The Highest Calling: Conversations on the American Presidency

by David M. Rubenstein

From the New York Times bestselling author of The American Story and How to Lead and host of PBS’s History with David Rubenstein—David Rubenstein interviews living American presidents and top historians who reflect on the US presidency, including Joe Biden, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Maggie Haberman, Jon Meacham, Ron Chernow, and more.For years, New York Times bestselling author David M. Rubenstein has distilled the contours of American democracy through conversations with noted leaders and historians. In The Highest Calling, he offers an enlightening overview of arguably the single most important position in the the American presidency. Blending history and anecdote, Rubenstein chronicles the journeys of the presidents who have defined America as it exists now, what they envision for its future, and their legacy on the world stage. Drawing from his own experience in the Carter administration, he engages in dialogues with our nation’s presidents and the historians who study them. Get exclusive access to fresh perspectives, -Original interviews with most of the living US presidents -Interviews with noted presidential historians like Jon Meacham, Annette Gordon-Reed, Ron Chernow, Candice Millard, and more -An original poll on the best and worst presidents Through insightful analysis, Rubenstein captures our country’s most prominent leaders, the political genius and frays of the presidential role, and the wisdom that emerges from it.

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction, Presidents, American History, Biography, Audiobook

496 pages, Hardcover

First published September 10, 2024

About the author

David Mark Rubenstein is an American billionaire lawyer, businessman, investor, philanthropist and sports team owner. A former government official, he is a co-founder and co-chairman of the private equity firm The Carlyle Group, a global private equity investment company based in Washington, D.C. Additionally, he is the owner of the Baltimore Orioles.

Reviews

[Dave Suiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the American Presidency and how its leaders have shaped the nation. David M. Rubenstein interviews historians who have devoted much of their lives to studying the Presidents they write about, offering readers a unique, humanizing perspective on these historical figures. The book strikes a largely apolitical tone, exploring both the achievements and challenges of each presidency. It’s an inspiring read that will make you want to dive deeper into the books discussed and learn even more about these fascinating leaders.

[Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A set of interesting interviews on the demeanor, background, and personality of American Presidents. Told from historians who intimately studied the individual or from the President themselves (George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, etc). I enjoyed getting to learn about each one’s unique personalities that shaped their decision making and it has certainly inspired further reading on many of our former Presidents.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This probably works better as an audiobook rather than a print book. This is definitely an oral history with a series of interviews with presidential historians or with the presidents themselves. Starting with George Washington and ending with Joe Biden, each chapter focuses on a particular president and how that president approached the office. Rubenstein asks questions, but then gets out of the way while the interviewee answers. There's no real analysis from Rubenstein, except for the conclusion, and even then it's more about the office of the president rather than about any of the actual presidents themselves.

Not every president is covered, but it's not necessarily just the more well-known or popular presidents. Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, FDR, and JFK are covered, but also Grant, Garfield, Wilson, Coolidge, which I found refreshing. Every president since Nixon (with the exception of Reagan) also has a chapter. Rubenstein also includes actual interviews with Bill Clinton (with Hilary), George W Bush, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden.

It's an interesting mix. None of the interviews are particularly in-depth and some end abruptly or on an odd note. Each chapter is made up of a short intro (or in Carter's case a long one since Rubenstein was a staffer for Carter) about the president before going into the transcript of the interview. For both Trump and Biden, there are additional interviews with reporters who covered them. This might be because it's recent and current history, and neither one is likely to have much perspective of their time in office. But it's still a worthwhile read.

[Jeff Culver · Rating 4 out of 5]

I still don’t know exactly who David Rubenstein is, but he certainly has access. His interviews are generally a series of fairly rapid fire questions, yet they allow for fantastic anecdotes from experts in their particular niche of American History. The audio is somewhat shoddy for our podcasting-tuned ears, but it doesn’t diminish the content and is easily overlooked. This is my second audio book from him, and any titles with Rubenstein’s name will now draw my attention.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one reached my radar almost entirely because the author recently purchased my favorite baseball team, which is also his hometown baseball team. Rubenstein has also used some of his substantial wealth for a variety of arts- and history-related philanthropy, including giving money for the panda program at the National Zoo, buying a copy of Magna Carta and donating it to the National Archives, and serving for a long time on the board for the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. He's a big history nerd and particularly fascinated with the presidency, hence this book. Proceeds from the sales of this book are being donated to a Baltimore City elementary/middle school with which the Orioles have been partnered for a couple of years.

