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Off the Record: The Private Papers of Harry S. Truman
Highlights from Harry S. Truman's personal diaries, memoranda, and letters reveal his own peppery personality and refreshingly frank, zestful insights into the politics and personalities he dealt with from 1945 to 1971
448 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
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About the author
Robert H. Ferrell
77 books8 followersRobert Hugh Ferrell was an American historian and author of several books on Harry S. Truman and the diplomatic history of the United States. He served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during the Second World War and was an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. He received a B.S. in Education from Bowling Green State University in 1946 and a PhD from Yale University in 1951, where he worked under the direction of Samuel Flagg Bemis and his dissertation won the John Addison Porter Prize. He went on to win the 1952 Beer Prize for his first book, Peace In Their Time, a study of the making of the Kellogg-Briand Pact.
He taught for many years at Indiana University in Bloomington, starting as an Assistant Professor in 1953 and rising to Distinguished Professor of History in 1974. He has held several notable visiting professorships, including Yale University in 1955 and the Naval War College in 1974.
He taught for many years at Indiana University in Bloomington, starting as an Assistant Professor in 1953 and rising to Distinguished Professor of History in 1974. He has held several notable visiting professorships, including Yale University in 1955 and the Naval War College in 1974.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 19, 2021
One of the most endearing qualities about Harry Truman, at least from my perspective, is his ever-present honesty. While I have, with varying degrees, admiration or respect for all of the men (minus one) who have held the office of President, vey few have struck me as being as decent and honest as Truman was. That honesty is on display in this curated collection of Truman's correspondence, memorandums, and diary entries that spans his presidency and long retirement. Quite a few of the letters during his presidency are to his family, especially his sister and cousins. While later on almost all of them are to government officials past and present.
We see Truman for all of his faults and his virtues here. He is partisan to a fault, especially once he is out of the presidency. And he often repeats the same themes or issues. He displays a fascination with, and a high level of understanding of, ancient history, frequently writing about Rome, Greece, and conquerors of the past. He also comments (or is it more like complains of?) more mundane topics such as Daylight Saving Time (Truman was not a fan) and the increasing efficiency of plane travel (he definitely liked this and was amazed by it).
Many of the letters and diary entries are personal in nature, and show his earthiness at its finest. Some of the more vitriolic entries are unsent letters. Truman had a habit of, when angry with someone, writing a scathing letter to that person, blasting him for the perceived or real wrong, only to end up shoving the letter in his desk drawer and thinking better of it. This was a way for Truman to harmlessly release his frustration with that individual. Despite that, some of the letters that he did send were pretty salty and did not mince words.
Truman's sense of humor is on display here as well. There are numerous examples, so I pulled one: On page 323 he writes about General Douglas MacArthur (Truman had famously fired him in April 1951 for repeated acts of insubordination in relation to the Korean War; Truman was widely pilloried at the time, but history has vindicated him and sustained his action): "When an egotist is punctured, a lot of noise and whistling always accompanies the escaping air." Most politicians, at least until the last few years when it now seems like personal insults are acceptable, would not have been so blunt.
The papers were edited by Robert Ferrell. He does provide footnotes to help the reader make sense of people or events that Truman refers to that someone reading decades later would not automatically know. Yet, I found there was not as much context provided as I would have preferred to see. Many times Truman writes to someone about a specific situation, but we do not find out if there was any resolution, with Ferrell only infrequently noting what the end result was. Also, I wonder what his criteria was for inclusion in this collection. Did he cut some stuff out simply because it would have been repetitive? I could see that, as already there were more than enough references to Roman emperors. Yet there are gaps where I think inclusion of something would have been nice. For instance, there is no mention of John F. Kennedy's assassination. Surely Truman wrote about it, either in diary entries or in correspondence, very possibly both. Nonetheless, this was an enjoyable journey into the past with someone who, you could tell, really loved his country and tried his best to make it a better place even though he made mistakes, could frequently be too quick to judge, and was not entirely successful in his endeavors.
Grade: A-
We see Truman for all of his faults and his virtues here. He is partisan to a fault, especially once he is out of the presidency. And he often repeats the same themes or issues. He displays a fascination with, and a high level of understanding of, ancient history, frequently writing about Rome, Greece, and conquerors of the past. He also comments (or is it more like complains of?) more mundane topics such as Daylight Saving Time (Truman was not a fan) and the increasing efficiency of plane travel (he definitely liked this and was amazed by it).
