Reading Comprehension

Here , I narrowed to A & B. "Qualified approbation" is meant limited approval whereas "Respectful regard" is obvious.
In the passage, I could sense the author has respect for Woodword for his revolutionary movements but at the same time also has a bit of disapproval for his confession about the first edition of the book.
SO, does "qualified" does not shows the neutral attitude of the author?

Actually, there was not any real disapproval, more a slight disagreeing with the perception of there even being any need for such an apology.

The apology is described as a manifestation of "ironic modesty", and the author goes on to say things about the "impact" of the work. Then he says that "Woodward had an unerring sense of the revolutionary moment."

The thing that may have put you at a disadvantage is the author's comparing Woodward and his work to Thomas Paine and his work. For most of us in the U.S. Thomas Paine is a known to be respected historical figure. Without that awareness, you were at a disadvantage. Maybe you still could have found a path to choosing A, but for me, for instance, the comparison with Paine made A the obvious choice.

We can only hope that the makers of the official GMAT would not create a question that's biased in that way.