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Brookhiser's Book Bash

By Robert Stacy McCain on 7.9.09 @ 9:33PM

Wednesday evening, I attended a book-signing party for Richard Brookhiser's Right Time, Right Place: Coming of Age With William F. Buckley Jr. and the Conservative Movement, hosted at the Foxhall Road home of David Frum and Danielle Crittenden. (Tell Jeffrey Lord not to worry -- I've already been deprogrammed, although I can't speak for Quin Hillyer and James Bowman, who also attended.) I've posted an account of the soiree, with photos, at the Hot Air Green Room.

Brookhiser's book is quite obviously focused on Buckley, who once designated Brookhiser his chosen sucessor at National Review but later, declaring that his young protege lacked "executive flair," shunted him aside. As he tells his story, however, Brookhiser relates many other things, including this from page 30:

Throughout high school and college I kept sending pieces to National Review, one or two a year, and most of them kept being published. National Review suggested I send a humor piece to the Alternative, a monthly in Bloomington, Indiana; its tone was simultaneously meaner, and more fey, and they became the second place to run me.

The Alternative, of course, became The American Spectator, and -- along with such familiar names as R. Emmett Tyrrell, Wlady Pleszczynski and Tom Bethell -- the magazine makes subsequent appearances. Indeed, on page 96, Brookhiser credits Tyrrell for coining "the tersest definition of Reaganism that I ever heard . . . 'Fight Communism; cut taxes; the pieties.'"

All in all, Brookhiser has written a book that will be enjoyed equally by those old enough to remember what Communism was (and that it was once considered very right-wing to want to fight it) and by those too young to know what it was like when offices were redolent with the aroma of cigars and echoed with the clatter of typewriters.

View all comments (16) | Leave a comment

Jeffrey Lord| 7.9.09 @ 10:51PM

Quin applied for a temporary visa that allowed him over the District line. I don't recall your application, Robert. Ahhhem?????

Tootsie| 7.9.09 @ 11:06PM

It's particularly nasty to have so much spam appear even before the first commenter has posted. Ugh!

Jeffrey Lord| 7.9.09 @ 11:06PM

Robert,,,

PS...I'm sure my invitation was just mislaid....Actually I was tied up...The annual East Pennsboro township candlestick bowling tournament was ongoing. Also had to get the soap for the church car wash. Next time. I hope you extended my best wishes to all my Washington buds. I really do love them all, known to me and unknown...just...well...getting out would help a bit. Great pictures, by the way. I will say the attractive female contingent pictured is welcome to the church car wash any time....When is Frum's book party for Mark Levin? :)

Flower Power| 7.9.09 @ 11:09PM

Are Brooks and Frum still Obama lovers now that the President's approvals are tanking?

Aaron| 7.9.09 @ 11:22PM

"and that it was once considered very right-wing to want to fight it" When did that change? Jeez, I need to get out more... Mr Lord sign me up for the next car wash please. By the way RSM, have you and Hillyer deloused each other?

Ran| 7.10.09 @ 12:00AM

Ah... So RSM shows up at Frum's house. Huh. Has Stacy been admitted into the league of Republicans-who-really-matter?

Red Phillips| 7.10.09 @ 12:51AM

Brookhiser is an insufferable neocon boob who wouldn't know authentic American conservatism if it bit him on the rear.

Daisy| 7.10.09 @ 1:54AM

Red, you're a stubborn cuss, single minded, too. Dang.

around the track| 7.10.09 @ 8:00AM

I'll never forgive Brookhiser for his comment after Palin's selection(and I paraphrase): perhaps conservatives need a new base. He was referring to ,what he thought, was the mistaken enthusiasm by many conservatives for her. Buckley, the man who trusted the first hundred names in the Boston telephone directory more than the Harvard faculty saw something in this guy that turned out to be right: a contemptuousness and disregard of those who provide the support for the conservative movement out in the fields of battle.

I've written this complaint to several of the NR folk and have not received any response. My request has been simple: an apology--no matter how cryptic and subtle .

Now having spewed out this anger, I did read the book and liked it.

Tim| 7.10.09 @ 8:32AM

You guys joke, but I suspect you are not a bunch of effetes. Either way, a little peek behind the curtain is good for yokels like me who mow our own lawns out here in flyover.

Teflon93| 7.10.09 @ 9:18AM

I'm with Red.

NR needs to get out of D.C. and New York and meet some Americans.

Red Phillips| 7.10.09 @ 10:01AM

There is nothing better that could happen to NR than for it to move to some small town in fly-over country, and for my bias preferably in the South. The Rockford Institute, in Rockford Illinois, has avoided corruption in part because it is in Rockford.

Palin was not beyond criticism, but Brookhiser is an elitist snob.

Tim| 7.10.09 @ 11:56AM

As the Palin thing has high lighted: there's a growing schism between conservatives. Is it money? Culture? The culture that comes with money? The culture that comes with working on your own car? Something.

Tootsie| 7.10.09 @ 1:05PM

There will be no schism among conservatives once we are united under Palin's strong leadership.

Red Phillips| 7.10.09 @ 2:35PM

Tootsie, that is a wee bit optimistic. Palin is weak on immigration, something that could be rectified, and how is she going to unite conservative interventionists with non-interventionists?