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kathlgpa's review against another edition
4.0
This was very in-depth. I don't think it is something casual readers would want but I am committed. I think I enjoyed the first book, [b:The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt|40929|The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt|Edmund Morris|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1586402749l/40929._SY75_.jpg|40514],more as it documented his life and career up to his presidency. I'm not sure why I didn't enjoy this one as much.
I did enjoy some of the parts of his presidency such as his conservation of natural resources. Of course I enjoyed reading about the Panama Canal and Russo-Japan war, but the almost war with Britain and Germany in the Atlantic was something I had never heard of. I also learned of the more upsetting Brownsville Affair.
In a few years when I have the mental endurance again I will read the third book about his post-presidency life.
But in general I think a one book more general biography would be more enjoyable. I'm looking forward to both [b:Lion in the White House: A Life of Theodore Roosevelt|1970527|Lion in the White House A Life of Theodore Roosevelt|Aida D. Donald|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1191088526l/1970527._SY75_.jpg|1973751] and [b:The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey|78508|The River of Doubt Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey|Candice Millard|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1430014768l/78508._SY75_.jpg|980007] to read at some point in the future.
I did enjoy some of the parts of his presidency such as his conservation of natural resources. Of course I enjoyed reading about the Panama Canal and Russo-Japan war, but the almost war with Britain and Germany in the Atlantic was something I had never heard of. I also learned of the more upsetting Brownsville Affair.
In a few years when I have the mental endurance again I will read the third book about his post-presidency life.
But in general I think a one book more general biography would be more enjoyable. I'm looking forward to both [b:Lion in the White House: A Life of Theodore Roosevelt|1970527|Lion in the White House A Life of Theodore Roosevelt|Aida D. Donald|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1191088526l/1970527._SY75_.jpg|1973751] and [b:The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey|78508|The River of Doubt Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey|Candice Millard|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1430014768l/78508._SY75_.jpg|980007] to read at some point in the future.
titleswithtess's review against another edition
Possible I will return to this! Just very dense for my intended light reading purposes.
sarahanne8382's review against another edition
4.0
Theodore Roosevelt is officially my favorite President and Morris's biography was a thorough and engaging look into his Presidency.
spitzig's review against another edition
5.0
Great. Both the book and the man. Show Roosevelt as President.
tomrrandall's review against another edition
4.0
Very good, but seemed more heavily focused on TR's foreign policy achievements, at the expense of the domestic. Maybe this is an accurate picture, but I suspect it has more to do with the author's interests.
lspargo's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed this book. Roosevelt is such a character, and Morris is an excellent writer. I liked his first book better, just because Roosevelt had so many adventures before he became president. Looking forward to reading about some post presidency adventures.
papidoc's review against another edition
5.0
Covers the presidential years of TR's life, and is as wonderfully written and researched as the first in the biographical set. We see the man that came from the boy, the philosophies, internal contradictions, energies, and actions as they emerged from the formative years and experiences of the young TR. Most of all, we see him with all his strengths and weaknesses, and despite some momentous mistakes and blindnesses (of the heart, not the eye, though the latter came as well), we see him as the great leader he was.
bupdaddy's review against another edition
4.0
I loved reading this book. I felt good reading about Teddy Roosevelt's administration, and he was a great guy, and I was a great guy for going to the trouble of reading about him, doing my American duty to not be quite as ignorant as everyone says Americans are.
Having said that, and also recognizing this is 555 pages about 7.5 years (it covers nothing but his presidency, starting with his learning about McKinley's death, and ending with him boarding a train the day of Taft's inauguration), it feels a little lightweight. Of course, the guy who writes a book about his presidency is a guy who loves him, and he was one of the best presidents. But I still felt like the feel-good got laid on a tiny bit thick.
Nothing grotesque, mind you. No falsehoods, no falling over with apologia for the fact that Roosevelt sometimes thought he was bigger than the constitution. It was just certain word choices. You know how you can "say" or "proclaim" or "sneer" or "intone" or "bloviate" or "lecture" or "beguile" a bit of dialog, depending on whether the person writing about what you said likes you, and how much? And you can't really claim the writer was lying unless you were misquoted, and you look kind of whiny going "I didn't bloviate! I was very reasonable!" Roosevelt gets to proclaim, beguile, deliver perorations, while his senatorial adversaries sneer and bloviate. Nobody likes a bloviator.
Carefully researched (over a hundred pages of end-notes) and eminently readable, this book is great if the takeaway you're looking for is nothing more than, "Chee! Wotta good egg that Mr. Roosevelt was!"
Having said that, and also recognizing this is 555 pages about 7.5 years (it covers nothing but his presidency, starting with his learning about McKinley's death, and ending with him boarding a train the day of Taft's inauguration), it feels a little lightweight. Of course, the guy who writes a book about his presidency is a guy who loves him, and he was one of the best presidents. But I still felt like the feel-good got laid on a tiny bit thick.
Nothing grotesque, mind you. No falsehoods, no falling over with apologia for the fact that Roosevelt sometimes thought he was bigger than the constitution. It was just certain word choices. You know how you can "say" or "proclaim" or "sneer" or "intone" or "bloviate" or "lecture" or "beguile" a bit of dialog, depending on whether the person writing about what you said likes you, and how much? And you can't really claim the writer was lying unless you were misquoted, and you look kind of whiny going "I didn't bloviate! I was very reasonable!" Roosevelt gets to proclaim, beguile, deliver perorations, while his senatorial adversaries sneer and bloviate. Nobody likes a bloviator.
Carefully researched (over a hundred pages of end-notes) and eminently readable, this book is great if the takeaway you're looking for is nothing more than, "Chee! Wotta good egg that Mr. Roosevelt was!"