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A review by amarj33t_5ingh
Leadership: In Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin
4.0
Goodwin's approach to the age old question-how leaders are made?- is quite creative given that out of a plethora of American Presidencies she elects four of the most dynamic incumbencies. Her focus is on Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt Jr., Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson. The last three are interconnected by family (the Roosevelts) and proximity (D. Roosevelt and Johnson) with Lincoln the odd one out. I believe that her selection criteria was based on the times rather than these leaders' response to those times. Lincoln confronted disunion and war; Roosevelt Jr. commercial monopoly; D. Roosevelt Economic Depression and WWII while Johnson tackled the tendentious issue of Civil Rights.
Goodwin narrates the various crisis's these Presidents confronted and their ultimate response to them. This response decided their depth of character and profundity of intelligence. Their claim to leadership was evinced in how they tackled the conflict staring them in the face. Lincoln adopted the iron fist in velvet glove stratagem; Theodore pushed through with his strategy of being the center of affairs; Franklin assiduously disassociated his administration from the past and embarked on breaking new ground while Johnson silently operated from the shadows and triumphed with his Quid pro Quo and Show not Tell policy. The hallmark of all four Presidencies was that their holders succeeded in what they set out to do. Lincoln preserved the Union; Roosevelt Jr. upended corruption; Franklin Roosevelt restored fiscal stability and outproduced the Axis while Johnson pushed through the Civil Rights Bill.
This book, in contrast to 'A Team of Rivals', is free of jargon and retains an unique flow which prevents it from becoming a tedious bore. The prose is handsome, to say the least, with the downside being the almost anti-climatic conclusion of the book. The most pertinent question though is that does Doris effectively answer what makes a leader? And here is a glaring failure, not clearly enough. Otherwise, this is an excellent book regards historic reference.
Goodwin narrates the various crisis's these Presidents confronted and their ultimate response to them. This response decided their depth of character and profundity of intelligence. Their claim to leadership was evinced in how they tackled the conflict staring them in the face. Lincoln adopted the iron fist in velvet glove stratagem; Theodore pushed through with his strategy of being the center of affairs; Franklin assiduously disassociated his administration from the past and embarked on breaking new ground while Johnson silently operated from the shadows and triumphed with his Quid pro Quo and Show not Tell policy. The hallmark of all four Presidencies was that their holders succeeded in what they set out to do. Lincoln preserved the Union; Roosevelt Jr. upended corruption; Franklin Roosevelt restored fiscal stability and outproduced the Axis while Johnson pushed through the Civil Rights Bill.
This book, in contrast to 'A Team of Rivals', is free of jargon and retains an unique flow which prevents it from becoming a tedious bore. The prose is handsome, to say the least, with the downside being the almost anti-climatic conclusion of the book. The most pertinent question though is that does Doris effectively answer what makes a leader? And here is a glaring failure, not clearly enough. Otherwise, this is an excellent book regards historic reference.