The timing could have worked out better for me to sit down and read about the American presidency than having the hold I placed over the summer come in to the library immediately after the 2024 election.

The book's subtitle is not hiding anything. These are indeed conversations on the American presidency. Each chapter is focused on a single president, with the exception of one that mentions both Adams and Jefferson (with Jefferson getting his own single-focus chapter also), and also the conversation with Bill Clinton also includes Hillary Clinton. There are a couple of pages of context about what interests Rubenstein about each of the presidents he discusses, and then it's time to transcribe the conversation. A number of these were conversations that he had before even deciding to collect them into the book - they're mostly post-COVID interviews although a few about some of the older presidents come from the 2010s rather than 2020s.

Having recently read books that heavily involved our first three presidents, there wasn't a lot of new ground for me to read these conversations on Washington, Adams, and Jefferson. On the other end, there's not really anything interesting to be said about the historical impact of any of the most recent presidents yet because up to this point we just don't know. Or perhaps that's just a reflection of who Rubenstein chose to talk to about President Obama and the orange man - two of the biggest "these people are the problem with political journalism" names from the New York Times. The book was finalized literal days before President Biden announced that he was stepping down from seeking re-election, so it was already out of date about that among other things. The less I spend time thinking about all of that, the better.

To my surprise, the most interesting conversation with a living ex-president ended up being George W. Bush. (Carter and Obama do not have conversations in the book.) It's been long enough since he was gone, and worse Republicans have come along since, that he is a more fascinating character than I would have imagined for the great villain of my early adulthood. I spent a lot of time on a particular Democratic loyalist message board where the nickname "Dumbya" was commonplace and again, now that an actually-ignorant Republican has been president after him (this difference in intellectual capability is apparent just within this text: The orange man is far less lucid than either Clinton, Bush, or Biden,) the old jokes don't really land any more.

There are a large number of angry online leftists who are unwilling to indulge any softening of opinion about GWB due to his being responsible for the Iraq War. He doesn't have anything much to say in his defense about that whole thing and Rubenstein, in their conversation, does not seek to hold him to account for it. I think one can fairly say that GWB started us down the path that we're on now - a path that he seems to regret in some fashion, with his conversation having a very internationalist tone with regret about the ascendant isolationist strain in the Republican Party that's meant bad things for Ukraine and will very soon mean worse things for Ukraine and elsewhere in the world. Bush's perspective on getting the creation of PEPFAR, a program that delivered life-saving AIDS drugs to Africa, was genuinely fascinating to me.

In those Dumbya-mocking message board conversations, he was also frequently mocked for, early in his presidency, saying that he "saw into Putin's soul." 20+ years later I was intrigued to see him discuss that incident, and I thought his answer about it actually made sense: Bush first met him when he was new to power and he thought Putin was terrified at that time, though GWB acknowledged that by the end of his presidency, Putin was much more confident in his power and Bush had a different impression of him by then. I think I would have liked if Rubenstein had brought up Hurricane Katrina and Bush's response to that. (I also think GWB secretly voted for Kamala Harris and the fact that he was unwilling to speak up publicly about this ahead of the election is one of the problems we have in confronting the problem of the orange man - though I would respect if the argument was that he recognized his own unpopularity enough to think it would only have hurt to say anything.)

In between the very beginning and the very end-for-now were a variety of conversations about presidents I personally knew less about, all of which seemed to be with neutral-enough people (I could have done without Wall Street Journal guy's praise of Coolidge), with one glaring exception of the jabroni who opined that Ford pardoning Nixon was a courageous and heroic act rather than an awful choice whose legacy (that there is to be no accountability about any Republican president) is still to this day screwing the country, worse now than ever before with the Republicans on the Supreme Court having interpreted presidential immunity into the Constitution where it does not in fact exist in the text.

[Cathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite an interesting series of interviews that together, gave a picture of the Presidency, from Washington through Biden. I enjoyed the audiobook version, learning about the achievements of different presidents and their administrations. Fascinating for anyone newly interested in Presidential history.