Many of the letters and diary entries are personal in nature, and show his earthiness at its finest. Some of the more vitriolic entries are unsent letters. Truman had a habit of, when angry with someone, writing a scathing letter to that person, blasting him for the perceived or real wrong, only to end up shoving the letter in his desk drawer and thinking better of it. This was a way for Truman to harmlessly release his frustration with that individual. Despite that, some of the letters that he did send were pretty salty and did not mince words.
Truman's sense of humor is on display here as well. There are numerous examples, so I pulled one: On page 323 he writes about General Douglas MacArthur (Truman had famously fired him in April 1951 for repeated acts of insubordination in relation to the Korean War; Truman was widely pilloried at the time, but history has vindicated him and sustained his action): "When an egotist is punctured, a lot of noise and whistling always accompanies the escaping air." Most politicians, at least until the last few years when it now seems like personal insults are acceptable, would not have been so blunt.
The papers were edited by Robert Ferrell. He does provide footnotes to help the reader make sense of people or events that Truman refers to that someone reading decades later would not automatically know. Yet, I found there was not as much context provided as I would have preferred to see. Many times Truman writes to someone about a specific situation, but we do not find out if there was any resolution, with Ferrell only infrequently noting what the end result was. Also, I wonder what his criteria was for inclusion in this collection. Did he cut some stuff out simply because it would have been repetitive? I could see that, as already there were more than enough references to Roman emperors. Yet there are gaps where I think inclusion of something would have been nice. For instance, there is no mention of John F. Kennedy's assassination. Surely Truman wrote about it, either in diary entries or in correspondence, very possibly both. Nonetheless, this was an enjoyable journey into the past with someone who, you could tell, really loved his country and tried his best to make it a better place even though he made mistakes, could frequently be too quick to judge, and was not entirely successful in his endeavors.
Grade: A-
September 28, 2011
Really good read. Did not change my perspective of Truman but added to my overall knowledge
September 21, 2012
Learned a lot from this book. It gave a rare glimpse at the man behind the Office. Highly recommend.
August 9, 2017
Interesting but repetitious. THE Truman book is still Plain speaking : an oral biography of Harry S. Truman, by the late Merle Miller.
It was interesting the number of visitors that, HST noted, had "told him how to run the country." I expect every new President gets an earful of those....
It was interesting the number of visitors that, HST noted, had "told him how to run the country." I expect every new President gets an earful of those....
January 31, 2023
The first page describes the events of April 12, 1945, the President is dead, and Harry Truman (HST) is sworn in as the reluctant President of The United States of America.
At the Democratic national convention where HST is selected as Vice President, people knew that the President would not survive his term in office, therefore his successor was being selected as VP. To this reader, the point being made here is interesting, because we have the power behind power surfacing. What’s better than being King? King maker! Who were these people who selected the next President? This book does not explore this question.
The opening chapters explain that as President in waiting HST was ignored and was not part of the inner circle of FDR. So, when he was thrust into the job, he had much to learn. HST did a good job of coming up to speed, and incredibly, he received bipartisan help.
There was a war raging and it had to be dealt with, yet while dealing with war, life in the small southern town called Washington DC went on. The reader gets a sense of the culture of Washington DC during those years and that sense is a stark contrast to what we see in 2023. There was more civility, less divided government, more patrician cooperation.
HST was a prolific letter writer, many letters to family and friends are available for review today and you see his anger and frustration, as well as his reluctance at being President. In the letters, diary and other papers, you read of HST walking around the city, walking to a church close to the White House and greeting people on the street. In one case, HST saw a familiar reporter walking along the street, he had the Presidential car pulled over and he offered the reporter a lift. In his daily appointment schedule, people came to the White House to just talk with him or to make a request of the President to recognize their pet project, as well as job seekers seeking Presidential help. State politicians and just old friends visiting Washington would stop by for a chat. The schedule seemed to be set up at 15-minute intervals so as many people as possible could be accommodated. Of course, these niceties are gone, and our President is no longer accessible.
This book is chockful of the historical workings of our government during the turbulent times during and after the second World War. This period in American history set the tone for the future, his papers omitted some and spoke to others. In this review, I comment on those points that struck me as the most interesting, yet I believe that each reader will be struck by different events and comments in this interesting diary.
