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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
William Manchester is just such an excellent writer. He seamlessly swivels between human drama and geopolitics, battlefields and households. Like the Last Lion, this is a magisterial work. MacArthur is a fascinating figure, and Manchester shows how he was simultaneously revered like a god yet remained a man. The biography is at times fawning, but usually honest and humanizing. I may need to read this again.
Good example of the writer matching the subject: both Manchester and MacArthur revel in the same "appeals to timeless values" the rest of us are more likely to call purple prose.
As a biography, this is excellent—probably too supportive of the subject (like most loving biographers) but still a great read. To his credit, though, Manchester is careful to note MacArthur's contradictions and failures, though leavened by debunking the overblown criticisms that naturally accumulate around any public figure.
It's somewhat lost in the hundreds of pages of particulars, but my overwhelming impression of MacArthur is of someone who deliberately stayed overseas from 1937-1951, largely to avoid situations where he wasn't the most important and assured person in the room. He built his own imperial bubble where he was the irreplaceable man, and his own impulses became unrestricted. In some cases, like postwar Japan, this could be a good thing—but only by chance, since there weren't enough checks to keep him in line. He rose to prominence on daring chances as a lucky man, only to find in Korea what happens when the luck runs out.
As a biography, this is excellent—probably too supportive of the subject (like most loving biographers) but still a great read. To his credit, though, Manchester is careful to note MacArthur's contradictions and failures, though leavened by debunking the overblown criticisms that naturally accumulate around any public figure.
It's somewhat lost in the hundreds of pages of particulars, but my overwhelming impression of MacArthur is of someone who deliberately stayed overseas from 1937-1951, largely to avoid situations where he wasn't the most important and assured person in the room. He built his own imperial bubble where he was the irreplaceable man, and his own impulses became unrestricted. In some cases, like postwar Japan, this could be a good thing—but only by chance, since there weren't enough checks to keep him in line. He rose to prominence on daring chances as a lucky man, only to find in Korea what happens when the luck runs out.
A truly excellent biography of a complex and remarkable man. It hasn't aged as well as it could've, but it is one of the most excellent biographies I've read. Very few of them make me both conflicted and connected to the main character as much as this did. I started the reading journey skeptical and unfamiliar with MacArthur, and ended it sad and fascinated.
informative
slow-paced
Phew! This was a long book for me -- I like to keep them around 300 pages.
Great insight into General Douglas MacArthur, in a time when several larger-than-life personalities drive our political scenes. I have a naturally skeptical nature, and growing up hearing that MacArthur was a True Hero and defender of the United States against communism, I was looking forward to a more factual account of the man, his strategies, and the environment in which he operated. There's definitely that in this book: the feeling that things could have gone very differently with somewhat different decisions made, and not always the right ones were.
Particularly MacArthur in the Philippines and Japan was fascinating. That he could so totally understand the culture there and miss the subtle cues from China is baffling. He had a huge ego, but a huge character and charisma to match. He was self-aware enough to realize the need for modesty, and I feel I can relate to that. He was an interesting, complicated man who made a huge mark on history, but was ultimately destroyed because of his inability to work with others. His greatest years could have been after his tussle with Truman, had he analyzed them with the same depth he analyzed eastern history and culture.
This biographer, William Manchester has an interesting narrative voice. At times, he waxes poetic. He worships MacArthur, while admitting some flaws. Overall, I never found I could settle into completely trusting him, because of his strong partisan opinions favoring MacArthur. I haven't read his work before, but this could be an excellent device of his -- amidst rousing accounts of hysterical throngs longing to see MacArthur, some even calling him "God" toward the end of his life -- encouraging distrust so that the reader never completely loses himself in this portrait of hero worship.
Great insight into General Douglas MacArthur, in a time when several larger-than-life personalities drive our political scenes. I have a naturally skeptical nature, and growing up hearing that MacArthur was a True Hero and defender of the United States against communism, I was looking forward to a more factual account of the man, his strategies, and the environment in which he operated. There's definitely that in this book: the feeling that things could have gone very differently with somewhat different decisions made, and not always the right ones were.