[Pete · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book triggered a lot of serious thinking here and thus for me ranks high - but it’s not a very well disguised partisan work by a rich old Democrat. The body of the text is 23 chapters of interview dialog or biographies of selected U.S. presidents ranging from Washington to Trump that also includes some lesser-known ones like Garfield, Carter, and Coolidge. As I read, I learned a lot of interesting new stuff and was reminded of many old things of minor importance that I knew but had glossed over previously.

But the real impact of the book came in the introduction, conclusion and addendum sections because they combined to force me to recognize the horrible mess that we have been conditioned as citizens to so dearly revere: our U.S. Constitution. Unintentionally, I believe, the author managed to both raise and dash my hopes that as a nation, we might someday employ its rarely successful amendment provision to bootstrap itself enough it to fix itself with sufficient reforms to save us from ourselves. But alas, the chances are slight - the task is daunting - and there seems to be more need than energy - at least as I see it at my age.

This an unusual book and one every U.S. citizen of any political persuasion should put their nose in and keep it there. It’s an easy read and very provocative.

[Owen B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a great overview of the most influential presidents of the United States. With Rubenstein being such an established figure in the US historical scene, he is able to provide informed interviews with biographers and former presidents. It's a shame he wasn't able to get an interview with Obama, so we will have to live with ones from only Bill and Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. For anyone interested in learning more about the presidency and those who have held it, this is the perfect introductory book. I would think of it as a stepping stone to figure out which presidents you want to learn more about. I rate it four stars because I'm not a big fan of this style of writing. It's inherently choppy, and Rubenstein tries to cover a ton of ground for each president in 20-30 pages. He jumps around a lot through a past president's timeline, and it can be difficult to retain information as a result.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Questions and Answers from a series of interviews by Rubenstein with prominent historians and others (for example, in the case of Eisenhower, his granddaughter Susan and in the case of Clinton, Bill and Hillary themselves) about the life and times of 23 presidents, from Washington to Biden (but not Teddy Roosevelt or Ronald Reagan--odd). The interviews are not very incisive. Yet, they give a broad overview of each President's personal background and the principal events of his presidency. The interviews are mostly entertaining reading without much depth.

[Timothy Crane · Rating 3 out of 5]

And interesting read, and did include some wonderful discussions from authors/historians on the founding fathers, and some of the others notable Presidents that would immediately come to mind as the "highest". But some notable omissions, including Teddy Roosevelt, LBJ, and Ronald Reagan. Seemed hard to believe that notable authors and/or historians on the presidential subjects could not be found/included, and I felt the book suffered for that.

[Mandy Parsons · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting and engaging read about a selection of presidents. The interview format was charming and made it a fast read for me, which was nice. I was frustrated at some of the gaps though and lack of deep information. I can't believe Rubenstein skipped Madison, but chose to include Coolidge. Not that Coolidge wasn't an okay chapter, but the Father of the Constitution deserves a place at the table too! I will keep looking for an accessible exploration on past American presidents and the way they each uniquely shaped the nation.

[Csparrenberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting book. The author interviews experts on the lives of former presidents. So, in other words, everything presented here is result of someone else’s research. This is true, except in two cases where presidents are actually interviewed by the author That gives this book a very unique point of view. I am giving this book a four instead of a five as I strongly disagree with what the author put in the last chapter.

[Jenni V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Information wise, this was a 5 star read. Reading wise, it's a very high 4. The style of interview transcriptions helped present the information as cleanly as possible without extra bias but the interjections of basic questions such as "what happened next?" was a little tiresome. The last few presidents where the interviews were more conversational were much easier to read.

I had already thought the audiobook version might be a better format because of the interviews but it was also noted in the acknowledgements that there are interviews included in audio that weren't in this book because of space constraints.

To note two glaring date typos, at the end of Truman's chapter it says he wanted to go to Herbert Hoover's funeral in 1984 (Hoover died in 1964) and at the end of Clinton's, it referenced Al Gore talking about using generic drugs to treat AIDS in other countries during the 2020 election (it was 2000).

