Its a review about this product
The Cold War: A New History (Paperback) Gaddis is a noted scholar who has written an extraordinarily concise and compelling history of the Cold War. His writing is brilliant. The prologue about Orwell and Reagan provides just the right touch, and his ability to weave it into his ultimate thesis is remarkable.
Gaddis is able to answer some old questions by digging through the recently available Soviet sources. I would have liked to have seen more detail in this regard. Also missing is any discussion of the revisionists' critique of the Cold War and why Gaddis does or does not (presumably the latter) agree with the Williams/Kolko/Gardner/LaFeber school of thought. I don't think those criticisms can be breezily dismissed, and any history of the Cold War should grapple with them.
It's difficult to stomach anything positive written about Reagan, though Gaddis' portrayal of Reagan as providing a useful rejection of Detente policy is quite compelling and persuasive.
Nobody writes history this short anymore, and the beauty and conciseness of the writing is to be admired.
