Thanks to Regnery Kids for publishing this book and sending a copy my direction in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Yes, I am a Republican. Yes, I do like Ronald Reagan. The second is the primary reason why I was up for checking out The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief
Of course, any biography on any president is going to spark controversy, whether they be Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or otherwise. In a nation full of a vast array of worldviews and political leanings it can be hard to find books written about any particular president (or political figure) that does not have a bias attached to it. In my case, I typically find it hard to find biographies about Democrats that aren’t singing the praises of the party. If you are a Democrat looking for a neutral book about Ronald Reagan, I suspect you’ll not be very fond of this one. The title alone should tell you that the author, Susan Allen, thinks highly of President Reagan. (Since I do myself, this doesn’t necessarily bother me. However, I know the struggles I have when the situation is reversed and that can be frustrating, most especially when I very much disagree with certain political positions.)
The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief
“Ronald Reagan knew that one of the best parts about being an American is the freedom to work hard to be whatever you wanted to be.”
Some might say that Allen is romanticizing Reagan and they should be free to say and think so. For myself, I think Allen portrays Reagan with a great deal of accuracy and fairness and therefore I am a fan of this book. I feel I can happily recommend it to others. But I can’t recommend it without the caveat that it is very pro-Reagan and if you don’t like him you are welcome not to like this book. Just like I should be very free to not like biographies of some Democrats which I feel portray them in a light that is far too flattering. (Worldviews and all that!)
Carrie has a worldview, knows what it is, and expresses it regularly over at Reading to Know where she blogs about books, faith and life.
for review a few months back and shamefully am just now getting around to sharing my thoughts on it. I initially accepted it for review because I care about the value of human life in all forms and in all stages and I was curious to see what father George Estreich had to say about his daughter who was born with Down Syndrome.
, by Palmer Brown. I’m sure that, to some of you, this story sounds familiar. I had never heard of it or the author before. I did quite a few searches online trying to dig up information but to no avail. There is simply not much about Palmer Brown online. However, 
. That’s what it boils down to.
and 
to try out with my kids.
and are all quite familiar with it. Now we’re enjoying 
which features the same set of 10 animals.
, the first in a new series by Alex T. Smith. Claude is a dog (obviously) who is small, plump and who wears a beret and red sweater. He lives in a house with Mr. and Mrs. Shineyshoes and his best friend, Sir Bobblysock. Sir Bobblysock is “grubby and smells a bit like cheese.”
, by Chris Gall is like a beginners graphic novel. It’s a picture book that is laid out in a comic format. I find reading this type of layout very distracting. There isn’t a natural flow to the sentences and everything about it just feels choppy and disorganized to me.