Find all my reviews at: https://readingatrandom.blogspot.com

[Elena Espinoza · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who is incredibly interested in presidential history, this was an excellent read. Full of dense information on policies and life stories of noteworthy presidents.

Each chapter was opened by Rubenstein with insights that were well structured with mentions of the books written by those who were interviewed.

[Tara Corrigall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audio is the only way to “read” this book. This is a complication of interviews with historians in our past Presidents.
There couldn’t be a better time in history to listen to this book.
Great for car trips or starts and stops because each chapter is a different interview.

[Meredith Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

First book I haven’t wanted to skim in so long. Makes me wish I paid better attention in APUSH cause lowk American history is more dramatic than most books I read

[Danny Haritan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who knew I wanted to read a biography on Calvin Coolidge?! I didn’t even know his name prior to reading this book.

[Kitty Fesmire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting premise and book. I feel like I learn a lot.

[Bruce Bean · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Highest Calling: Conversations on the American Presidency by David Rubenstein
Author: David Rubenstein
Published: 2024
Format: 23 interviews on U.S. Presidents

An Insider's Tour Through Presidential History
David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlisle Group and veteran of the Carter White House at age 27, brings his interviewer's skills to bear on the American presidency. The Highest Calling collects 23 conversations focusing primarily on 20th-century presidents, offering a wealth of anecdotes, historical insights, and occasionally shocking revelations that illuminate both the office and the men who held it.

More Than Hagiography
What distinguishes this collection from typical presidential histories is Rubenstein's willingness to present uncomfortable truths alongside the expected gravitas. The book doesn't shy away from Jefferson's hypocrisy ("Jefferson believed all men were created equal except for black Africans," p. 32), Andrew Johnson's virulent racism ("This is a white man's country and by God as long as I'm president it's going to be a white man's government"), or the complex moral compromises that defined even our most celebrated leaders.

Historical Detail
The book shines in its accumulation of memorable details that humanize the presidency:
The Peculiar and Personal:
• Ulysses Grant's name was originally Hiram Ulysses Grant; he dropped the "H" to avoid being teased for the initials "HUG," and the "S" that replaced it stood for nothing
• Robert Todd Lincoln was present at three presidential deaths: his father's, Garfield's shooting, and McKinley's shooting
• Eisenhower, on his deathbed, told the three-star Army Surgeon General who said his family had to leave: "How many stars do you have?" When told "Three. sir," Ike responded: "I've got five; they can stay all night," (p. 206)
• Pat Nixon was "a knockout" according to multiple sources, while her shy husband "hated dancing."
Medical Tragedies: McKinley's death is particularly poignant—he had only a "lucky shot" wound that today would require one night's hospitalization. Instead, doctors "probed and probed with dirty fingers until he died; if they had left him alone almost certainly [he would have] survived" (p. 112).
The Jefferson Revelations
The book provides detail on Jefferson's relationship with Sally Hemings, whom he first met when she was 14. They had six children together; Sally was 3/4 white (her father was also Jefferson's wife's father), making their children 7/8 white. The 1830 census listed Sally as a "free white woman," while the 1833 census listed her as a "free colored woman" (p. 62). Some of her children passed as white in Madison, Wisconsin.
This complexity is characteristic of Jefferson's entire legacy: a Francophile who "did not like the new constitution," a brilliant thinker with "a reputation for being hypocritical and disingenuous," and the subject of Kennedy's famous quip about Nobel Prize winners: "I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent...that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone" (p. 47).

