Grant: By Ron Chernow. a Biography of the Union General of the Civil War and Two-Term President of the United States.

by James Zimmerhoff

Grant Ron Chernow is the author of "Grant," a new chronicle of the Civil War general and two-term president. Winner of the National Humanities Medal, Chernow obtained the Pulitzer Prize for his previous book, "Washington," also the National Book Award for his first work, "The House of Morgan." Lin-Manuel Miranda used his best-selling "Hamilton" in a musical that Michelle Obama proclaimed "the best piece of art in every form that I have ever seen in my life." Chernow presents this biography with abundant, varied and complicated facts. His research on Grant results in nearly 1,000 pages of narrative. It allows him to write a rich and sensitive portrait of the inner Grant, from hesitant West Point cadet to personal failure to triumphant general. He exhaustively examines Grant's alcoholism and laden relationships with his family. Chernow's honesty shows us contradictory evidence as well as Grant's mistakes. This work shows us Grant's life but and ratify our conviction that the individual matters. The biographer is a historian, researcher, and writer simultaneously. How does the world shape this individual, and he the world? To what degree are convictions, judgment and personality merely typical, embedded in a broader context and where does the individual become free? This book is a biography that succeeds as art combines scholarly and literary virtues. It explains, interprets and carries a reader entirely into the human reality. It offers illumination and immersion. As a historian, Chernow documents are somewhat uneven. His research within Grant's struggles with alcohol would be more significant if he discussed the range and intensity of the temperance crusade; that would explain contemporaries' obsession with drink and Grant's embarrassment. Chernow's account of Grant's military career, nonetheless, works well, particularly in examining his closest relationships. Most significant, the book centers on the narrative of black liberation, from Grant's support of emancipation as a general to his implementation of civil rights as president. If African Americans play too passive a role in this telling, Chernow's importance is exactly right, and his description of Grant's views is revealing. Every biography is a broken mirror, reflecting a blurry past. But Chernow exhibits where a seemingly a small distortion of something important. In describing Jay Gould and Jim Fisk's attempt to corner the gold market in 1869, for instance, he states incorrectly that Wall Street quoted the price of gold per ounce. This error is no mere technical. The "Gold Room" wasn't a property market but an exchange between two national currencies, both confusingly named "dollar": the legal-tender bills greenback and the still-circulating gold dollar. The "gold premium," or conversion, was the number of greenbacks required to buy $100 in gold coin. This fact is the door to a chamber of bitter disagreement. Should money be a substance with intrinsic value or can government create it at will to address crippling deflation of a kind unfamiliar to any American today? If Chernow had demonstrated this, readers would know why Grant's veto of the Inflation Bill and probably cost the Republicans the 1874 midterm ballots and why the Greenback Party appeared as one of history's most prosperous independent political movements.

Genres: History, Biography

Paperback

Published October 23, 2017

Reviews

[David B Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an overly long biography, but every hour of reading invested opens up so many new vistas of knowledge about one of America’s most important Presidents. Fascinating how such a flawed (alcoholism) and naïve individual could literally go from being down to his last dollar not taken by swindlers . . . and a very short time later be commanding the entire Union Army with millions of people clamoring for General Grant to consider the Presidency.
The book is well-written and carefully documented; I do agree with some reviewers that some editing would likely have improved it. But it’s essentially a trilogy: the Civil War, his years in the White House, and then the tumult and financial ruin of his retirement.
The most stirring part of the story is Grant’s passionate commitment to the liberation of America’s millions of slaves held in bondage, and then his leadership during Reconstruction. I find it a wonderful irony that the party of Lincoln and Grant became known as “Radical Republicans” because of their zeal to give citizenship rights to African-Americans and their equal passion for helping to expand and protect their freedom to go to the voting polls and fully participate in democracy. Would that both parties today would pledge to be more Radical in that noble regard.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

FINALLY, I have completed reading 959-page biography of Grant by Chernow. It is, indeed, a masterpiece, filled with fascinating and important information about Grant's evolved belief in emancipating slaves, the transformation of the South from slaveholding land to Reconstruction to a return to belief in white supremacy. The latter -- manifested in many ways, but importantly in the Jim Crow laws denying blacks the right to vote despite specific changes to the UNITED STATES Constitutution -- remarkably, and dangerously prescient to today's mostly southern state legislatures changing voting laws to favor white supremacy. In some ways, I find this very, very scary and in others, somewhat comforting knowing that we survived the massive crises triggered by the original secession of the southern states from the Union. (Of course, we now live with the curse of social media -- but that's commentary for another day.)

[Craig Wanderer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ate a lot of crow reading this book, I was blown away by the amount of confederate propaganda had fueled my knowledge of Grant.
He is clearly one of Americas most underrated Presidents and likely a case study in possible Autism.

Overall a very well written book that has helped me immensely and encouraged me to learn more about Civil war reconstruction which is not taught in school at all.

[Tom Reppert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of my current reads feature edgy, badass women due to the novel I've recently written. There are not a lot of edgy women in this book unless you count Julia Grant and the couple of run-ins with the nutty Mary Todd Lincoln. Regardless, great information. Really bring history in for clear, well written details.

[Deb Aronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never knew much about Grant at all, to be honest, but I had read Chernow's Hamilton biography and was interested in reading this one. Boy. So much of what Grant worked to do during and after the Civil War resonates still with us TODAY!! What an admirable, smart and mostly humble man. A hero. Really enjoyed the book.

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took a long time, but I finally finished this book. Thoroughly enjoyed it, even though it was so full of detail. Gave me a good perspective of the entire period. Highly recommend this book.

[Michael Holland]

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[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing detail and documentation of Grant. Reads like a nov particularly up to end CivilWar. Believe author tried to be objective especially about his relationship with alcohol.