As the 1960s kick off, the Cuban missile crisis has brought the Communist threat to within miles of the United States, and extremist movements roil the American Right. Two college students, Woodroe Raynor and Leonora Goldstein, meet in the fall of 1960 before embarking on separate paths. Woodroe goes to work for the indiscriminately anti-communist John Birch Society: through his eyes, we see how anti-communism defined American politics while nearly defeating itself in its own extremism. Leonora becomes a novitiate in the libertarian-objectivist cult of novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand: through her, we witness how sexual passion shaped Rand’s movement. But a singular romance blooms as the two make their way through the tumultuous era, navigating the political fault line that would change American history.
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“A classy piece of political-historical fiction…Buckley’s true story unfolds without a hint of didacticism or triumphalism or self-serving revisionism. On the contrary, he has transformed it into high, pulsating drama.” — Sam Tanenhaus, author
“A classy piece of political-historical fiction…Buckley’s true story unfolds without a hint of didacticism or triumphalism or self-serving revisionism. On the contrary, he has transformed it into high, pulsating drama.”
“The novel will appeal…to Buckley’s devoted fans.”
“Expect his latest novel to appeal most powerfully to readers whose political attitudes match those of National Review.”
“Serious, important political history.”
" Not one of his best. "
" Historical fiction from WFB. I knew he read the Birchers and Randians out of the party when he was at top of conservative movement in 1960s but I didn't know why. This gives some of that story, albeit in a fictionalized telling. "
" Good look into the forming political conservative movement in the 50s, avoiding conspiracy kooks and arrogant intellectuals. "
" What was the point of having a Mormon main character? Just to have a conservative? He swears, drinks, has premarital sex, and maybe even smokes, if I remember correctly. "
William F. Buckley Jr. (1925–2008)—a syndicated columnist, author, editor, television host, and adventurer—was the founder of National Review and the host of the Emmy Award–winning Firing Line, the longest-running public affairs program in television history with a single host. Buckley was the award-winning author of many bestsellers, starting with God and Man at Yale.
John Lescault, a native of Massachusetts, is a graduate of the Catholic University of America. He lives in Washington, DC, where he works in theater.
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