The Modern Presidents: Psychological Portraits
Rubenstein's interviews become particularly insightful when discussing recent presidents, where personal observation supplements historical record:
Jimmy Carter: "The most intelligent man who occupied the oval office in the 20th century...including Jack Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt" (p. 284), yet plagued by micromanagement and self-righteousness. "He felt he was smart enough to understand every issue and would try to develop the perfect solution, but he often ignored the politics of his personal perfect solution" (p. 275). Carter "hated the Washington cocktail party scene...hated socializing and making small talk, which is why he went to Camp David so often."
George H.W. Bush: A pragmatist who, when the Berlin Wall fell, refused triumphalism: "I'm not going to dance on the Berlin wall" (p. 302). Trained like Lincoln not to use the word "I," Bush lacked a "taste for introspection or self-explanation." Nixon's appointment of him to head the CIA "was meant to be a killer for his presidential nominations," but he survived it.
Bill Clinton: The master politician who, when a Titan missile exploded in Arkansas, blowing its nuclear warhead into a cow pasture, commented that it was "not good for his reelection." Clinton's proposal strategy with Hillary mirrored Obama's persistence in getting her to become Secretary of State—both men refused to accept "no" for an answer and each had to ask three times!
Barack Obama: "The best presidential writer since Woodrow Wilson...an introvert like Jimmy Carter [who] came to disdain Washington and the political process" (p. 362). His "biggest weakness was cockiness," yet he went "through eight years without any personal scandal" (p. 377). Obama didn't think much of Biden's chances in 2020: "Obama thought Hillary Clinton was a better candidate."
Donald Trump: "Does nothing without doing it to excess" (p. 379). A "very good athlete" who transferred from Fordham to Penn, though "academics is not his thing." Surprisingly, Trump left Biden "a traditional letter" that Biden said "was more gracious than he'd expected" (p. 403).
Joe Biden: "A sizable chip on his shoulder," someone who "doesn't express many regrets." Unlike Obama, Biden "processes everything verbally...He can't sit in his study late at night like Obama and think everything through. He needs to talk" (p. 420). His withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan "without consulting or notifying the allies" exemplifies his sometimes impulsive decision-making.

The Dark Corners of History
Several revelations are surprising:
• Kennedy made a secret deal during the Cuban Missile Crisis regarding Jupiter missiles in Turkey, insisting it "be kept secret" because "midterm elections [were] coming up, and he was looking to his own reelection" (p. 236). It remained secret for 25 years.
• Nixon's 1960 loss involved blatant fraud: Mayor Daley told JFK "with the help of a few friends, I think you're going to win Illinois," meaning "he stole the election." In one precinct, "more people voted for Kennedy than lived there" (p. 244).
• Kissinger, Rockefeller, and McCloy formed "Project Alpha," allocating money from Chase Bank to lobby "vociferously" for giving the Shah of Iran asylum (p. 282).
• Putin told Hillary Clinton in 2011 that he rejected the agreement to respect Ukraine's sovereignty: "He [Yeltsin] never got [it] through the Duma. I don't agree with it and I do not support it and I'm not bound by [it]" (p. 323).

Washington: The Standard
The book begins appropriately with Washington, whose record provides context for all who followed. Against 190,000 British troops (mostly Hessians) and 500 ships of the world's largest navy, Washington commanded only 40,000 Americans at any time. He "fought 17 battles. He won six and lost seven, four draws—the important thing is the last battle." Washington traveled to every state in the union and is "the only president never to have lived in Washington although he did lay the cornerstone for the Capital."

What's Missing
The book's main weakness is its interview format, which produces uneven coverage. Some presidents get rich, multi-dimensional treatment while others receive only glancing attention.
Additionally, Rubenstein's insider status, while providing access, sometimes produces softball questioning. His admiration for the office occasionally overwhelms critical analysis, particularly with living presidents.

The Value of Conversation
Yet the conversational format also provides the book's greatest strength. By interviewing historians, biographers, and participants rather than writing conventional history, Rubenstein captures interpretive debates and conflicting perspectives. When Evan Thomas (grandson of socialist Norman Thomas) describes Nixon making a point of telling him "your grandfather was a great man," and Thomas quips "Of course it worked. I wrote a semi-sympathetic book about him 20 years later," we get a glimpse of how personal connection shapes historical narrative.

Historical Patterns and Human Nature
Certain patterns emerge across the interviews:
The Intelligence Trap: The smartest presidents (Jefferson, Carter, Obama) often struggled politically, their intellectual confidence breeding inflexibility or disdain for the political process.
The Shy Achievers: Lincoln, Nixon, and George H.W. Bush all succeeded despite—or perhaps because of—introversion and social awkwardness.
The Performance Paradox: Reagan's "sunny" folksiness and Clinton's charm masked serious policy engagement, while Carter's earnest competence masked political tone-deafness.
The Vice Presidency Curse: Nixon's isolation of Agnew, Ford's reluctant ascension, and the general pattern of VPs being sidelined suggests the office remains as problematic as John Adams described. [“My country has in its wisdom contrived for me the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived.”]

