Harry S. Truman: The American Presidents Series: The 33rd President, 1945-1953 (The American Presidents Series)
by Robert Dallek
Book Summary Information
Author: Robert DallekEditor: Arthur M. Schlesinger
Editor: Sean Wilentz
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-09-02
ISBN: 0805069380
Number of pages: 208
Publisher: Times Books
Book Reviews of Harry S. Truman: The American Presidents Series: The 33rd President, 1945-1953 (The American Presidents Series)
Book Review: Nice brief bio of Harry Truman
Summary: 4 Stars
Harry S. Truman's life story in a short, accessible biography. That's the premise of The American Presidents Series, and this is one of the most recent entrants in the stable. The late Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. was the series editor. In his introduction to each book in this series, he says (Page xvi): "The men in the White House express the ideals and values, the frailties and the flaws, of the voters who send them there. It is altogether natural that we should want to know more about the virtues and the vices of the fellows we have elected to govern us. As we know more about them, we will know more about themselves."
The book begins by noting that, traditionally, the 20th century presidents deemed to be great or near great include: Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Harry Truman. The "Preludes" section notes that (Page 1): "On the face of things, Truman's high standing is surprising. . . . Truman was notable for his ordinariness."
The book begins with his family background, his early years, his service in World War I, his early (failed) effort at a haberdashery business, and his decision to move into public life. The book well describes his moral dilemmas at one point: the corrupt Pendergast organization was willing to sponsor him for elective office. What would he do? Eschew the support of the machine? Or use its support and still try to stay clean? He did the latter and his political career began. By the way, to give a sense of The American Presidents' series, we come to see how and why FDR selected Truman as his Vice-Presidential partner by page 15!
Truman's time in the White House. . . . We see him reflecting on whether or not to use the atomic weaponry against Japan. We see him trying to adjust to the Post-World War II Cold War/Iron Curtain era. We see him trying to navigate between left and right in domestic politics, and sometimes seeming to drift. One intriguing line (Page 37): "And yet Truman was disinclined to confront the country with the emerging dangers he saw from Soviet aggression. . . ." This is a subtheme of the book, with the author, Robert Dallek, noting that on a number of occasions, Truman seemed to back off confronting difficult issues. It creates, in fact, a tension within this volume between the author commenting that Truman warranted his high rating by historians and then noting his occasional avoiding tough issues.
The story of his unexpected victory in 1948 over Thomas Dewey, the Berlin Airlift, the Korean War, and his rapidly deteriorating public approval. . . . It's all here, including his active post-presidential career.
A very nice brief introduction to Henry Truman. This book has motivated me to consider buying one of the larger biographies of the subject and exploring his life more deeply. . . .
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