Library Journal's review of Nixon's Gamble
Here's the review of Nixon's Gamble in the Sept. 1 issue of Library Journal, which recommends books for libraries around the world.
Locker, Ray. Nixon’s Gamble: How a President’s Own Secret Government Destroyed His Administration. Lyons: Globe Pequot. Oct. 2015. 352p. notes. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781493009312. $29.95;
ebk. ISBN 9781493019458. BIOG
Richard Nixon (1913–94) remains a fascinating subject for historians of all stripes. Locker, an investigative reporter for USA Today, applies his ample research skills to exploring Nixon’s penchant for secrecy and deception during his six years as president. The focus centers on Nixon’s three primary foreign policy goals: ending the Vietnam War, restoring diplomatic relations with China, and reducing Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union. In order to accomplish these disparate objectives, Locker maintains, Nixon created a complex secretive network so extensive that even his closest advisors, such as Henry Kissinger, didn’t know the whole truth behind his actions. The author utilizes a wide range of primary and secondary resources to spin his tale, and at times the facts are indeed stranger than fiction as he lists the consequences of the National Security Decision Memoranda and concludes that Nixon’s “climate of secrecy” continues to impact politics today. VERDICT A well-told, detailed account that will satisfy even the most dedicated Nixon scholar. ¬Recommended for most collections.—
Ed Goedeken, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames
Locker, Ray. Nixon’s Gamble: How a President’s Own Secret Government Destroyed His Administration. Lyons: Globe Pequot. Oct. 2015. 352p. notes. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781493009312. $29.95;
ebk. ISBN 9781493019458. BIOG
Richard Nixon (1913–94) remains a fascinating subject for historians of all stripes. Locker, an investigative reporter for USA Today, applies his ample research skills to exploring Nixon’s penchant for secrecy and deception during his six years as president. The focus centers on Nixon’s three primary foreign policy goals: ending the Vietnam War, restoring diplomatic relations with China, and reducing Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union. In order to accomplish these disparate objectives, Locker maintains, Nixon created a complex secretive network so extensive that even his closest advisors, such as Henry Kissinger, didn’t know the whole truth behind his actions. The author utilizes a wide range of primary and secondary resources to spin his tale, and at times the facts are indeed stranger than fiction as he lists the consequences of the National Security Decision Memoranda and concludes that Nixon’s “climate of secrecy” continues to impact politics today. VERDICT A well-told, detailed account that will satisfy even the most dedicated Nixon scholar. ¬Recommended for most collections.—
Ed Goedeken, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames
No comments have been added yet.
