An American Life
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| Author |
Robert Lindsey (with Ronald Reagan) |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Memoir |
| Published | November 15, 1990 Simon & Schuster |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 748 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 48994916 |
An American Life is the 1990 autobiography of former American President Ronald Reagan, ghostwritten by Robert Lindsey. Released almost two years after Reagan left office, the book reached number eight on The New York Times Best Seller list.
The book is composed of 748 pages, describing Reagan's life from his birth in Tampico, Illinois, to his acting career, marriages, entrance into politics, years as Governor of California, loss in the 1976 Republican primary, and finally his years as President of the United States. Reviewer John O'Sullivan says of Reagan, "[H]e shows a tendency, where other people's feelings are concerned, to gloss over unpleasantness in a way which ... detracts ... from his value as a historian." He told his side of events that led to his 1976 presidential candidacy, as well as his relationships with members of Congress and his views on the world and the Cold War.
Reagan was married twice: the first to actress Jane Wyman (1917–2007) from 1940 to 1948. Reagan only mentions her in one paragraph in the book, saying "it didn't work out", but that the marriage "produced two wonderful children." He married Nancy Davis in 1952, saying in the biography "Sometimes, I think my life really began when I met Nancy."
Although covering most of the events that occurred during the Reagan presidency (1981–1989), the book's most notable omission is the rejection of Robert Bork as a Supreme Court justice, with very little mention made of Reagan's judicial appointments. One of Reagan's more controversial enactments as president were his economic policies, dubbed "Reaganomics." From the autobiography's point of view, everything about them were successful except that "the vested interests that hold sway over Congress prevented us from cutting spending nearly as much as I had hoped to, or as the country required." Also in terms of economic policy, one of Reagan's main regrets was his ultimate failure in creating a federal balanced budget.
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