Particularly MacArthur in the Philippines and Japan was fascinating. That he could so totally understand the culture there and miss the subtle cues from China is baffling. He had a huge ego, but a huge character and charisma to match. He was self-aware enough to realize the need for modesty, and I feel I can relate to that. He was an interesting, complicated man who made a huge mark on history, but was ultimately destroyed because of his inability to work with others. His greatest years could have been after his tussle with Truman, had he analyzed them with the same depth he analyzed eastern history and culture.
This biographer, William Manchester has an interesting narrative voice. At times, he waxes poetic. He worships MacArthur, while admitting some flaws. Overall, I never found I could settle into completely trusting him, because of his strong partisan opinions favoring MacArthur. I haven't read his work before, but this could be an excellent device of his -- amidst rousing accounts of hysterical throngs longing to see MacArthur, some even calling him "God" toward the end of his life -- encouraging distrust so that the reader never completely loses himself in this portrait of hero worship.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Man, oh man, this one took me absolutely FOREVER to get through. A fantastically detailed and exhaustive account of Douglas MacArthur's life and career, from birth to death. A major chunk (as in several hundred pages) are devoted to his military campaigns in the Philippines, the Pacific, and Korea, along with his military governorship of Japan after World War II. Manchester's prose is fantastic and this is definitely a worthwhile read for people with an interest in MacArthur's life and career, but it's quite the commitment.
An epic biography about an larger-than-life hero. Douglas MacArthur was an American hero worthy of honor, especially for his military feats in the Pacific theater (a lesser known theater than the WWII European theater.) MacArthur had many weaknesses which are often overlooked, but Manchester shows the reader both the positive and negative attributes of the man. At times, one does wonder why he quotes some course language from GI's and politicians, especially mixed with messianic language of those who truly worshiped MacArthur and saw him as their worldly Messiah. Christians will not appreciate that occasional annoyance. I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys WWII history, American military biographies, or history in general.
Not quite as good as Chernow's [b:Grant|34237826|Grant|Ron Chernow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1488289288l/34237826._SY75_.jpg|55296448] but still completely epic.
What a time to be alive.
“I will not take by sacrifice what I can achieve by strategy.”
"A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent."
What a time to be alive.
“I will not take by sacrifice what I can achieve by strategy.”
"A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent."
General MacArthur was the last of the Great Men. It's hard to overstate his talents. Number 3 cadet at West Point (of all time. #1 is Robert E. Lee, #2 a nobody from the class of 1884), decorated for valor again and again in WWI, a brilliant and unconventional commander of amphibious warfare in the Philippines, and Proconsul to Japan, where he single-handledly reformed the devasted country into a modern nation. His genius, energy, vision, shaped the world we live in.
And yet, he was a deeply flawed commander, a tragic hero in the sense of the Ancient Greeks. A brilliant attacker, he was caught woefully unprepared three times, bringing his command to the edge of catastrophe. Valuing loyalty above all else in his subordinates, he flouted the orders of his commanders, finally leading to his dismissal in 1951. He was reckless in exposing himself to danger, but his troops mocked him as 'Dugout Dug.' There was not a racist or colonialist bone in his body, yet he wielded immense powers as an unelected potentate in the Philippines and Japan. He performed constantly, building up the persona of the Supreme Commander, not to conceal weakness but because his authentic self was a Victorian romantic deeply out of time in the 20th century.
Manchester captures MacArthur's genius and flaws in this immense, 700 page, century-spanning biography. This is more than a mere military history, Manchester somehow captures the changing spirit of the age and place, in that distant Pacific Rim ruled over by America.
And yet, he was a deeply flawed commander, a tragic hero in the sense of the Ancient Greeks. A brilliant attacker, he was caught woefully unprepared three times, bringing his command to the edge of catastrophe. Valuing loyalty above all else in his subordinates, he flouted the orders of his commanders, finally leading to his dismissal in 1951. He was reckless in exposing himself to danger, but his troops mocked him as 'Dugout Dug.' There was not a racist or colonialist bone in his body, yet he wielded immense powers as an unelected potentate in the Philippines and Japan. He performed constantly, building up the persona of the Supreme Commander, not to conceal weakness but because his authentic self was a Victorian romantic deeply out of time in the 20th century.
Manchester captures MacArthur's genius and flaws in this immense, 700 page, century-spanning biography. This is more than a mere military history, Manchester somehow captures the changing spirit of the age and place, in that distant Pacific Rim ruled over by America.