Radical Son by David Horowitz

A while back, my mother turned me on to a website, frontpagemag.com, that she'd enjoyed browsing. It was the creation of David Horowitz, a former radical during the 60s and 70s, who now is somewhat of a conservative spokesman and debunker of liberal myths. After reading some of his columns, I decided to try his autobiography, Radical Son.

While his political writing is astute, I found his biographical style a bit tedious. For a man who lived abroad, was married and divorced three times, lived a life of radical activism for the New Left, and rubbed shoulders with major figures in radical circles, such as Huey Newton, Tom Hayden, and Jane Fonda, his tale is told with more attention to everyday events than momentous activities.

It was difficult to wade through the first two thirds of the book, just to arrive at the point where he began to entertain doubts about the goals of himself and other radicals. A close friend was executed by Black Panther leaders, and as he began to investigate the matter, he came to understand the problems inherent in pursuing the socialist dream.
If you're the perservering type, go ahead and read this one, to gain a greater understanding of the motives and methods of the Left Wing of politics. If not, just browse to his web site and check out his columns for a more concise summary.