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29th out of 53 books
—
11 voters
My Father at 100
by
Ron Reagan
February 6, 2011, is the one hundredth anniversary of Ronald Reagan's birth. To mark the occasion, Ron Reagan has written My Father at 100, an intimate look at the life of his father--one of the most popular presidents in American history--told from the perspective of someone who knew Ronald Reagan better than any advisor, friend, or colleague. As he grew up under his fath...more
Audio CD, 7 pages
Published
January 18th 2011
by Blackstone Audiobooks
(first published April 1st 2010)
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Reading this as an 18 year old that was born after Ronald Regan’s presidency was really interesting and I liked learning about Ronald Regan’s life. Reading about Ronald’s past from Ron’s point of view was really appealing. I loved reading about Ronald Regan’s past and history. The fact that Ron traveled to learn about his father really hit home with me. This book seemed to really look at Ron and Ronald’s relationship. Regan, an enormous figure, is humanized into a father who cared about his fami...more
Liked the book, but didn't like much of Ron's attitude. Ron decided when he was 12 that he was smarter and more important than anybody else. I am a big Reagan fan, but don't expect him to be perfect or above criticism. But Ron is, as another review put it, a teenager still. The book is good in many places despite the various asides by Ron and well worth reading in other places where Ron forgets to add comments designed to "demonstrate" how superior he is for any liberal friends reading it. Most...more
While I was too young to be very political when Ronald Reagan was in office, my father, his contemporary, said until his own death that Ronald Reagan would go down as the best president in U.S. history. So, this was my motivation for reading the book. I found it interesting that President Reagan really did live something of a charmed life, and that his gift for oratory, impressive physique and athleticism gave him reason for the optimism in which he believed, and with which he led the country.
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My Father at 100
Ron Reagan
This is a wonderful book. If you think you didn’t like Ronald Reagan, didn’t like his policies or his politics -well - there are no politics in this volume. You will see this mortal man in a whole new light. If you have ever felt you liked Ronald Reagan, now you will like him the more.
Ron Reagan rolls smoothly back and forth along three lanes. There is a lane of coming of age, an account, piecemeal, of a boy growing to manhood. There is a second lane of a boy and hi...more
Ron Reagan
This is a wonderful book. If you think you didn’t like Ronald Reagan, didn’t like his policies or his politics -well - there are no politics in this volume. You will see this mortal man in a whole new light. If you have ever felt you liked Ronald Reagan, now you will like him the more.
Ron Reagan rolls smoothly back and forth along three lanes. There is a lane of coming of age, an account, piecemeal, of a boy growing to manhood. There is a second lane of a boy and hi...more
Let it be said that I credit some of my 30-year fascination with politics to President Reagan, who served while I was in high school and college. My political awakening unfolded as everyone around me seemed helpless under the spell of President Reagan's guileless gaze, causing me to ponder the difference between his magical world and reality. "Just because he says it doesn't make it so," my teenage self said, and thus began my interest in politics as an intellectual exercise to unearth details....more
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A glimpse into the life of Ronald Reagan by his son Ron. In trying to shed some light at the private life of a very public mn, Ron traveled to the small Midwestern towns where Reagan spent his youth and where his character was shaped. Calling his father "warm, yet remote", Ron Reagan spent more time examining his father's early years than discussing their father-son relationship. Obviously it was complex, as might be expected in any relationship, but had to be impacted by the fact that his fathe...more
This isn't a biography - it's more of a private conversation, or a detective story, as Ron Reagan tries to learn about his father's boyhood after his death. Ron physically traces the young Ronald's path, looking for traces, and maybe foreshadowings, of the boy who would become President.
It's a poignant book, for me. Ronald Reagan was THE president of my childhood, for better or for worse. He was like Johnny Carson or Mr. Rogers - one of the rock-steady figures that defined an era. This story, wh...more
It's a poignant book, for me. Ronald Reagan was THE president of my childhood, for better or for worse. He was like Johnny Carson or Mr. Rogers - one of the rock-steady figures that defined an era. This story, wh...more
I felt like I was on the journey with Ron Reagan as he researched and visited childhood haunts of his famous father. He was able to make the icon more human through his exploration of the family's humble Irish roots and his father's childhood. He also did a great job of setting the historical stage by mentioning important events occurring during the life of his father. This is no political fanboy presentation of Ronald Reagan, but rather a beautiful story of a father/son relationship. Most know...more
Ron Reagan, the youngest of his famous father's children, begins the book by exploring the roots of his family in Ireland and their journey to America. This is primarily a look at the former president's childhood and young adulthood prior to his movie star and political days.
He (the author) actually journeyed to the towns where his father spent his younger years and visited the places that were significant to him in one way or another. He offers a look at our former president as a child learnin...more
He (the author) actually journeyed to the towns where his father spent his younger years and visited the places that were significant to him in one way or another. He offers a look at our former president as a child learnin...more
Apr 26, 2011
Kathleen Hagen
added it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2011-audio-books,
2011-nonfiction
My Father at 100, by Ron Reagan, narrated by Ron Reagan, produced by Blackstone Audio, downloaded from audible.com.
