BOOK REVIEW: “Citizen Newt” is more a career history than a biography …

Of all the political personalities I’ve observed over the last few decades, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich is one who captured my attention — perhaps for a simple reason.

There are few people, politician or otherwise, who can hold the attention of an audience by speaking intelligently, fairly eloquently, and do so without prepared notes. Newt Gingrich, a former college history professor from Georgia, is a master at it!

So when I had the opportunity to read for review, “Citizen Newt: The Making of a Reagan Conservative,” by Craig Shirley (published by Nelson Books), a book marketed as “The Authorized Biography,” I thought it would be an opportunity to learn more about the man, as well as his political career. Well, the book did provide me with greater insight into his political career, but almost nothing about the person named Newt Gingrich.

Instead, “Citizen Newt” is a thick hardback that reads much more like a history of the former Speaker’s political career than a biography about the man. There’s little insight given about who Gingrich is as a human being, as the book follows a timeline from the start of Gingrich launching into politics to his ascension to the position of Speaker and the “Gingrich era.”

I also found the book to contain what appeared to me to be multiple contradictions. For example, the subtitle of the book is, “The Making of a Reagan Conservative,” but the author paints a picture of Newt supporting Reagan because he was already a conservative, therefore, his support for Reagan aligned with his own political ideology. At one point, the writer describes Gingrich as being surprised at winning the position of Minority Whip, yet he also quotes one person saying about Newt, “He’s smart, he’s shrewd, he articulate, he’s highly committed, and he’s very ambitious …” and Gingrich is portrayed in the book as a man who was always on offense politically, as if he always knew what he wanted to accomplish from the day he first waded into politics. The author also quotes a friend of the Speaker saying, “The important thing you have to understand about Newt Gingrich is that he is amoral. There isn’t any right or wrong, there isn’t any conservative or liberal. There is only what will work best for Newt Gingrich,” yet much of what is included in this book is how Gingrich made a name for himself by pushing ethics in the House of Representatives.

In spite of these apparent contradictions, and the fact this book is less about Newt the person and more about the content and chronology of his political career, it still makes for interesting reading. At least, for the person curious about the internal workings of politics and the real (and significant) contribution made by Speaker Gingrich. If that appeals to you, then “Citizen Newt” will provide you with hours of enjoyable reading.

Scotty

I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”