Neo-conservatism: The Autobiography of an Idea

The movement called neo-conservatism has provided the intellectual foundation for the resurgence of American conservatism in our time. And if neo-conservatism can be said to have a father or an architect, that person is Irving Kristol. Schooled in radical socialism in the 1930s, Kristol grew disillusioned with the left and rose to become an ideological foe of the Soviet Union, an active editor and publisher, and a prolific writer in his own right. He helped move a generation of intellectuals to the conservative cause. Neoconservatism is the most comprehensive selection of Mr. Kristol’s influential writings on politics and economics, as well as the best of his now-famous essays on society, religion, culture, literature, education, and-above all-the values issues that have come to define the neo-conservative critique of contemporary life. Composed over almost fifty years, these writings offer some of the most lucid, insightful, entertaining, and intellectually challenging essays of our time. Often persuasive, and very wise…From the beginning, Mr. Kristol’s writing has exhibited a wealth of common sense and understated wit. This book is full of both. -Andrew Sullivan, New York Times Book Review. Mr. Kristol possesses a genius for making his sophisticated and nuanced arguments appear the commonplace of everyman…. He has thought and written with admirable clarity, honesty, and courage. -James Nuechterlein, Wall Street Journal.