No comments about Churchill's Bodyguard: The Authorised Biography of Walter H. Thompson.

4 comments about Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur ([Signature series book]).

1. The Gentleman Boss covers the turbulent times of the gilded Age through Chester Arthur's eyes. While being very sympathetic to its subject it nonetheless does a phenomenal job of showing how the political system at the time worked. The book tracks the turmoil's and tribulations of the Gilded Age political system. It looks at the formation of the Republican Party and the various factions that threatened to tear it apart. The reform of the system was conducted by its most ardent and staunch defender. Arthur's presidency was defined by trying to prove he was healthy and competent enough for the highest office in the land and although he did not receive the party nomination to continue he was successful in his term of office. While the usual Gilded Age scandals occurred overall it was a move towards the modern political spectrum and a hint of the reforms to come in the progressive era.
   
   Overall the book was very well written an enjoyable for those who enjoy a good discussion of Gilded Age politics and intrigue.



2. Over the last several years, I've read more than 30 presidential biographies. I would rate Reeves' biography of Chester Arthur in the top ten. Given the subject matter, this is especially noteworthy. It's one thing to write an interesting biography of Teddy Roosevelt. It is something more to write a great book about Chester Arthur. Gentleman Boss is highly readable, well researched, and presents the corruption of the times in detail and in context.
   
   Certainly the post-Civil Wars years were the low point in US politics in terms of the quality of our presidents, the corruption of the elections, and politicians' contemptible disregard for actually addressing any of the problems of the day.
   
   Chester Arthur was probably the most corrupted politician to become President (but most biographies minimize this part of the story - so its often hard to tell). The first two-thirds of Gentleman Boss details Arthur's years prior to his becoming President. He was a spoils man in the New York machine, controlled assessments of public employees, and managed patronage for the Stalwart branch of the Republican Party for more than 20 years. The investigations of the New York customs house and stolen election of 1876 are presented in fascinating detail. As the spoils system got more and more unfavorable press, and various investigations began, Arthur lied again and again. He participated in large vote buying schemes and bragged of this in a famous speech at Delmonico's Restaurant following his election as Vice President. His nomination to be Vice President was an affront to anyone who was interested in cleaning up politics. Even after he was elected Vice President, he worked hard to undermine President Garfield by trying to fix more jobs (and overthrow Garfield appointees in New York).
   
   Arthur was very intelligent and a brilliant organizer. In these regards but almost no other he was well-qualified to be president. The last third of Reeves' book describes Arthur's presidency and his effort to rise above his past and not dishonor the office. This portion of the book seems anti-climatic, but the first 250 pages are not to be missed.



3. He is certainly one of the most obscure Presidents in American history. I enjoy reading about people who achieve high office, fame or fortune, probably because I want to find a link among them that predated their successes. In reading this excellent and very balanced biography, I came away with at least 3 lessons: 1) That blind luck can be the key ingredient in a man's success, for the early life and times of Chester Arthur no more predicted greatness than did those of Harry Truman (Truman, at least, was essentially honorable), 2) that is indeed possible for the Office to make the man, for once he became President, Arthur overcame many of his moral inadequacies, and 3) that for all we complain about American politics today, the state of the State in the late 19th century was more corrupt than most 21st century Americans would ever imagine possible. For these three lessons alone, the book is certainly a worthwhile read.



4. High school history books tell you Chester "Chet" Arthur was a "dandy," a machine politician and an accidental president, but little more. This highly readable, very informative and interesting biography adds much historical flesh to the bare-bones treatment Arthur gets in text books. A man who is all but a caricature to generations of students is made fully human, with all the positives and negatives that entails. And while chronicling the president's life the author also chronicles a fascinating era in American political history, the day when the party bosses ruled and presidential candidates were chosen in smoke-filled rooms and not in state primaries; primaries may be more democratic, but they sure are a lot less interesting to read about. If you enjoy presidential history, add this book to your library.

1 comments about Herbert Hoover: A Public Life (Signature).

1. Perhaps no other president has ascended to our highest office with such impressive credentials as Herbert Hoover. George HW Bush and Richard Nixon arguably were on a par with Hoover as far as experience before becoming Commander in Chief, but Hoover was incredibly well-thought of.
   
