NOONAN ON MICHAEL KELLY: I never knew what to make of Reagan. I suspected I was a Democrat, and so I figured I shouldn't like the guy, on principle. But then every time I saw him, I liked him. I remember reading Peggy Noonan's memoir of her time as a Reagan speechwriter, What I Saw at the Revolution. I developed a little crush on her as I read. What a smart woman, I thought, and a hell of a writer. If she likes Reagan, he can't be all bad.

Now, some years later, my politics have edged Noonanward, and my admiration for her prose continues to swell. Her tribute to Michael Kelly only adds to my respect for her. How she wrote something so good so fast is beyond me.