Kevin Mattson

Author of The Cause: The Fight for American Liberalism from Franklin Roosevelt to Barack Obama

13+ Works 300 Members 5 Reviews

About the Author

Kevin Mattson is the Connor Study Professor of Contemporary History at Ohio University. He is the author of Rebels All!, When America Was Great, Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century, Intellectuals in Action, and "What the Heck Are You Up To, Mr. President?" Mattson writes for the American show more Prospect, Dissent, the Nation, the New York Times Book Review, the Washington Post Book World, and many other publications. show less

Works by Kevin Mattson

What the Heck Are You Up To, Mr. President? Jimmy Carter, America's Malaise and the Speech That Should Have Changed the… (2009) 62 copies, 2 reviews

We're Not Here to Entertain: Punk Rock, Ronald Reagan, and the Real Culture War of 1980s America (2020) 24 copies

Just Plain Dick: Richard Nixon’s Checkers Speech and the “Rocking, Socking” Election of 1952 (2012) 23 copies, 1 review

Rebels All!: A Short History of the Conservative Mind in Postwar America (Ideas in Action) (2008) 21 copies

Creating a Democratic Public: The Struggle for Urban Participatory Democracy During the Progressive Era (1997) 20 copies

When America Was Great: The Fighting Faith of Liberalism in Post-War America (2004) 18 copies, 1 review

Intellectuals in Action: The Origins of the New Left and Radical Liberalism, 1945-1970 (2002) 18 copies

Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century (2006) 16 copies

Liberalism for a New Century (2007) — Editor — 15 copies

Democracy's Moment : Reforming the American Political System for the 21st Century (People, Passions, and Power) (2002) — Editor — 10 copies

Engaging Youth: Combating the Apathy of Young Americans toward Politics (Century Foundation Report) (2003) 3 copies

What The Heck Are You Up To, Mr. President? Jimmy Carter, America’s Malaise and the Speech That Should Have Changed… 1 copy

Work Explorer

Associated Works

American Capitalism: Social Thought and Political Economy in the Twentieth Century (2006) — Contributor — 16 copies

The Analog Sea Review: Number Four (2022) — Contributor — 5 copies

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Common Knowledge

Gender: male

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Reviews

"What the heck are you up to, Mr. President?" … by Kevin Mattson

Detailed account of one of the most controversial speeches ever given by a US president in modern times; the book covers the decision making and considerations made about giving the speech, Jimmy Carter's personal opinions about it, the initial praise the public gave it, and the subsequent and swift fall out that arose shortly after it was delivered.

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timmydc | 1 other review | Oct 26, 2014 |

The Cause: The Fight for American Liberalism from… by Eric Alterman

This book was an interesting history of liberalism from FDR to Obama. However, it was a very dry read and the author has a habit of going off on to random historical tangents that have little to nothing to do with the main narrative. He also skipped over things thst should have been better addressed (for instance, the Bush Years) while giving far too much time to things that were on the whole rather irrelvant. I also feel that the book should have been a little heavier on analysis as this is exactly the sort of book where understanding the 'whys' is more important than understanding the 'whats' and 'whens'.

Still, it was an informative book and well worth the read.… (more)