Audiobooks by Craig Shirley

The Search for Reagan: The Appealing Intellectual Conservatism of Ronald Reagan

Never before has anyone explored the mind, soul, and heart of Ronald Reagan. The Search for Reagan explores the challenges and controversies in Reagan's life and how he successfully dealt with each, depicting a man who was never as conservative as some conservatives wanted him to be, but rather as conservative as he was comfortable being-a man who wanted to win on his own terms and integrity. Ronald Reagan was a singularly unique man and conservative who championed a wildly successful revolution-leading to more freedom and less government for the American people and to the fall of communism, while boosting American morale. He was the first president in many years who believed optimism from the Oval Office had a direct bearing on the affairs of the nation. As a consequence, he left office more popular than when he entered, with a whopping 73 percent approval. He understood that American conservatism was based upon the individual and not the group. In his presidency, he solved the mystery of high inflation that had bedeviled his predecessor, high interest rates, and high gas prices. He created over twenty million new jobs, and the number of American millionaires grew from 4,414 to 34,944. He is considered by most historians to be one of our four greatest presidents, along with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt.

Craig Shirley (Author), Bob Johnson (Narrator)

Audiobook

Reagan's Revolution: The Untold Story of the Campaign That Started It All

Today's political scene looks nothing like it did thirty years ago, and that is due mostly to Reagan's monumental reshaping of the Republican party. What few people realize, however, is that Reagan's revolution did not begin when he took office in 1980, but in his failed presidential challenge to Gerald Ford in 1975-1976. This is the remarkable story of that historic campaign-one that, as Reagan put it, turned a party of 'pale pastels' into a national party of 'bold colors.' Featuring interviews with a myriad of politicos, journalists, insiders, and observers, Craig Shirley relays intriguing, never-before-told anecdotes about Reagan, his staff, the campaign, the media, and the national parties and shows how Reagan, instead of following the lead of the ever-weakening Republican party, brought the party to him and almost single-handedly revived it. Photos are included in the audiobook companion PDF download.

Craig Shirley (Author), Tom Parks (Narrator)

Audiobook

December 1941: 31 Days that Changed America and Saved the World

In the days before the attack on Pearl Harbor, America was largely focused on the war in Europe, but when planes dropped out of a clear blue sky and bombed the American naval base and aerial targets in Hawaii, everything changed in an instant. December 1941 takes you into the moment-by-moment ordeal of a nation waking to war. In December 1941, bestselling author Craig Shirley celebrates the American spirit while reconstructing the events that called it to shine with rare and piercing light. Shirley puts readers on the ground and the thick of the action. Relying on daily news reports from around the country and recently declassified government papers, Shirley sheds light on the crucial diplomatic exchanges leading up to the attack, the policies on the internment of Japanese people living in the U.S. after the assault, and the near-total overhaul of the U.S. economy to prepare for war. Shirley paints a compelling portrait of pre-war American culture--from the fashion and the celebrities to common pastimes. His portrait of America at war is just as vivid, highlighting: - The surge in heroism, self-sacrifice, mass military enlistments, and national unity - The prodigious talents of Hollywood and Tin Pan Alley - Troubling price-controls and rationing, federal economic takeover, and censorship Featuring colorful personalities including Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull, and General Douglas MacArthur, December 1941 highlights a period of profound change in American government, foreign and domestic policy, law, economics, and business, chronicling the developments day by day through that singular and momentous month. December 1941 features surprising revelations, amusing anecdotes, and heart-wrenching stories, and also explores the unique religious and spiritual dimension of a culture under assault on the eve of Christmas. Before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the closest thing to war for the Americans was uncoordinated, mediocre war games in South Carolina. Less than thirty days later, by the end of December 1941, the nation was involved in a battle for the preservation of its very way of life--a battle that would forever change the nation and the world.

Craig Shirley (Author), Tom Parks (Narrator)

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April 1945: The Hinge of History

Acclaimed historian and New York Times bestselling author Craig Shirley delivers a compelling account of 1945, particularly the watershed events in the month of April, that details how America emerged from World War II as a leading superpower. In the long-awaited follow-up to the widely praised December 1941,Craig Shirley's April 1945 paints a vivid portrait of America--her people, faith, economy, government, and culture. The year of 1945 bought a series of watershed events that transformed the country into an arsenal of democracy, one that no longer armed the world by necessity but henceforth protected the world by need. At the start of 1945, America and the rest of the world were grieving millions of lives lost in the global conflict. As President Roosevelt was sworn into his fourth term, optimism over an end to the bloody war had grown--then, in April, several events collided that changed the face of the world forever: the sudden death of President Roosevelt followed by Harry S. Truman's rise to office; Adolph Hitler's suicide; and the horrific discoveries of Dachau and Auschwitz. Americans doubled down on their completion of the atomic bomb and their plans to drop them on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the destruction ultimately leading the Japanese Empire to surrender on V-J day and ending World War II for good. Combining engaging anecdotes with deft research and details that are both diminutive and grand, April 1945 gives readers a front-row seat to the American stage at the birth of a brand-new world.

Craig Shirley (Author), Tom Parks (Narrator)

Audiobook

Citizen Newt: The Making of a Reagan Conservative

In one way or another Newt Gingrich has been leading a revolution for most of his life. Citizen Newt is the definitive account of that struggle. Writing with the full cooperation of Speaker Gingrich and the players around him, New York Times bestselling author Craig Shirley captures the events, ideas, failures, and successes of Newton Leroy Gingrich-one of the most complex, influential, and durable political figures of our time. Returning to Gingrich's childhood in Pennsylvania and his formative years as a young history professor, Citizen Newt moves through Gingrich's first forays into politics and takes listeners behind the scenes of the congressman's crucial role in the Reagan Revolution, his battles with George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton, and his masterly orchestration of 1994's "Gingrich Revolution" and the Contract with America, which catapulted him to national prominence and forever changed congressional and national politics. Drawing upon untold stories from Gingrich and those who know him best-political allies and opponents, Washington insiders and political iconoclasts, Capitol Hill staffers and colleagues-Shirley has crafted a fascinating, humorous, humanizing, and insightful account of a true American original.

Craig Shirley (Author), John McLain (Narrator)

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Last Act: The Final Years and Emerging Legacy of Ronald Reagan

His name in American politics is more cited than any other president. Both the Republican and Democratic parties are radically different today, mainly as a result of Ronald Reagan and the force of his ideas. No twentieth century president shaped the American political landscape so profoundly. Craig Shirley's Last Act is the important final chapter in the life of Reagan that no one has thus far covered. It's the kind of book that widens our understanding of American history and of the presidency and the men who occupied it. To tell Reagan's story, Craig has secured the complete, exclusive, and enthusiastic support of the Reagan Foundation and Library and spent considerable time there reviewing sealed files and confidential information. Cast in a grand and compelling narrative style, Last Act contains interesting and heretofore untold anecdotes about Reagan, Mrs. Reagan, their pleasure at retirement, the onslaught of the awful Alzheimer's and how he and Mrs. Reagan dealt with the diagnosis, the slow demise, the extensive plans for a state funeral, the outpouring from the nation, which stunned the political establishment, the Reagan legacy, and how his shadow looms more and more over the Republican Party, Washington, the culture of America, and the world.

Craig Shirley, Henry Arnold (Author), Henry Arnold, Henry O. Arnold (Narrator)

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