Do you love political face-offs, Teddy bears, and people who concern themselves, in making life changing decisions with a "still, small voice"? If so, you will probably enjoy Theodore Rex.
President Theodore Roosevelt was a progressive Republican. This biography which focuses solely on his presidency captures clips of his passionate spirit. While he did hunt, take great effort to preserve natural lands by federal powers, and even send the country's navy around the world in a show of power, his unique spirit for engaging in negotiations/diplomacy stands out in this book. Under his presidency the Panama Canal was constructed and Booker T Washington was invited to the White House for a private meeting with the President. He also received the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating an end to the Russo-Japanese war. These are just the tips of the ice berg of his robust presidency.
I admit, I think this is one wonderful account of politics. President Roosevelt took office because of the assassination of his predecessor but was reelected and during his time was very popular. He was tempted to run for a third term but listened to a "still, small voice".
This book is the second in a series by Edmund Morris, the first of which, The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (1979), won the Pulitzer Prize. I am hoping to go back and read that at some point. Theodore Rex was released in 2001 and Colonel Roosevelt was released in 2010.
1 comment:
please bring this book home for thanksgiving! i meant to steal it from you when we visited. i'll give you a dollar if you let me read your copy! (i especially like to borrow books that the previous reader has underlined with his favorite parts.)
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