   He had served in the cabinet for Woodrow Wilson, and the Harding-Coolidge regime, was an international industrialist, and had collaborated with foreign governments to feed thousands of starving Europeans in Belgium during World War I.
   
   Perhaps had he won his parties nomination in 1920, and the presidency that year, we would now consider him a near great president. Had that happened, he would have presided over eight years of prosperity, built a cabinet for such prosperity, and shown his excellent managerial skills in leading this country.
   
   Fate was not kind to Hoover. He instead presided over an eroding economy, and his rugged individualism ideology was naive in moving the country through the issues faced in the poverty and despair of The Great Depression.
   
   This book traces Hoover's remarkable ascent into the upper echelons of the presidential trust, in advising Wilson, and then presiding over the Roaring 20's boom as Secretary of Commerce. He brought many credible ideas, and showed tremendous mental dexterity and moral rigor in helping steer our economy through one of its greatest decades. He was a wunderkind.
   
   It traces his rise in business, and his international success in China and Europe. His Quaker roots guided his conscientiousness, repaying debts in business, long after reasonable people would have written them off.
   
   He seemed to be taken by surprise by the financial downturn of the country, and although congress and senate seemed to continue to respect him, he was unable to connect with the general populace, and lost its confidence. He was no match for FDR's charisma, and lost the presidency in a landslide in 1932.
   
   Here the book goes sketchy on what might have been the most interesting part of Hoover's journey, his struggles upon leaving the White House.
   
   He lived thirty one years after his presidency, longer than any other president to date (Jimmy Carter will soon be knocking on that door, and the parallels between the two are apparent).
   
   Hoover was a forgotten and bitter man during the FDR presidency, but Harry Truman put him to work. There is a touching story told by Truman in the Biography by Merle Miller of the Missourian's deference to the former Commander, and Hoover's embarrassed emotion at this gesture. Hoover did some great public service from 1947 until the mid 1950's, and once again was a respected and venerated elder statesman.
   
   Hoover was clearly a great man, a brilliant engineer, and an individual of strong character. His story may be told as a Greek tragedy, but here it is not. It is told in a dry, if scholarly fashion.
   
   It is a solid chronicle of the man's life and presidency, but some day, perhaps it will be told in the more colorful manner that it deserves.

5 comments about Millard Fillmore: Biography of a President (Signature Series).

1. the name millard fillmore often is used as part of a joke. however this biography shows that this obscure president actually helped postpone the civil war and may have been one of our most effective presidents. the book also gives an interesting backround to the civil war and the beginnings of the republican party. it was a suprisingly good read .



2. I am currently reading a biography of every President in order. For Millard Fillmore the selection of Rayback's (amazon.com has spelling incrrect) one volume biography of our thirteenth President was an easy choice given the lack of alternatives and the positive reviews this book has received from other readers.
   
   I am happy to say that I concur regarding the quality of this book. Rayback has written a comprehensive and interesting biography of Millard Fillmore that is a highly enjoyable read. Rayback get's the detail level just right and succeed's at painting a thorough portrait of Millard Fillmore's life, political career, and the times and issues in which he lived. The writing style is very readable and rarely does the book get dull.
   
   The only criticism I have regarding this book is that it does seem to be slightly biased in favor of Fillmore and makes some assumptions regarding Fillmore's inner feelings and thoughts on certain events for which I am quite sure the author would be hard pressed to find definitive documentation. The book also portrays Fillmore as always being selfless, good intentioned and often a victim of his own magnaminity while his enemies (namely Thurlow Weed and William Seward) were motivated only by the pursuit of political power. My suspicion is the story is not quite as one sided as this but Rayback, in my opinion, does not adequately explain fully the motivations behind Weed's enmity towards Fillmore. My guess is Weed's abolitionism and sectionalism was at odds with Fillmore's more pragmatic opposition to slavery and conviction of the primacy of preserving the Union. With the hindsight of history I believe good points can be argued about both positions however Rayback defaults to Fillmore's point of view.
   
   These criticisms aside, this is still a great biography and highly recommended.



3. An excellent biography of a little known President. I was pleasantly surprised to find a well written and articulated biography. I think Robert Raybach, did a thorough job in his research and it shows in the detail of his writing. Millard Fillmore, is a better President then some of those who proceeded him and who immediately followed after him. His integrity was beyond reproach and he was a self made man. He was a pragmatist where as his successor treated the white house as a waffle house instead of with the same courage as Millard Fillmore. I highly recommend this biography to anyone who wishes to become more familiar with the 13th President of the United States. This biography should be in every high school and college and university across the country.



