the week of remembrance to see the result.