The events that occurred during the war and after having led to much of the unrest and continued strife occurring in our world today. For instance, in a letter HST wrote to Eleanor Roosevelt, after FDR’s death, she had stayed active and she wrote a daily column in the Washington Post, HST explained to her that Germany was offering to surrender to the western allies but wanted to continue their war against Russia. HST rejected this offer and demanded unconditional surrender; this was an amazing revelation to make to a private citizen while events were still evolving. He did ask her to keep the letter confidential, but what a leap of faith!
After Potsdam, HST acknowledged that he was, his word, innocent about somethings and in particular…Stalin. We also know that military people, for instance, General Patton wanted to continue the war to resolve the looming conflict with Russia. The reader in year 2023 can only wonder; what the world would be like today if HST had not been innocent and people like Patton were successful in their desire to resolve issues with Russia in 1945.
There are many less ominous diary entries. For instance, HST enjoyed taking visitors on a tour of the White House. On one occasion, He told visitors that his daughter and some school friends were sleeping in the Lincoln bedroom. He stated that for a long time the White House staff was aware of Mr. Lincoln’s ghost travelling in and around the bedroom, yike!
The atom bomb issue will forever be part of HST’s legacy. HST made the decision to drop this bomb on two Japanese cities with devastating effect. HST said that it was necessary to drop these bombs in order to save American lives. It is hard to refute his statement particularly because the military was planning the invasion of Japan and any invasion would result in huge casualty counts.
We have the luxury of viewing these events from the year 2023, and recent history has raised some questions. For instance, Stalin told HST at Potsdam that the Japanese wanted to surrender. Japan only wanted to keep its Emperor in any peace settlement. Japan clearly saw the futility of their further fighting. The invasion of mainland Japan was imminent, and Russia was moving at them from Manchuria, so defeat was only a matter of time. The point that insight provides is Japan was ready and willing to surrender, so why was it necessary to drop the atomic bombs on Japanese cities and kill large civilian populations?
It has been reported that the President wanted to demonstrate to the world and particularly Russia that we had this devastating super bomb even though, Stalin already knew we had it! This does not sound like HST to me, he was a pragmatic thinker, he was a religious man, so if Japan was prepared to surrender, why did we drop those bombs? This book does not answer that question. Despite the bombing of Japanese cities with the atom bombs, HST is a good person, who was learning to be president, he had uncommon, good sense. The book does not share his inner thoughts; therefore, this reader leaves judgement on this issue to a higher authority.
97 percent of the content of this book are the words of HST. These words move the reader to conclude that HST is a good, honest and moral man. His outlook on life is based on his extensive study of history and the experience provided from his simple origins as a farmer and shopkeeper. He also held many local, county, state and federal jobs during his many years in government. These experiences provided a perspective that few politicians normally have coming to such a lofty office as the of president, I believe this vast experience allowed him to be decisive in his actions.
HST was also a sensitive man who was quick to react to any perceived attack. This is unusual for a politician, because politicians live and thrive in attack mode; they develop thick hides that usually ignore being criticized, as a matter of fact, criticism is usually welcomed because it provides the notoriety that they crave.
As his notes creeped closer to the times in our history that I lived through, I enjoyed reading his thoughts of Kennedy and Nixon. HST felt that Kennedy was too young and inexperienced to be President, and maybe he was right, but HST seems to forget his own inexperience. But as a loyal Democrat, HST supported the election of Kennedy and was prepared to offer advice, therefore I was surprised that there was no mention of the Kennedy assassination in his notes, diaries or memorandums…. I thought, surely such a vile act would draw him out in rage, but this periodical is remiss on this subject.
Richard Nixon on the other hand was identified early on by HST as a snake in the grass. HST did not like slippery Dick, and history has proved his instincts correct.
HST stayed close to family and friends throughout his Presidency. The book includes numerous letters to these loved uncles, aunts, cousins, wife, daughter and friends from home. Many were interesting, yet, after 400 pages they became irrelevant to the story and a distraction.
The most amusing letters were those marked unsent. He drafted these letters in anger and was probably wise not to drop these bombs! In them, HST does not hold back his wrath over perceived disloyalty and lies; I wished some of these letters had been sent!
This is not a history book, it is nonfiction and a compilation of his letters, diary entries and memorandums; it mentions great events like the Atom bomb, the Korean War and omits other events like the Kennedy assassination. To my surprise, it does not go into much needed detail on any of these historic subjects. Any biographer needs access to these documents but standing alone they do not convey the total picture of his life and Presidency and that disappoints.
The Private Papers of Harry S Truman depict an America that was a better place to live then the America we have today, and that younger, kinder, less cynical America is what I enjoyed about reading the notes and journals of this great President.