4. Like many other students of history, I'm reading a biography of each president. Fillmore's life and the events of his day are laid out more clearly than any other author I've read so far. I learned (should I say 'understood') more from this reading than all the others. Highly recommended.



5. This book narrates the life of Millard Fillmore through the lens of Unionism and the formation of the many political parties in which he was involved (Antimasonic, Whig, American [aka Know-Nothing]) or to which he was opposed (Liberty, Free Soil, Republican). Fillmore's dedication to the Union, especially in passing and implementing the Compromise of 1850, is well told. This book also serves to explain the rise and fall of a number of lesser known American political parties.
   
   The book is well-written--one of the better ones, perhaps the best, in this series of American political biographies. It was one of the last written. The author relies on letters to Fillmore as one of the main sources, since his own letters are mostly missing. Generally the author is fair and balanced, although he portrays the struggle between Fillmore and Thurlow Weed rather naively as the battle between Good and Evil. He also brushes over Fillmore's willingness to allow slavery to exist as the price for preserving the Union--an opinion that was common at the start of Fillmore's career but increasingly anathema by the end of it.
   
   The review on the dust jacket, quoted on this item's Amazon page, written by Roy Nichols, is manifestly unfair to the book and to Fillmore. The author is not nearly so naive as Nichols makes him out to be, and Fillmore, while not a great president, was not nearly the mediocrity and indecisive man as Nichols portrays him. Read the book (it's worth it) but not the dust jacket!

2 comments about Theodore Roosevelt: Preacher of Righteousness.

1. This is an excellent book that addresses an area of history that has not been seriously studied to date. Any serious reader of American history and political science, and American presidents in particular, will enjoy it.



2. The book is more technical than I had anticipated. More appropriate for "scholars" not someone who enjoys reading as a hobby.

4 comments about Speaking My Mind: Selected Speeches.

1. These were Ronald Reagan's best speeches. He selected them himself, not those a revisionist would impose. They are his most important speeches: his first inaugural when he warned that "Government isn't the solution...government is the problem!" His CPAC speeches including the landmark, March 1981 address. The Evil Empire address and his farewell address from the Oval Office. This is vintage Ronald Reagan.



2. Out of all of the Reaganalia in print, this one is the Reagan Bible. If you are curious about what he thought, where he stood, or why every Republican candidate since 2004 has claimed his mantle, then get this book.
   
   All of the beloved speeches--which sometimes feel like motivational sermons, celebrations of the American Spirit--are here:
   
   * "The Speech" aka "A Time For Choosing" This is the speech for Barry Goldwater that launched Reagan's political career.
   * Selected radio addresses.
   * Both inaugural addresses, plus his farewell address.
   * "The Evil Empire" speech.
   * The D-Day/Rangers Monument Speeches.
   * The Challenger Speech.
   * The rededication of the Statue of Liberty.
   * The Q and A session at Moscow State University.
   * A selection of witty and wise quotes.
   
   This book's strength is that it was selected by the Gipper himself, so this is essentially "Reagan on Reagan," or what he thought was important. In this aspect, "Speaking My Mind" outstrips its only rival Reagan, In His Own Hand: The Writings of Ronald Reagan That Reveal His Revolutionary Vision for America. To be sure, I recommend both books, but the former has an edge over the latter.
   
   In addition to providing the key intellectual cornerstones of his though, I found this book helpful for establishing a Reagan chronology. Lou Cannon's quasi-official biographies Ronald Reagan: A Life in Politics has chapters that revolves around (and therefore emphasizes) Reagan's shortcomings. This book, on the other hand, highlights the high points of his life. Between the two, you get a depth perception that each one lacks. "By proving contraries, the truth is made manifest."
   
   Take this book, then, as the main standard work on both Reagan and Reaganism. In Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan, Edmund Morris passes Reagan off as an enigma. Not so!--he was an open book. Open this book, and see what I mean.



3. This book is a selection of speeches that Ronald W. Reagan did since the fifties until he finished leadering the United States of America in 1989.
   Here you can see how America was in the eighties and the challenges that americans had to face.
   I think Ronald Reagan is one of the most importart people in the 20th century.
   
