Rating: 
Summary: The only book I have ever thrown away
Review: I was able to force myself to read almost two-thirds of this "biography" before my disgust with Morris' deep belief that he is superior to us all, and in particular, Ronald Reagan, caused me to throw it in the trash.
Rating: 
Summary: great read
Review: Although the invention of an alter-ego for the author is occasionally jarring this is over all a great read and I think as "fair" a biography of RR as would be possible. Those who complain most violently about that device should ask themselves how much it differs from many authors assumption of their subjects point of view in writing biography. This book like Morris' TR works is very well written and documented to an almost excruciating degree. This portrayal of Reagan is not as worshipful as some other choices -- frankly I think that is in its favor.
Rating:
Summary: Reagan deserved better than this
Review: After hearing Edmund Morris elegance on TV as he promoted his book, I could not wait to read it. I expected great biography, what I got was a hodgepodge of fiction, biography, and Morris endless drivel about his childhood. I never knew where history stopped and fiction began. I would tell myself over and over again: Surely, this book is going to get better. It was a vain wish. After reading only 200 of the nearly 700 pages, I put it down, never to pick it up again. Ronald Reagan deserved better than this.
Rating: 
Summary: No go
Review: The fact that the otherwise respectable Morris had to spend so much time, when this hyped title first appeared, defending his choice to insert a fictional self into this weird biography tells you just what you think it does: this book is a bomberoo.
Rating:
Summary: Petty Hackjob
Review: I can't figure out if Mr. Morris is clueless or simply envious of Ronald Reagan. From the beginning, the author never really gives the president his due, but instead credits Reagan with only incredible luck. It isn't until P.335 that he finally reveals the source of his animosity, ( his son belonged to the radical 60's weatherman faction of the S.D.S. and went "underground".) This the author blames on the policies of then Governor Reagan. It's quite obvious that Mr. Morris feels himself intellectually superior not only to Reagan, but to most Americans as well. He and his elitist friends are completely perplexed by the popularity Reagan enjoyed. Some decent tibits here & there, but if you're looking for the true picture of Ronald Reagan, look elsewhere.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Obviously, most readers of presidential history know that this is considered perhaps the most controversial biography ever written. The book has its decent points and does give a lot of insight into Reagan's life, but the reader must always remember that its Morris' view of Reagan's life--via his fictionalized characters--and thus could be viewed in a fictionalized light. I guess my overall view is that Morris, in spite of other great works he has delivered, really let the American public down in the first "authorized" presidential biography. There's no doubt that Ronald Reagan was an incredibly private man. That being said, there's probably only one person on the face of the earth who ever got to know his heart and that person will never "kiss and tell"--Nancy Reagan. Morris could have done better.
Rating: 
Summary: just wait
Review: Decades from now, when the arguments over genre and category have faded, this book will be seen as the masterwork it is: It's a beautiful piece of writing, fantastically entertaining, and, what's more, it "gets" Reagan in the way the hagiographies don't. Which is probably why so many Reagan-worshippers have been so choleric about it. And as the author has said until I'm sure he's sick of it, but I'll repeat it one more time: Morris may have mucked about with the facts as far as his authorial alter ego is concerned, but everything he says about Reagan is true.
Rating:
Summary: interesting
Review: The work's artistic and literary merits, as well as the writer's superb and intricate writing style, amply compensate for the author's liberal perspective on the place of reality in a "biography".
At the end of the day, this book provides as intricate and deep an understanding of Reagan as any biography going by the books could have.
Rating:
Summary: What was he thinking??!
Review: I picked up this book (despite the awful reviews in the media)only because I loved Edmund Morris' books "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" and "Theodore Rex". Bad decision. What on earth was Morris thinking of when he wrote this book? I was never much of a Reagan fan but hoped to maybe get more insight into the man. He must have been pretty much of a blank slate if Morris had to resort to such a stunt to flesh out a story. I just can't take this book seriously andwouldn't recommend it to anyone wanting to find out about the real Ronald Reagan (if this is even possible)
Rating:
Summary: Little interest
Review: When I read of a politicians biography, I want to read about
the decisions and the challengers that they faced. With Reagan for example I would like to read more about his economic and military defense programs. This book I don't believe does this. We have here a fairly average study of Reagan as a person and far too much on the biographer.
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