The former host of MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews" offers a panoramic portrait of post-World War II American politics through the story of his extraordinary life and career. Raised in a large Irish-Catholic family in Philadelphia, he became a Peace Corps graduate, moved to DC and began knocking on doors on Capitol Hill. There his eyes were opened to the game of big-league politics. As a speechwriter for President Carter, Matthews witnessed...

"Bobby Kennedy was a personal hero to a multitude of Americans. As the train carrying his body headed to Washington, whites and blacks alike stood along the tracks, saluting him. They loved him as a fellow patriot who believed a great country could also be a good one. Chris Matthews, the host of MSNBC's Hardball, has discovered what made him who he was...Drawing on extensive research and intimate interviews, Matthews shines a light on all the important...