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4.44 AVERAGE
4.44 AVERAGE
Enjoyed this book immensely; it was well written and gave great insight to the characters and history. Never was a fan of biographies until I read Theodore Rex by the author and it made me want to read the other titles he wrote on Roosevelt.
Theodore Roosevelt is a fascinating guy. Very well written book about his life up to the point of assuming the presidency.
Actually about a 3.5. I realize that this a highly regarded biography of the early years of TR, but it is just too much. It could have used some judicious editing. As an audio, it logs in at 26 hours, 36 minutes and it ends when he becomes President at age 41. I learned far more than I cared about his frequent hunting trips, his feuds with other politicians, and his voluminous correspondence. Some things I did not learn much about were his wife Edith, his children, or his interior life. TR left vast amounts of documentary evidence and Morris seems determined to use every bit of it.
Some things came to mind as I finished this long listen. TR is greatly admired, and rightly so, but he was also the center of a personality cult. He was exuberant, volatile, and sometimes went off like a firecracker, letting others know his displeasure. This was offset by his undeniable intelligence and grasp of public affairs. But as we are living in the midst of a presidency driven by a fawning personality cult, I had second thoughts about what it means if a personality is left unrestrained.
Recommended for those who are Theodore Roosevelt completists. If I read more about him, it will be much shorter.
Some things came to mind as I finished this long listen. TR is greatly admired, and rightly so, but he was also the center of a personality cult. He was exuberant, volatile, and sometimes went off like a firecracker, letting others know his displeasure. This was offset by his undeniable intelligence and grasp of public affairs. But as we are living in the midst of a presidency driven by a fawning personality cult, I had second thoughts about what it means if a personality is left unrestrained.
Recommended for those who are Theodore Roosevelt completists. If I read more about him, it will be much shorter.
Easily among the best books I've ever read. Both exciting and poetic, I really can't think of many books that offer everything I seek out of a biography. Now, for the other two volumes.
One of the more engaging works of history I have read. Morris manages to tell the story of one of the most enigmatic characters of american history with so much humor and wit that it never feels like you have just been reading several pages about legislative proceedings from over a century ago.
I didn't really know a thing about Theodore Roosevelt before I read this book. I found out that he was a rare human for his intellect and character.
Very good read. I'll read the next volume of this biography.
Very good read. I'll read the next volume of this biography.
Theodore Roosevelt's voracity for life is never underestimated in this engagingly well-written biography. Highly recommended.
As I read this, which only covers Roosevelt's life through his early 40s, I wonder if any of our current national leaders have read it and are ashamed by their lack of vision, drive and courage. Yes, he was pretty much an ego maniac, but what an amazingly brilliant person--an accomplished writer, a visionary, someone who stood up against corruption against his own political party. He walked his talk. The most amazing part was that as assistant secretary of the navy, having just built up the navy to prepare American for its next war, he still felt he hadn't given enough and stepped down to actually fight in that war. What a sense of duty people had in those days. What a country America was in those days to inspire such a sense of duty.
Accidentally got the abridged audiobook. Still really great! Will need to read in a decade or so when I've forgotten it.