   Es una pena que no se dinponga de ninguna biografía ni de ninguna selección de discursos de Ronald Reagan en español.



4. This is the first book dedicated specifically to Ronald Reagan I've read, and I'm glad it was one Mr. Reagan himself put together. I freely admit I admire Mr. Reagan very much for not only his political principles, but also his wit and his way with words.
   
   Here in "Speaking My Mind" we get to see how Mr. Reagan wants us to remember him. He is truly "The Great Communicator". The speeches he includes shows his sense of self-deprecating humor, his ability to good-naturedly rip his opponents to shreds, his compassion, and his unwavering dedication to conservative economic principles, not to mention democracy and individual liberty.
   
   Naturally such an autobiographical work may tend to be one-sided, but Mr. Reagan doesn't shy away from the politically devastating Iran-Contra scandal; He included his address to the American people taking responsibility for the wrongdoings of his administration.
   
   I recommend "Speaking My Mind" to those interested in learning about Ronald Reagan as only the man himself can teach.

No comments about The Meaning of Independence: John Adams, George Washington, And Thomas Jefferson (Richard Lectures for 1975, University of Virginia).

1 comments about Lincoln: The Presidential Archives.

1. Lincoln: The Presidential Archives, Chuck Wills, Dorling Kindersley Publications, 160 pp, b/w photographs, watercolor maps, bibliography, ephemera, September 2007.
   
   If you wish to hold reproductions of Lincoln's elementary mathematics notebook, the Lincoln-Todd marriage license, Lincoln's letter to Sheilds outlining the terms of their forthcoming duel, Lincoln's patent application, the first piece of mail delivered by the Pony Express from St. Joseph, Missouri to Julesburg, Rocky Mountains, Mary Todd Lincoln's letter from NYC to her husband in which she asks for more cash, the telegram from Tammany Hall to Lincoln informing him of the Draft Riots and many more documents, then this splendid book is for you.
   
   Not just a collection of paper documents, but also a fine biography with period photographs, maps, and illustrations on every other page, Lincoln: The Presidential Archives, is a wonderful book. In particular, rare photographs of Denton Offut's store where Lincoln clerked, the Lincoln and Berry store, and the Edwards' house in which the Abraham and Mary were wed are published.
   
   The book's heavy and glossy paper and a strong binding allows the book to stay open at every page. Lincoln: The Presidential Archives is both an attractive coffee table book and a 'hands-on' biography. The narrative contents are well organized and the eight sturdy, opaque, full-page envelopes that hold the reproductions have a paper flap that allows for easy removal and return of the reproduction documents.
   
   Lincoln: The Presidential Archives is worth every penny and will be a welcomed gift for any Lincoln enthusiast, Civil War buff, American history reader or social science teacher.

3 comments about Hugo Chavez: The Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President.

1. this was an interesting biography. the first half of the book does get too involved with names, places, and dates; making it seem like technical reading. however, it does give the impression of an honest attempt to not only portray the man, but to also ponder the question of which way he's taking the country. the authors of the book seem somewhat comfortable with the view that what he says is popularist propaganda in an artistic sense. what hugo does - lives exhorbantly, travels in a giant airbus plane, nepotism for his entire family - leads to the conclusion that the attractions of power and wealth have truly taken over. his friend may be fidel castro, but unlike fidel, he likes money - a whole lot!



2. I bought this book for information for a twenty page college paper on Hugo Chavez, largely on the reccomendation of The Economist. This book was extremely helpful in providing me with an insight into Chavez's personality and potential motives. What I found most interesting was that it demolished the notion of an oil-intoxicated buffoon and replaced it with a shrewd, calculating leader who has mastered the art of theatrics for his own purposes. The authors make a strong case for regarding none of the contreversial president's actions as accidental or the rantings of a madman without sounding like conspiracy types. That being said, they also show a man with a highly unstable personality: volitile, manic,insecure, and in desperate need of affection. Chavez, by their telling, seems to be the product of a brilliant madness, one that produces a control freak who very well knows how to gain the control he needs. The book does not make this argument as carelessly as some; it draws extensively from interviews with those who knew him from childhood, or met him in the army, or through politics. The effect is that the anecdotes vividly potray the transformation from the poor llanero to the conteversial president bashing the rich while dressed in fine Italian suits. As has been stated by a previous reviewer, the book is not a political analysis, but understanding Chavez is crucial to understanding his politics. There is, for him, little seperation between personality and politics. I highly reccomend this book to anyone seeking an in-depth potrayel of the Venezuelan president.



