Reagan ─ American Icon

Ronald Reagan is one of the most important—and arguably most successful—presidents in modern American history. He is broadly credited with renewing American prosperity in the wake of the most miserable economic era since the 1930s, laying the foundations for Cold War victory and doing much to bring about the late twentieth century shift to the right in American politics. In this book, Iwan Morgan presents the first thoroughly-researched biography of Reagan, based on original materials and first-hand interviews. He plots a chronological path through Reagan's life beginning with his childhood and early years in Illinois, through his Hollywood career, his emergent Republicanism and his election as governor of California, before acceding to the presidency in 1981. In office, Morgan assesses Reagan's economic and foreign policies, as well as his idealization of the constitution and his near-impeachment over the Iran-Contra affair.

Iwan Morgan is Professor of US Studies and Head of US Programmes at the Institute of the Americas, University College London. He was awarded the British Association of American Studies Honorary Fellowship in 2014 in recognition of his contributions to the discipline over the course of his career. His publications include The Age of Deficits: Presidents and Unbalanced Budgets from Jimmy Carter to George W. Bush; Nixon and Beyond the Liberal Consensus: A Political History of the United States since 1965.