February 6, 2011, is the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan's birth. To mark the occasion, his son, Ron Reagan has written My Father at 100. As he grew up under his father's watchful gaze, he observed the very qualities that made the future president a powerful leader. Yet for all of their shared experiences of horseback rides and touch football games and swimming races, there was m...more
February 6, 2011, is the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan's birth. To mark the occasion, his son, Ron Reagan has written My Father at 100. As he grew up under his father's watchful gaze, he observed the very qualities that made the future president a powerful leader. Yet for all of their shared experiences of horseback rides and touch football games and swimming races, there was m...more
Despite his god-like status among many, I don't know much about Ronald Reagan, except for generalities and sound bites.
It was rather interesting to read about President Reagan's life from the perspective of his son. Ron Reagan sets up the book as an exploration of his father as a person and not a president, and I appreciated the humanization of such a grand public figure.
Ron Reagan introduces the book by stating that he wants to recount experiences that he and his father shared, and explore thei...more
It was rather interesting to read about President Reagan's life from the perspective of his son. Ron Reagan sets up the book as an exploration of his father as a person and not a president, and I appreciated the humanization of such a grand public figure.
Ron Reagan introduces the book by stating that he wants to recount experiences that he and his father shared, and explore thei...more
Ron Reagan celebrates the centenary of his father's birth by taking us on a trip to the small towns that made his father the man we know as one of the most beloved presidents in history. Ron traveled to these towns and shares his experiences along with many stories he heard his father tell over the years.
The journey before Hollywood, Sacramento and Washington D.C. that shaped Ronald Reagan into the man we got to know later in his life when he hit the public spotlight.
Dollycas's Thoughts
The love...more
The journey before Hollywood, Sacramento and Washington D.C. that shaped Ronald Reagan into the man we got to know later in his life when he hit the public spotlight.
Dollycas's Thoughts
The love...more
I have seen a lot about Ronald Regan our 40th president. Reading this book has given me a new perspective on the man known as "the great communicator" .
It is interesting getting the prospective of his son. the flashbacks throughout was very effective to help me understand how all parts of his life played together to create his story.
The only problem of the book is the title. it goes through the life over those 100 years, but doesn’t touch what he is other than he is dead. I thought the focis wou...more
It is interesting getting the prospective of his son. the flashbacks throughout was very effective to help me understand how all parts of his life played together to create his story.
The only problem of the book is the title. it goes through the life over those 100 years, but doesn’t touch what he is other than he is dead. I thought the focis wou...more
I found this to be a very interesting and different viewpoint on the Reagan story. I have read several books about Ronald Reagan and enjoyed them all, but this one was unique. Ron does point out several times that he differed with his father on political issues, but still respected his dad for many reasons. I got the idea that the son has regrets about his relationship with his dad and sees things from a different light after researching this book. In many places throughout the book it sounds mo...more
The operative word in the title isn't "father", or even "100", it is "my". This is Ron Reagan's story, and his character interjects itself throughout this otherwise excellent book (downfall of the Soviet Union...ends up Ron kicked off that process, and he had a staring contest with Gorby). Ron's take on his family's and his father's past I found to be excellent, though. The first half of the book describes the President's family and life through high school, as well as the towns in Northwestern...more
I liked this book because it showed more of Ronald Reagan the man and father than it did of Ronald Reagan, the president. The negative press this received in the media (including remarks by Michael Reagan, Ronald Reagan's adopted son from his marriage to Jane Wyman) evidentially weren't based on the content of this book, just the fact that Ron Reagan (not known as Ron Jr., by the way) did not ultimately share the views of his father when it came to politics, but the content showed that in many w...more
After listening to the audio version of this book, I think I could enjoy listening to Ron Reagan read the phone book. Reading the printed book would have been a far different experience than hearing the son, author, and reader render the events in a voice reminiscent of his father. His voice makes the events even more personal and touching. Interweaving events from different time periods is smoothly executed and quite effective in that the author is calling upon the reader's memories of his fath...more
The book takes turns through chapters of excellence and chapters that are subpar. While the history of the Reagan family might be interesting to some, I doubt few grab this book expecting to here about the Gipper's great grandparents. However, Ron Jr's assessment of the personal life the 40th President is a new side than what is usually seen by fans. Deeply personal, the stories about father and son are precious. As a football player, the chapter about Reagan's years at Eureka are likely to be r...more
Ron Reagan describes his dad as someone who treated everyone as if he/she was special when he talked to him/her. Being the child of such a person makes Ron proud but also jealous because as his child he wanted the lion’s share of his dad’s time. Accusations that Reagan portrayed the role of President as a good actor would are denied in this memoir. Rather, Ron maintains his father cultivated a public persona from his time when he was a lifeguard as a teenager through to the end of his life. Ron’...more
PRO: (1) The writing itself was well done. (There was a brief hyper-usage of the word "formidable," the typical out of place capital, omitted words/punctuation. However, I find these refreshingly minor and not as distracting as editing flaws I note in most other books.)