3. This book has been described as an unbiased look at Hugo Chavez but in my opinion it doesn't quite live up to that description. The Authors' Note touches upon the difficulty of such an endeavor, quoting Georg Lichtenberg from the 18th century: "Even impartiality is partial." My impression is that the authors recognized a need for change in Venezuela in the 1990s -- and may even have had sympathy for such change -- but they don't believe Hugo Chavez is the proper man to lead the nation forward.
   
   The authors' overriding point seems to be that Chavez is power mad, driven by an unquenchable desire for ever more power. An example: "He was the man of the hour and he enjoyed it, though he never lost sight of his real goal: power and everything that went with it." But it would be the rare political leader for whom this claim could not be made, especially one seeking such a major shakeup as Chavez. And while there is little doubt that Chavez enjoys being in the spotlight, it's also true that his antics bring worldwide attention to issues he feels need to be addressed. At another point in the book, the authors relate an unflattering personal incident then add, "All of this, however, remains in the murky terrain of speculation," as if the incident was too juicy to leave out, even though it was perhaps unfounded.
   
   Having said that, the bias I perceived did not much interfere with the book. For one thing, not all of Chavez's life story is admirable, such as the years spent plotting the failed 1992 coup while serving in the the military. As you are perhaps aware, in an odd turn of fate, this failed coup -- or more accurately, the televised "for now" speech given after his surrender -- turned Chavez into a folk hero and served as the springboard to his future political success.
   
   It is important to note that the book is much more a personal biography of Chavez than it is an analysis of his policy initiatives. Some of the most interesting information is from his childhood. One incident regarding his first day of school stands out: He and his grandmother were turned away from the schoolhouse because the boy's shoes were too shabby. Such an event leaves a lasting impression and helps explain Chavez's bonds to the nation's poor. As he grew older, Chavez became a voracious reader and read many books from the political left, these books being readily available at the home of two of his friends.
   
   While roughly the first half of the book is chronological, the chapters in the second half are topic oriented, such as the one devoted to Chavez's relationships with women. The departure from chronology is not much of a problem, but it did distract me earlier in the book when his second wife, Marisabel, was mentioned in passing, then mentioned again as an ex-wife -- all before she'd been introduced to the reader. I was suprised so little was written about the actual campaign leading up to the 1998 presidential election. We read that Chavez is polling at only 7% and then, before you know it, he is being sworn into office, his support having somehow risen to 56%. The 2002 coup attempt was of course covered, and here I felt the authors were quite successful in describing it with impartiality.
   
   This book was originally written in Spanish by the two Venezuelan journalists in 2004, updated in December 2006, and translated into English in 2007. It is packed with interesting quotes about Chavez from friends, foes, and family, and the authors took great pains to point out the quotees' biases toward Chavez, often using descriptive phrases such as "friend of Chavez" or "opponent of the Chavez government." The authors also did a nice job selecting the 30+ photos included in the book.
   
   All in all, the authors did a good job of covering Chavez, and I liked the fact that they were Venezuelan and lived through the times and events described in the book.

5 comments about Old Tippecanoe: William Henry Harrison and His Time (Signature Series).

