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99 reviews for:
The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World
A.J. Baime
4.37 AVERAGE
99 reviews for:
The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World
A.J. Baime
4.37 AVERAGE
Yes, it’s another Truman book, and yes, I drove my family crazy talking about it. But there’s very good reason behind my slight obsession: the first four months of Truman’s presidency are widely — and accurately — regarded as the most intense, most eventful of any presidency in US history. Every day — literally every damn day — brought a new historically significant event. So much of the past 73 years has its roots in this critical point in world history, and the human side of it is utterly fascinating. The Accidental President focuses on the four months from FDR’s death to the day that Japan surrendered. Within that time frame, the Cold War, the Korean War, the age of nuclear power, the Communist Revolution in China, the splitting of North and South Korea, the dividing up of East and West Germany, the creation of the Eastern Block, and shortly thereafter, the recognition of the state of Israel take place. The seeds of our modern state of affairs were sown during this extraordinary time period. The book is written exceptionally well, and puts you right in the middle of the action. I was on the edge of my seat as the Enola Gay (named for an unknowing pilot’s unlucky mother!) took off on her awful mission. It’s one thing to know what happened; it’s quite another to live it through the words of those who did. The sheer power of the bombs were remarkable: the light from the explosion could be seen 180 miles away, and windows shattered 125 miles away. Just imagine! Read this book — especially if you’re not going to read the 1,200 page McCullough book about Truman (though you should read that too!) If you’re anything like me, all the “that’s just how the world is” beliefs that you have will dissipate and you’ll see that everything flows from the world wars.
informative
I picked up this book looking for something of substance to read. I appreciated reading about the Allied side of the war and how the country perceived Harry Truman. While he was not a favored president at the end of his term, he is one of the highly favored presidents now. I think it’s really amazing how knowledge and information can change minds and opinions.
informative
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informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Effing amazing and informative. Very painstakingly researched and written in impeccable detail.
This is my first history themed short biography book that I've read in a long time since I left uni and I was satisfied. It gave me fresh perspectives of what happened on the last months of WW2 and slowly how the Iron Curtain was cast on Europe and parts of Asia. Makes me wanna read more of books with this genre.