Rating: 
Summary: Essential reading in the history of journalism
Review: "All The President's Men" & "The Final Days" are an essential part of political history: They are also an essential part of journalism history. Watergate & the revealed power of the media to topple a president changed journalism -- and inspired a generation to enter the profession. ... Read "All The President's Men" first ... &, as you read it, know that the better book is still to come. "All ..." is vital to understanding what happened; "Final Days" is a far superior book. ... "All ..." reads as though the authors were still shell-shocked from what had happened & what they -- in their 20s -- had participated in. "Final Days" is a much more mature & calmer book. It offers a better understanding of what Nixon did wrong than the first book. Its portrait of Nixon is far superior ... even empathetic. ... I am a Republican (& a journalist) & someone who finds much to redeem Nixon ... & I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which is remarkably unbiased & deft at presenting even the least likeable participants as human. I also was jolted at some of Nixon's extremes, which I had prefered to forget because in some ways (i.e. foreign policy) he was a great president. ... Aspects of this story are remarkably dated ... would Nixon have fallen now? (Reagan didn't. Clinton didn't.) Are we as easily shocked? As naive about power? Do we even fantasize anymore that our leaders will be flawless? ... The comparisons with Bill Clinton are striking & obvious. Would Clinton's story have ended differently if he had been president 25 years earlier & before Watergate & Iran-Contra? ... For a real immersion in the story through popular culture, read the two books in order & see the movie of "All The President's Men" & see Sir Anthony Hopkins' brilliant performance in "Nixon." ... "Tragedy" is an abused word, but Nixon's story WAS a classic tragedy: Hero undone by fatal flaw.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing work concerning Nixon's resignation
Review: "The Final Days" is a far different novel from the preceeding work by Woodward and Bernstein, "All the President's Men." The latter is more a work concerning the efforts of the journalists in gradually uncovering the secrets of the Watergate break-in up to when the Nixon tapes were revealed. The sequel picks up where the first book left off, as Nixon fights to keep his taped conversations hidden under the argument of executive priviledge. Eventually, however, the Supreme Court orders the president to hand over the tapes, and thus unfolds the final chapter of Nixon the politician. Reading this book is essential to understand modern American politics for two main reasons. First of all, Richard Nixon was one of the most brilliant and important figures that has ever been involved in the American political system. "The Final Days" provides a unique insight into the dichotomy of Nixon's persona: to the US and the world, he was a bright, articulate figure who took big steps to achieve his accomplishments; on the tapes, however, he was a bitter, insecure and paranoid person. One can argue that Secretary Kissinger's and his foreign peace accomplishments were considerably massive, and yet it's hard to believe that the side of Nixon revealed on the tapes can be a part of the president behind so many meaningful endeavors. Second, "The Final Days" displayed the proceedings of the American legal system in dealing with a presidential impeachment. Though Andrew Johnson had been impeached one hundred years earlier, the character of the office had changed considerably since then and therefore the procedure was very painful for the politicians involved in the process. By the end of the book, it is obvious that the vast majority of Congress decided that it was important to impeach and remove the president from office, demonstrating that every citizen in the country was on the same legal standing (though, as we all know, Nixon resigned before he was impeached). In short, Woodward and Bernstein did good to shift the perspective of the Watergate story from their own journalistic hardships to that of Nixon and the government. In doing so, they contribute to the study of the personality of one of the most important members of American history and his fall from grace in the context of the progress of US democracy.
Rating:
Summary: Essential reading in the history of journalism
Review: "All The President's Men" & "The Final Days" are an essential part of political history: They are also an essential part of journalism history. Watergate & the revealed power of the media to topple a president changed journalism -- and inspired a generation to enter the profession. ... Read "All The President's Men" first ... &, as you read it, know that the better book is still to come. "All ..." is vital to understanding what happened; "Final Days" is a far superior book. ... "All ..." reads as though the authors were still shell-shocked from what had happened & what they -- in their 20s -- had participated in. "Final Days" is a much more mature & calmer book. It offers a better understanding of what Nixon did wrong than the first book. Its portrait of Nixon is far superior ... even empathetic. ... I am a Republican (& a journalist) & someone who finds much to redeem Nixon ... & I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which is remarkably unbiased & deft at presenting even the least likeable participants as human. I also was jolted at some of Nixon's extremes, which I had prefered to forget because in some ways (i.e. foreign policy) he was a great president. ... Aspects of this story are remarkably dated ... would Nixon have fallen now? (Reagan didn't. Clinton didn't.) Are we as easily shocked? As naive about power? Do we even fantasize anymore that our leaders will be flawless? ... The comparisons with Bill Clinton are striking & obvious. Would Clinton's story have ended differently if he had been president 25 years earlier & before Watergate & Iran-Contra? ... For a real immersion in the story through popular culture, read the two books in order & see the movie of "All The President's Men" & see Sir Anthony Hopkins' brilliant performance in "Nixon." ... "Tragedy" is an abused word, but Nixon's story WAS a classic tragedy: Hero undone by fatal flaw.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing work concerning Nixon's resignation
Review: "The Final Days" is a far different novel from the preceeding work by Woodward and Bernstein, "All the President's Men." The latter is more a work concerning the efforts of the journalists in gradually uncovering the secrets of the Watergate break-in up to when the Nixon tapes were revealed. The sequel picks up where the first book left off, as Nixon fights to keep his taped conversations hidden under the argument of executive priviledge. Eventually, however, the Supreme Court orders the president to hand over the tapes, and thus unfolds the final chapter of Nixon the politician. Reading this book is essential to understand modern American politics for two main reasons. First of all, Richard Nixon was one of the most brilliant and important figures that has ever been involved in the American political system. "The Final Days" provides a unique insight into the dichotomy of Nixon's persona: to the US and the world, he was a bright, articulate figure who took big steps to achieve his accomplishments; on the tapes, however, he was a bitter, insecure and paranoid person. One can argue that Secretary Kissinger's and his foreign peace accomplishments were considerably massive, and yet it's hard to believe that the side of Nixon revealed on the tapes can be a part of the president behind so many meaningful endeavors. Second, "The Final Days" displayed the proceedings of the American legal system in dealing with a presidential impeachment. Though Andrew Johnson had been impeached one hundred years earlier, the character of the office had changed considerably since then and therefore the procedure was very painful for the politicians involved in the process. By the end of the book, it is obvious that the vast majority of Congress decided that it was important to impeach and remove the president from office, demonstrating that every citizen in the country was on the same legal standing (though, as we all know, Nixon resigned before he was impeached). In short, Woodward and Bernstein did good to shift the perspective of the Watergate story from their own journalistic hardships to that of Nixon and the government. In doing so, they contribute to the study of the personality of one of the most important members of American history and his fall from grace in the context of the progress of US democracy.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: A very good book, for my money it is better then All The President's Men. I could not put it down, it really read fast. It really gives you a view into Nixon under pressure. It has all the detail that you would expect from a Woodward book and also brings out some of the personalities involved. It also gave me a much better understanding of what Nixon actually did in the way of crimes. This book should be on your list if you are a political junkie. To gain a good understanding of the Watergate affair read both All The President's Men and The Final Days together. I highly recommend this pair of books to anyone looking to understand this period of American history.