1. Despite the memorable slogan "Tippecanoe and Tyler too" and the thirty-day presidency that will forever guarantee him immortality with those who love lists, William Henry Harrison's real importance lies in his service as first Governor of Indiana Territory and as Commander in Chief of the Army of the Northwest during the War of 1812. This well-researched (despite a few inevitable errors) book does a good job of explaining Harrison's contributions in both roles. Possibly Harrison's principal "legacy," if that is the word, was the negotiated removal of the Indian tribes from much of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. Cleaves does a good job, borne out by my own reading of the surviving documents, in showing how genuinely sympathetic Harrison was to the plight of the tribes, without, however, ever succumbing to the modern temptation to romanticize them. Harrison was solicitous of the safety of friendly Indians, strove to ensure that his soldiers showed mercy to defeated enemies, and if there was anything that especially filled him with fury, it was the refusal of white juries to convict white murderers of Indians, whatever the evidence. Harrison was a hard negotiator, but, with the possible exception of an 1804 treaty at St. Louis made with some bewildered and unrepresentative Sauks, a fair one by the standards of the times. Cleaves makes the point, striking if true, that midwestern Indians who knew Harrison mourned his death soon after his succession to the presidency, since they believed that he would be a "Great Father" whose word could be trusted. Coming so soon after the brutal Indian removal policies of Andrew Jackson, this hope may have been a reasonable one. Harrison paid for what he bought, and always prided himself on never having broken his word to the Indians. As a general, Harrison comes across as courageous but cautious, and Cleaves does a good job of describing the now almost unimaginable difficulties of terrain, weather, communications, and supply that bogged down Harrison's counter-offensive in northwestern Ohio during the last months of 1812. Harrison is universally admitted to have been loved and trusted by the soldiers who served under him, and his genuine concern for their welfare led him to devote a much higher proportion of his time to keeping them fed than to leading them onto glory, causing delays that subjected the General to much criticism in the overheated and scurrilous partisan politics of the time. Harrison forever proved his courage in the hour of danger at Tippecanoe, when his camp was overrun just before dawn by attacking Indians, and the General moved calmly throughout the entire battlefield, rallying a still half-sleeping army and doing all that was needed to turn a potential massacre into a battle that was drawn at worst. The men who served under him in the Tippecanoe fight never forgot his heroism that day. Other reviews correctly note that Cleaves does not delve very deeply into Harrison's inner life, and the book is marked, for better or worse, by a refreshing absence of the speculative psycho-babble that disfigures so many modern biograhies. Cleaves adopts the more old-fashioned, but perhaps more honest, course of letting the man be known by his deeds. Of the writing, let it only be said that Cleaves was no Macaulay: sentence fragments and run-on sentences abound. Nevertheless, he has an exciting story to tell about a crucial but forgotten era and the patient reader will learn even more about the times in which Harrison lived than about the General himself.



2. Verbose, cumbersome, and hardly readable. Cleaves, like many authors of this period, must have felt compelled to overwrite this work so that it would appear "scholarly" to his contemporary readers. We have a new name for it in the 21st century: Bad. He repeatedly makes reference to characters not previously introduced. After page 200 or so he frequently lapses into what can best be described as listing, in no particular order, strings of otherwise unrelated facts. The only reason to read this book is that there are few if any complete biographies of Harrison's life available, so we must do with what we have. I can only hope that someone will produce a well written treatment of this very interesting figure in the future.



3. Too much info? For those that want a favorable review of Harrison's exploits as a military commander in the War of 1812 and Indiana Territory governship, this text is for you. For a more summary review, and a concentration on the presidency, look elsewhere. Cleaves falls short in providing real personal insight, and in defining political impact of the Jacksonian continuance of the Harrison era. Not an easy read, and not as thought-provoking as one would hope.



4. As others have said, this is about all that there is as a biography regarding WH Harrison. I found the style to be easy to read and while the accounts of Harrison's military experiences go into a lot of detail, the author keeps them interesting. I highly recommend this as a presidential biography of our shortest term President.



5. I am currently reading a bio of every President in order. With the more obscure Presidents of the antebellum era, the task of finding a quality biography becomes a bit more difficult. For William Henry Harrison the choice is extremely easy, as I believe Freeman Cleaves' bio is the only non-juvenile one readily available (a new book about Harrison will be available in October called "Mr. Jefferson's Hammer", although it does not appear to be a full biography).
   
   With my task of selection made simple, I am pleased to say that Cleaves' biography is fully satisfactory and is recommendable beyond the fact that it has a monopoly on the subject. Freeman's biography of Harrison is easy to read, well organized, and is as comprehensive and detailed as I believe most readers will desire.
   
   Given that Harrison's Presidency lasted only a month, from the outset of this book I was concerned that I may not learn too much new information about American History. Thankfully, most of this book is dedicated to Harrison's life in Ohio and Indiana and I learned much about frontier life of the early nineteenth century, America's relationship and conflicts with the northwest Indian tribes, and the northern campaigns of the War of 1812 which had not been previously covered in other Presidential biographies that I have read.
   
   While Cleaves' bio is not exceptional enough to merit five stars, it is more than adequate for its task and exceeds reasonable expectations of a biography about an obscure President. I strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in presidential biography or early nineteenth century American and Native American history.