(2) Family background, albeit somewhat guessed at, is an interesting part to the whole. I'm glad the author took the effort to include this.
CON: (1) Irritating teenage tone, (2) lack of parental respect,and (3) when the author po...more
(2) Family background, albeit somewhat guessed at, is an interesting part to the whole. I'm glad the author took the effort to include this.
CON: (1) Irritating teenage tone, (2) lack of parental respect,and (3) when the author po...more
Mar 15, 2012
Rachelle
rated it
1 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
no one
Recommended to Rachelle by:
no one
Well what does it tell you, when you a finish a book and your first thought is "OH Happy Day It IS Finally Over!" I thought this book would have more to do with Reagan's older life, hence the title, "My Father at 100"? However, the book had very little to do with the elder Reagan's life post presidency-- maybe, one chapter or really several pages, at the very end.
To be honest I am surprised this book got published. You go through bits of Ronald's parents life, to something Ron remembers in his...more
To be honest I am surprised this book got published. You go through bits of Ronald's parents life, to something Ron remembers in his...more
Er zitten krenten in de pap van My Father At 100 van Ron Reagan, de zoon van Ronald en Nancy Reagan, maar het is hard werken om ze tegen te komen.
Het boek veronderstelt de nodige voorkennis over het leven van Ronald Reagan, en is zeker niet bedoeld als een volledige biografie. In plaats daarvan concentreert het zich op een aantal aspecten van Reagan's leven: de afkomst van zijn familie, de plaatsen waar hij als kind woonde en de relatie tussen Ron en zijn vader. De schrijver laat zien dat de afk...more
Het boek veronderstelt de nodige voorkennis over het leven van Ronald Reagan, en is zeker niet bedoeld als een volledige biografie. In plaats daarvan concentreert het zich op een aantal aspecten van Reagan's leven: de afkomst van zijn familie, de plaatsen waar hij als kind woonde en de relatie tussen Ron en zijn vader. De schrijver laat zien dat de afk...more
I should begin by stating I'm not a fan of Ronald Reagan and even less a fan of his policies. Having said that, I enjoyed Ron Reagan's "My Father at 100" partly because it helped me to understand our 40th president. His story is told mostly in linear fashion with occasional sidesteps in the timeline to bring home a point or tell a story similar to the one digressed from. The reader clearly understands that while Ron didn't always agree with Ronald, especially in the areas of politics and religio...more
An interesting story that skips most of the details that are often focused on for a Ronald Reagan biography, his son pays attention more to the beginning and end of his father's life. Although a bit dreary at times, the story is weaved with personal accounts, letters from Ronald Reagan and familial anecdotes. A good read if you want to know more about the start of Ronald Reagan's life. Also, the epilogue contains an insight from his son that would be very intriguing to any current politicians wh...more
What a terrible book (and yet I had to read it - it was brand new, clean and shiny)- this kid must have needed some extra money. He designates it a 'memoir' the meaning of which is someone writing about something/someone they know intimately and yet half the book talks about where his great grandfather and grandfather were like - how the heck would he know that! He even says how he never really knew his father!! Anyway, read one of the other hundreds of books about Reagan if you want to know wha...more
This book is an interesting psychological study, not of Ronald Reagan Sr. but of his son. Something went wrong with those kids. His arrogant sense of entitlement and superiority, where did it come from? His father was good looking, bright (skipped a year in school and taught himself to read before getting there if being president wasn't enough to prove this) hard working, athletic, and thoroughly decent. His son, not so much... Talk about an Oedipus complex! This middle aged "kid" has a skewed v...more
This wasn't a typical pick for me. I'm a big stinkin' liberal so I never really thought I'd read a book devoted to the patron saint of the GOP. However, I had 2 days of meetings at a location an hour away, so I wanted an audiobook to listen to on my drive. I picked this up the library and actually really enjoyed it. It's not political at all. The book outlines Reagan's birth through death, as well as a bit of geneaology. The love that Ron Reagan feels for his father is definitely apparent. Good...more
O'Reagan and the Ireland potato famine results, 77 saves in 7 years in Dixon, thoughtful, Ron's riding the whale and horse popeye, from a son who maintained a liberal perspective / anti-conservative posture on many issues. Compared with other accounts of Reagan, Ron the son seems bitter at the end of this book that he was unable to convince Ronald the president of Ron's more liberal views, and that, was a good thing for the rest of us Americans.
A look at the former president not previously seen in other biographies or autobiographies. The information about the Reagan's Irish roots and how the family name changed several times was the perfect tie-in to my teaching 7th-graders about immigration. I appreciated the anecdotes which the author shares about his father, from infancy to the sobering day of Ronald Reagan's death. This book was a pleasant surprise.
Ronald Reagan is a heroic figure that his son, Ron, portrays with nostalgia mixed with condescenion. While he idolizes his dad, he also can't keep from taking some shots about his belief in God, his politics and his conservatism. The books was an interesting read and I gained some new insights on the President (who I believe to have been the best in my lifetime!) including his sinking into dementia. It's worth reading!
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Jun 16, 2012 08:23pm