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bubbajones1221's review against another edition
3.0
An era of forgotten presidents, where the most interesting thing about Cleveland remains that he served two non-consecutive terms.
Just because political cartoons from the Gilded Age hit different:
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"Though the people support the government, the government should not support the people" - Grover Cleveland (1837-1908)
Just because political cartoons from the Gilded Age hit different:
spinnerroweok's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fast paced run through of the life of president 22 and 24. Unfortunately, due to the length of the book and the dearth of resources that "Big Will" left behind, the book does not go deep enough. However, the book does contain the following:
An out of wedlock birth
An insane asylum
A White House Wedding
Fishing
A secret offshore surgery
Railroads
More fishing
Teddy Roosevelt
References to weight
More fishing
More Teddy
A May-Decemberish romance
The origin of a candy bar
Gambling and saloons
An assassination
And threats of WAR!
Oh, and did I mention fishing?
So sit back and enjoy An Honest President: The Life and Presidencies of Grover Cleveland.
An out of wedlock birth
An insane asylum
A White House Wedding
Fishing
A secret offshore surgery
Railroads
More fishing
Teddy Roosevelt
References to weight
More fishing
More Teddy
A May-Decemberish romance
The origin of a candy bar
Gambling and saloons
An assassination
And threats of WAR!
Oh, and did I mention fishing?
So sit back and enjoy An Honest President: The Life and Presidencies of Grover Cleveland.
agruenbaum's review against another edition
4.0
An interesting but not overtaxing biography on a President I knew little about.
rach's review against another edition
4.0
A well-written and well-rounded account of Grover Cleveland's life and politics. I've been curious about Grover Cleveland ever since my childhood obsession with the Disney movie "The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band", which centers around Cleveland's second run for office, which he eventually lost to Benjamin Harrison. To this day, when anyone mentions Cleveland's name (it isn't often), I break out into his campaign song from the movie.
It's really very sad that not much is widely known about Cleveland these days, other than the basics: only president to serve 2 non-consecutive terms; first to get married in the White House; first to have a child born in the White House. The title of this book really sums him up: above all else, he was honest. He believed any public office, especially that of the presidency, was to be treated as a sacred trust for the people, and he strove to do nothing that was not in the best interests of the people. He is the kind of president we need today, but in today's political machine, he would never have been elected, because he never actively strove to be president, and after his two terms, he had to decline re-nomination on several occasions. He just felt that being president was something he had to do when it was asked of him.
I'm glad I went to the effort to request this one through inter-library loan.
It's really very sad that not much is widely known about Cleveland these days, other than the basics: only president to serve 2 non-consecutive terms; first to get married in the White House; first to have a child born in the White House. The title of this book really sums him up: above all else, he was honest. He believed any public office, especially that of the presidency, was to be treated as a sacred trust for the people, and he strove to do nothing that was not in the best interests of the people. He is the kind of president we need today, but in today's political machine, he would never have been elected, because he never actively strove to be president, and after his two terms, he had to decline re-nomination on several occasions. He just felt that being president was something he had to do when it was asked of him.
I'm glad I went to the effort to request this one through inter-library loan.
poirotketchup's review against another edition
4.0
An enjoyable read that helped clearly explain the politics of the late 19th Century, and why voters seemed to insist on electing presidents outside the normal political establishment. Cleveland's honesty does stand out as unusual in political history. I do wish Jeffers had spent more time on Cleveland's troubling attitudes towards race -- it's difficult to write him off as a "man of his time" when the 5 consecutive Republican presidents before him were pretty progressive on civil rights.
samanthaxe's review
3.0
The content was interesting, but the writing style was repetitive and unnecessarily convoluted.
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