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Anonymous

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Comprehensive and Emtertaining

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 02-26-24

A great and entertaining listen about the rest of the story of the Soviet reform era from the Secret Speech to the crushing of the Prague Spring.

This is a great book. Seems like the nonfiction counterpart to the fictional book, Red Plenty - which covered similar topics but in nonfiction form in a series of short vignettes.

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3 people found this helpful

Essential reading for understanding the 1970s

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
3 out of 5 stars
Story
5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 09-15-23

Insightful and surprisingly thorough.

The first half covers a series of flashpoint labor struggles and strikes which are laid out magnificently to highlight the diversity of motivations, goals, tactics, etc. of different struggles - providing an amazing array of compare-and-contrast opportunities without being overly academic or losing the engaging narratives of each struggle.

The second half provides a much broader overview of 1970s culture, economics, and politics - which while slightly less narratively engaging, serves as a phenomenal overview of era.

The most popular book of the era that I'm aware of are Rick Perlstein's series detailing the political regimes of Nixon (Nixonland), Ford & Carter (The Invisible Bridge), and the rise of Ronald Regan (Reganland). While Rick Perlstein's series exclusively focus on the political aspects of the era while highlighting various big personalities, this book instead focused more broadly on the debates of the era (during the second half of the book). Overall, the two books make great companion pieces to those who wish to understand the era.

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1 person found this helpful

Great but held back by the actual history

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 01-26-21

Another great entry but not quite as good as the previous entries of Nixonland and The Invisible Bridge, largely because the scope of the story focuses so much on the cultural war issues of busing, LBGTQ rights, and abortion.

This is no fault of the author as it is simply reporting on the decisive issues of the day, but such issues are (and remain) much more morally draining to listen to than the other issues outlined in previous books (Vietnam vets infighting, the gold standard, price controls, the Moonies, labor unions, Watergate Babies, the ERA, the and more).

Best highlights: The rise and fall of the consumer protection movement, the consistent misfunctionings of the "Georgia Mafia" under Carter and their conflicts with fellow Democratic compatriots, and the in-depth look at Jimmy Carter's soul-searching and media disappearance that pre-empted the infamous "Crisis of Confidence" speech.

Least great highlights: Ronald Regan himself is actually quite boring. He appears to be a fairly vapid individual blessed with charisma and divine mission to be the vector of the conservative right. In practice, he ended up riding the tide more than causing the tide it appears.

Overall, this was good, but I reckon Nixonland and The Invisible Bridge were both better, with The Invisible Bridge being my favorite in the series that started with Before the Storm (which I have not read). Your mileage may vary.

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6 people found this helpful