by New York Times Correspondents
Invite a quintet of Times reporters to write essays on what kind of President Ronald Reagan will be and what the next four years will be like, and the result is a series of careful, tentative assessments. Hedrick Smith of the paper's Washington bureau discusses Reagan's view of the world and assesses his leadership qualities. Robert Lindsey of the L.A. bureau provides a biography and recounts Reagan's years as California's governor. Adam Clymer, who covered the 1980 campaign, describes the political Reagan. Richard Burt, described as "National Security Affairs correspondent," contributes a brief chapter entitled "Arms and the Man." Leonard Silk, the economics writer, begins, "Ronald Reagan's domestic economic policy for the four years ahead remains something of a mystery." That is not a promising start for a chapter that might at least have ventured some real predictions. For those who have been reading newspapers the last six months, there's nothing new here. But give the Times an A for ambition and getting its book out so fast. (Macmillan, $9.95)
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