"Pitney’s analysis is masterful in substance and style. This is a lively, perceptive, and informative account that comes across—-even for someone who already knows quite a bit about the 1988 election—as something new and better and altogether necessary."—Political Science Quarterly
“A lucid, engaging, and informative book that students of American politics will of American politics will find valuable.”—Journal of Arizona History
“Pitney has given us a fantastic, insightful, down-the-middle account of [the 1988] election. His prose is accessible and his pacing is crisp, but never does he sacrifice scholarly rigor for readability.”—Law & Liberty
“Campaigns are more consequential for the lessons they impart to future candidates and campaign professionals, the author contends, as he adeptly demonstrates how the 1988 presidential campaign foreshadowed the politics to come. This very well-written book—indeed one might even call it a page-turner—is replete with interesting stories and will appeal to anyone interested in American politics. Highly recommended.”—Choice
"Pitney’s portrait of the 1988 election is a needed refresher on how presidential politics used to work."—Washington Times
“John J. Pitney, Jr.’s After Reagan transports the reader back in time to the hard-fought presidential race between George H. W. Bush and Michael Dukakis. Pitney’s retelling highlights the candidates, issues, and media environment of that time and juxtaposes them with our current political world. This engaging, well-written book is much more than an expert analysis of one memorable election from thirty years ago—it’s a thoughtful exploration of how much, for better and for worse, our politics has changed since then.”—Jeffrey Crouch, author of The Presidential Pardon Power
“This fine book might well be subtitled Present at the Creation. Pitney’s argument—that in the Bush-Dukakis race of 1988 we find the seeds of present-day presidential politics in both parties—is both timely and well supported. Judiciously argued and gracefully written, After Reagan makes a worthy contribution to the literature.”—John Robert Greene, author of The Presidency of George H. W. Bush, Second Edition, Revised
