Part of the series, Oxford History of the United States, David M. Kennedy, General Editor in which Professor Patterson has written several books. This one advances the time frame to the period following the specific events of Watergate and takes the reader into the later 1970's and beyond through the Clinton years. The book presents a comprehensive review of the events with very extensive bibliographic references. It is the work of a skilled and dedicated academician, not a political insider, making it helpful for historical reference but missing the personal insight of other authors who provide memoirs on these events.