A Conversation Worth Having
The Highest Calling succeeds not as definitive history but as thoughtful conversation about the American presidency. Rubenstein's access, his eye for humanizing detail, and his willingness to present uncomfortable truths make this a valuable addition to presidential literature.
The book works best as a browser's companion—something to dip into for stories and insights rather than read cover-to-cover. Its accumulated anecdotes, psychological observations, and historical revelations create a mosaic portrait of the presidency that is more honest and more interesting than conventional hagiography.

Who might like it: Students of presidential history, political junkies, anyone interested in leadership and character, readers who enjoy historical anecdotes.
Key takeaway: The presidency attracts brilliant and flawed men (so far, only men), and the office shapes them as much as they shape it. Their humanity—petty, noble, contradictory, and complex—deserves neither worship nor dismissal, but honest examination.

Overall:
A rich collection of presidential insights that succeeds through accumulated detail rather than overarching thesis. Rubenstein's insider perspective and interviewing skill produce a book that is endlessly browsable and frequently surprising. Not essential reading, but deeply rewarding for anyone interested in the messy humanity behind the highest office.

[Kimberly Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author isn’t a great writer —lots of awkwardly worded sentences—but I found this fascinating…there is so much I never knew about the early presidents. The last few chapters (on Trump and Biden especially) seemed rushed and weren’t great, but the rest was super interesting.

[Evelyn Petschek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous book, best on audio. The author interviews top historians, journalists and most of the living presidents on the topic of the American presidency.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all of Mr. Rubenstein's books on American history. I love to listen to the audiobook versions and hear the authors and historians speak; and Mr. Rubenstein asks great questions. I think this was the best book yet. I wish that all Americans, from high school age and up, would read or listen to this and take it to heart.

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredible on Audible - a powerful reminder of what the presidency should be, and the reverence it deserves.

[Mr. Book · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can also see this review, along with others I have written, at my blog, Mr. Book's Book Reviews.

Thank you, Simon & Schuster, for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Mr. Book just finished The Highest Calling: Conversations on the American Presidency, by David M. Rubenstein.

This book consists of 19 interviews the author did with historians, talking about individual presidents, or in the case of Gordon Wood, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The other four chapters were interviews that the author conducted with Bill and Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

The strongest parts of the book were the chapters on Jefferson (interview with Annette Gordon-Reed) and Grant (Ron Chernow).

21 of the 45 different presidents were included in the book, but there were four big omissions—Theodore Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, Andrew Jackson and Ronald Reagan. Even these presidents’ critics acknowledge how influential they were on the presidency and country, which makes their omissions seem rather strange editorial choices.

The book was written in a way that would frustrate those of us with a lot of background on the presidents. As someone with an extremely strong of history and the presidency, I found a lot of the questions to be obvious. The real substance of the book came from the interviewee’s responses. I think this book would have worked better if the chapters were written by the interviewees or if the author had crafted their responses into a narrative while eliminating his questions. I didn’t find the author to be a good interviewer and the questions could have been better worded and still elicited the same responses.

I give this book a B. Goodreads and NetGalley require grades on a 1-5 star system. In my personal conversion system, a B equates to 3 stars. (A or A+: 5 stars, B+: 4 stars, B: 3 stars, C: 2 stars, D or F: 1 star).

This review has been posted at NetGalley, Goodreads and my blog, Mr. Book’s Book Reviews

Mr. Book finished reading this on September 6, 2024.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rubenstein, an extremely successful businessperson (he co-founded the Carlyle investment firm), fancies himself a historian as well, qualified to write on the presidency by virtue of his having served an upper mid-level role in the Carter administration while he was in his 20's. The format of his book is a series of interviews he conducted with real historians who wrote scholarly tomes on the subjects of his interest, and for the most recent presidents, interviews that he conducted with them himself. His style tends to be leading, and very focused on the particular nuances that have attracted his interest--such as Thomas Jefferson's long-term offspring-producing relationship with one of his slaves. While he develops some worthwhile insights regarding several of his subjects, this is not the book to go to if one wants to understand the times and accomplishments of our past presidents, as he doesn't attempt to achieve that sort of depth.

