By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton
Purchase here…
In the midst of moving and reorganizing, I have taken time to read a very compelling and excellent book: Reagan At Reykjavik. Here is a summary of the book:
In October 1986, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met for a forty-eight-hour summit in Reykjavik, Iceland. Originally intended as a short, inconsequential gathering to outline future talks, the meeting quickly turned to major international issues, including the Strategic Defense Initiative and the possibility of eliminating all nuclear weapons. With both men at the height of their power, they had the rare opportunity to move towards disarmament and peace in a way neither side had predicted.
In Reagan at Reykjavik, former Reagan arms control director Ken Adelman offers a dramatic, firsthand account of the historic 1986 Reagan-Gorbachev summit in Iceland – the definitive weekend that was the key turning point in the Cold War. Adelman provides an honest and up-close portrait of President Reagan at one of his finest and most challenging moments.
Ken Adelman served President Reagan as Director of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and accompanied the President at three superpower summits, including Reykjavik. He has also served as the Deputy U.S. Ambassador the United Nations and as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense. After leaving government, he taught at Georgetown University, George Washington University and Johns Hopkins University. He is the author of several books, including Shakespeare in Charge and The Defense Revolution.
As most of you know, my favorite President was Ronald Reagan. A man of courage, leadership and foresight, he knew that peace only comes through strength and the will to use force if need be. This book showcases the legacy and leadership of Reagan with the retelling of the historic 1986 Reagan-Gorbachev summit in Iceland. It was the definitive weekend that was the key turning point in the Cold War. President Reagan’s Arms Control Director was the author, Ken Adelman.
The book is detailed and laboriously researched. Full of now declassified details, Reagan at Reykjavik paints a historical recounting of that weekend and how it would change the world forever. Adelman gives you a look into the private discussions between Reagan and his team in an intriguing and captivating way that only someone who knew Reagan personally and worked side by side with him could. He gives you a frank and honest look at Reagan during one of his finest and most challenging moments. The book includes many photos and illustrations. It is a fascinating read and one you don’t want to miss, especially if you are a Reagan and/or history buff.
Adelman is a brilliant writer and a gifted story-teller. As you know, I have always contended that the Cold War did not end, but shifted. This book is a window into the heart of the Cold War and I am thrilled I got to read it and pass it along. As the Tea Party and Conservatives are doing today, Reagan did then – he stood against evil and our enemies and he did not let his detractors deter him.
In a time when failure seems to be the norm and Americans despair that we are through as a nation, this book brings to light that the fight is never over and can always be won. War is sometimes necessary, but not always the answer. It takes a special leader who can elegantly negotiate on the one hand and let it be known on the other with absolute certainty that if a line is crossed, there will be hell to pay.
Reagan was a master diplomat as well as a warrior. Ted Cruz reminds me a great deal of him. Reagan was never about being in the limelight or being right no matter the cost. He was a leader who was there to protect America in one of her darkest hours. We now have a Marxist leader in Barack Obama who is the very antithesis of Reagan. It’s time for someone like Ted Cruz to right the American ship.
I highly recommend Reagan At Reykjavik. The book is a wondrous historic read, but more importantly will remind you that our fight is ongoing and true hope for the shining city on a hill lies in the Conservative movement. Get your copy here.
