The Rise and Fall of Modern American Conservatism

One of Choice’s Outstanding Academic Titles for 2010 “David Farber’s new book … provides the kind of perspective that headline historians often miss. If readers can withstand their title shock, they will find much to admire in this engaging and accessible overview of the most influential movement in American politics during the past half-century.”–Steven P. Miller, St. Louis Post-Dispatch “An excellent start for anyone wanting to understand U.S. conservatism.”–Choice “Calling historians to go beyond synthesis to integration, Farber’s book is an important step in this direction.”–Jennifer Burns, Journal of American History “Unlike other staid syntheses of conservatism, Farber’s draws out the quirky as well as the profound, the passion as well as the calculation of this movement, and always with a playful edge. It is, as a result, a scintillating read… [A] vital, new interpretation of a pivotal movement and era in American history.”–Darren Dochuk, Pacific Historical Review “There are several important and interesting arguments that Farber makes along this narrative and one inspired choice of subject matter–Phyllis Schlafly–that have much to commend.”–James Gilbert, H-Soz-u-Kult

David Farber is professor of history at Temple University. His many books include Taken Hostage: The Iran Hostage Crisis and America’s First Encounter with Radical Islam and What They Think of Us: International Perceptions of the United States since 9⁄11 (both Princeton).