The most interesting parts of the book are his interviews with George W. Bush, the Clintons, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden--not because of any wisdom that they share, but because of the ordinariness and sometimes shallowness that they convey. These interviews really convince the reader that there is not much special about these people, and that anybody could find themselves president of our country once the political machinery tilts the right way.

[Izzy S · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Oh, great another book about the American presidents… I’ve already learned about that in virtually every single history class of my K-12 education.”

I bet that’s what you’re thinking when you read the title of this book “Conversations on the American Presidency;” however, the author has a lifelong fascination with the presidency and used to work in the Jimmy Carter administration and he discusses a majority of the US presidents—mainly the important ones. Rubenstein (co-founder of global private equity firm Carlyle) interviews biographers who are experts on these presidents, but here’s kicker… for the presidents that are living he actually interviews them. Honestly, it’s a really good read, and I was honestly surprised at how much I learned, i.e., how much I didn’t know before. In fact, I finished the book respecting some presidents that I never really thought of super highly or at all before to be frank. I didn’t realize how certain presidents like randomly Calvin Coolidge, Gerald Ford, or George H.W. Bush are due much more credit than what has been given to them. Overall, I highly recommend!!!!

[Joe Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readers who have read up on the presidents will likely not find much new. Even so, readers may be challenged by some of the assessments of the historians interviewed by the author. Many of these character studies are a refreshing pretelling. For example, this reader, familiar with FDR, enjoyed Jonathan Darman’s insights on the impact of polio on both FDR and Eleanor.

The introductions of each chapter by the author provide a brief overview or summary of the personality of the president covered in the chapter and an explanation of the former president’s reassessment. Or, why the president deserves a reassessment.

The interviews with the historians and biographers reveal the character of each president and how their background and personality influenced the way each handled being the President.

The chapters covering Carter, Ford, and George H.W. Bush are particularly good, and a highlight of this book are the interviews with George W. Bush, Bill & Hillary Clinton, Trump, and Biden.

[Shraddha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this on audio. This was a super interesting and informative look at past presidents and their personal/professional strengths that helped them succeed.

I don’t particularly like the way that Rubenstein presented questions during interviews - he already knew the answers but instead of open ended questions, he would give an either/or type of a lead in which seemed to cut off the knowledgeable experts. I think open ended questions, such as “how did so-and-so react to the election?” Rather than “did so-and-so accept the results? Did he lie down and admit defeat? Did he say se la vie and move on?” These were not examples of actual questions, just the style of questioning. They were very leading. I also did not like that he had the agenda of affecting the outcome l of the 2024 election (which he was up front about). I would prefer the intent to just inform, not necessarily to influence, if that makes sense.

Otherwise, I really enjoyed the stories in this book and would gladly listen again, even if it was super long.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rubenstein’s interview format is consistently effective. The book reveals many insights into the character of past and current presidents. On whole he remains neutral and lets the interviewees reveal the insights.

In his Conclusion chapter he states “the country…is surely better off when strong, competent, honest individuals attain the presidency and work their will on behalf of the American people.”

Based on his assertion, the most glaring takeaway for me is from the President Donald J. Trump chapter. Trump alone comes across as vague and inarticulate. He speaks in generalities and insults. There is an element of “strong, competent, honest” in all chapters except in Trump’s. There’s nothing to indicate his interest is to work on behalf of the American people.

Another wonderful book from David Rubinstein. I recommend “The American Story” as another excellent choice to explore American heritage and history.

[David Mc · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all, while the book was somewhat interesting, I didn’t feel that much new ground was offered on the various men who lived in the White House. In this regard, I felt that some of the biographers of more recent presidents were somewhat biased and unable to fully address the flaws and shortcomings of their chosen subject matter. For that matter, George H.W. Bush’s biographer, Timothy Naftali, seemed ready to nominate our 41st president for sainthood. Conversely, among the most interesting was that of Susan Eisenhower, who provided a very well-rounded picture of her famous grandfather. Overall, as a history buff, I was disappointed in the book, as the questions asked by the author provided few new insights regarding our past and present leaders.