Rating:
Summary: The self-destruction of a President
Review: Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein helped to bring about the fall of the Nixon Administration, so it is only fitting that they were there to chronicle its demise. In 456 fascinating pages, they bring us the blow-by-blow of the downfall of Richard Nixon and the Byzantine regime he created while serving as our 37th president. The first part of the book gives us the background of the Watergate mess and how Nixon dug himself deeper and deeper in, through lies, deception, and more lies to cover up the lies he had already told. We watch almost awestruck as this chief executive shoots off each of his toes in turn, then both feet, then both legs... we want to open up his cranium and peer into the mind of this tortured man and find out what in the world was he thinking of when he actually bugged himself, showing himself in all his ugliness and venality. Did this man even think, or was his denouement a series of blind reactions to events of his own making that did him in? The end of part one brings us to the final lit fuse that will blow the Nixon presidency wide open: the decision of seven Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee that they will vote with the majority Democrats to impeach a Republican president for obstruction of justice. From there, the demise of Nixon was an ordained conclusion, but Woodward and Bernstein follow it to its end in part two, which is a day to day account of the final seventeen days of Nixon's presidency. The House Judiciary Committee votes to bring a recommendation of impeachment to the full House of Representatives, and the Supreme Court rules unanimously that Nixon cannot take shelter behind the specious shield of executive privilege and refuse to release the tapes that document his complicity. Nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide... We watch Nixon's fellow Republicans abandoning him one by one as the evidence of his complicity piles up and he realizes he has no support any more, nothing to fall back on. The excruciating scene of his meeting with Kissinger after he has decided to resign his presidency rather than be ignominiously kicked out is gut-wrenching; we are both fascinated and repelled by Kissinger's evident lack of discretion and sensitivity in telling it afterwards, as he must have done. In the end, we almost feel for this man who has fallen from the highest office in the world into a disgrace which will remain with him for the rest of his life; abandoned by most of his former friends and allies, despised by a wife who hasn't loved him for years, and supported only by the blind devotion of his children... until we read his farewell speech to the nation and shake our heads as we realize that, at the end of his presidency all the way to the end of his life, Nixon simply did not get it.
Rating: 
Summary: Much in this book seems to have passed the test of time.
Review: I once believed every word of All the presidents men was true. Written for a fellow Wheatonite (Woodward) it pushed me solidly into voting democrat for the next 20 years. final Days gets 3 stars from because Bob is from wheaton, and his dad was my assigned Draft status advisor. Now, the likelihood is that this book is almost as fictional as the John erhlickman book. For the story that is more likely to be the truth read Silent Coupe.
Rating:
Summary: Much in this book seems to have passed the test of time.
Review: I once believed every word of All the presidents men was true. Written for a fellow Wheatonite (Woodward) it pushed me solidly into voting democrat for the next 20 years. final Days gets 3 stars from because Bob is from wheaton, and his dad was my assigned Draft status advisor. Now, the likelihood is that this book is almost as fictional as the John erhlickman book. For the story that is more likely to be the truth read Silent Coupe.
Rating: 
Summary: yes, but how?
Review: Quite a good book all in all as a gripping insider's look into the clandestine goings on of the Nixon presidency in reaction to the watergate scandal. However if you're a Nixon fan, you may come away from it hating him, as the authors tend to portray him as incapable, noting that he can't even open medicine bottles without assistance. As noted, they interviewed nearly 400 people before writing this book. However they could not have known everything that was truely said. Therefore, don't take the book as gospel truth. Nixon was just misunderstood.
Rating: 
Summary: Why does nobody mention...
Review: the fact that Woodward was a briefer to Alexander Haig when Woodward was serving in the Navy. Tons of documents have come out disproving the allegations of Bernstein and Woodward in All the President's Men and Final Days. The authors downplay the relationship between Haig and Woodward dramatically, hiding the fact that Haig was Deep Throat. Look at this logically: why would a high up guy in the executive branch named "Deep Throat" come out of nowhere to reveal what he knew about Watergate? Deep Throat MUST have had a previous relationship with Woodward, and the only man with a connection to Woodward who knew so much about Watergate was Alexander Haig. Why isn't this mentioned in ANY of the Woodward/Bernstein books?
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