American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964
American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964
by William Manchester - A review
It is not often that we find ourselves side by side with living, breathing, larger than life individuals. Rare among reading experiences, ‘’American Caesar,’’ William Manchester’s classic biography of Douglas MacArthur, carries you into the soul of a man who, despite glaring faults of character, embodied greatness. I closed this book sad at no longer being in the company of a man I’d grown to love, no longer having the pleasure of discovering the endless variety of his talents, the stories of breathtaking bravery, daring, and out of the box thinking, the presence of iconoclastic genius. I sat a while in awe, and with profound gratitude for a soaring experience.
William Manchester has the talents of a fine novelist, and not one page, or even one sentence of his towering biography seems expendable. The most decorated American soldier of World War 1, brilliant strategist of the Pacific war, liberator of the Phillipines, conqueror of Japan and then its visionary governor and author of its transformative Constitution, statesman and presidential contender, MacArthur was an incredibly charismatic and disturbingly controversial figure whose stunning intellect, undaunted spirit and irrepressible ego brought momentous victories, as well as tragic blunders.
Near the end of his life, he wrote, ‘’People grow old only by deserting their ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul….You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair. In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer and courage, so long are you young. When your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then and then only are you grown old — and then, indeed, as the ballad says, you just fade away.’’
‘’American Caesar’’ is not just an enthralling read, it is an event in your life. A 700 page bestseller for years after it was first published in 1978, the book is as thrilling and timely today as if it were just published, and as true and vivid a picture of this pivotal world figure as we’ll ever have. That over used word, ‘’monumental,’’ is truly appropriate here. Be prepared for a startling, deepening experience.
richflandersmusic.com
by William Manchester - A review
It is not often that we find ourselves side by side with living, breathing, larger than life individuals. Rare among reading experiences, ‘’American Caesar,’’ William Manchester’s classic biography of Douglas MacArthur, carries you into the soul of a man who, despite glaring faults of character, embodied greatness. I closed this book sad at no longer being in the company of a man I’d grown to love, no longer having the pleasure of discovering the endless variety of his talents, the stories of breathtaking bravery, daring, and out of the box thinking, the presence of iconoclastic genius. I sat a while in awe, and with profound gratitude for a soaring experience.
William Manchester has the talents of a fine novelist, and not one page, or even one sentence of his towering biography seems expendable. The most decorated American soldier of World War 1, brilliant strategist of the Pacific war, liberator of the Phillipines, conqueror of Japan and then its visionary governor and author of its transformative Constitution, statesman and presidential contender, MacArthur was an incredibly charismatic and disturbingly controversial figure whose stunning intellect, undaunted spirit and irrepressible ego brought momentous victories, as well as tragic blunders.
Near the end of his life, he wrote, ‘’People grow old only by deserting their ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul….You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair. In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer and courage, so long are you young. When your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then and then only are you grown old — and then, indeed, as the ballad says, you just fade away.’’
‘’American Caesar’’ is not just an enthralling read, it is an event in your life. A 700 page bestseller for years after it was first published in 1978, the book is as thrilling and timely today as if it were just published, and as true and vivid a picture of this pivotal world figure as we’ll ever have. That over used word, ‘’monumental,’’ is truly appropriate here. Be prepared for a startling, deepening experience.
richflandersmusic.com
No comments have been added yet.