At the Democratic national convention where HST is selected as Vice President, people knew that the President would not survive his term in office, therefore his successor was being selected as VP. To this reader, the point being made here is interesting, because we have the power behind power surfacing. What’s better than being King? King maker! Who were these people who selected the next President? This book does not explore this question.
The opening chapters explain that as President in waiting HST was ignored and was not part of the inner circle of FDR. So, when he was thrust into the job, he had much to learn. HST did a good job of coming up to speed, and incredibly, he received bipartisan help.
There was a war raging and it had to be dealt with, yet while dealing with war, life in the small southern town called Washington DC went on. The reader gets a sense of the culture of Washington DC during those years and that sense is a stark contrast to what we see in 2023. There was more civility, less divided government, more patrician cooperation.
HST was a prolific letter writer, many letters to family and friends are available for review today and you see his anger and frustration, as well as his reluctance at being President. In the letters, diary and other papers, you read of HST walking around the city, walking to a church close to the White House and greeting people on the street. In one case, HST saw a familiar reporter walking along the street, he had the Presidential car pulled over and he offered the reporter a lift. In his daily appointment schedule, people came to the White House to just talk with him or to make a request of the President to recognize their pet project, as well as job seekers seeking Presidential help. State politicians and just old friends visiting Washington would stop by for a chat. The schedule seemed to be set up at 15-minute intervals so as many people as possible could be accommodated. Of course, these niceties are gone, and our President is no longer accessible.
This book is chockful of the historical workings of our government during the turbulent times during and after the second World War. This period in American history set the tone for the future, his papers omitted some and spoke to others. In this review, I comment on those points that struck me as the most interesting, yet I believe that each reader will be struck by different events and comments in this interesting diary.
The events that occurred during the war and after having led to much of the unrest and continued strife occurring in our world today. For instance, in a letter HST wrote to Eleanor Roosevelt, after FDR’s death, she had stayed active and she wrote a daily column in the Washington Post, HST explained to her that Germany was offering to surrender to the western allies but wanted to continue their war against Russia. HST rejected this offer and demanded unconditional surrender; this was an amazing revelation to make to a private citizen while events were still evolving. He did ask her to keep the letter confidential, but what a leap of faith!
After Potsdam, HST acknowledged that he was, his word, innocent about somethings and in particular…Stalin. We also know that military people, for instance, General Patton wanted to continue the war to resolve the looming conflict with Russia. The reader in year 2023 can only wonder; what the world would be like today if HST had not been innocent and people like Patton were successful in their desire to resolve issues with Russia in 1945.
There are many less ominous diary entries. For instance, HST enjoyed taking visitors on a tour of the White House. On one occasion, He told visitors that his daughter and some school friends were sleeping in the Lincoln bedroom. He stated that for a long time the White House staff was aware of Mr. Lincoln’s ghost travelling in and around the bedroom, yike!
The atom bomb issue will forever be part of HST’s legacy. HST made the decision to drop this bomb on two Japanese cities with devastating effect. HST said that it was necessary to drop these bombs in order to save American lives. It is hard to refute his statement particularly because the military was planning the invasion of Japan and any invasion would result in huge casualty counts.
We have the luxury of viewing these events from the year 2023, and recent history has raised some questions. For instance, Stalin told HST at Potsdam that the Japanese wanted to surrender. Japan only wanted to keep its Emperor in any peace settlement. Japan clearly saw the futility of their further fighting. The invasion of mainland Japan was imminent, and Russia was moving at them from Manchuria, so defeat was only a matter of time. The point that insight provides is Japan was ready and willing to surrender, so why was it necessary to drop the atomic bombs on Japanese cities and kill large civilian populations?
It has been reported that the President wanted to demonstrate to the world and particularly Russia that we had this devastating super bomb even though, Stalin already knew we had it! This does not sound like HST to me, he was a pragmatic thinker, he was a religious man, so if Japan was prepared to surrender, why did we drop those bombs? This book does not answer that question. Despite the bombing of Japanese cities with the atom bombs, HST is a good person, who was learning to be president, he had uncommon, good sense. The book does not share his inner thoughts; therefore, this reader leaves judgement on this issue to a higher authority.
97 percent of the content of this book are the words of HST. These words move the reader to conclude that HST is a good, honest and moral man. His outlook on life is based on his extensive study of history and the experience provided from his simple origins as a farmer and shopkeeper. He also held many local, county, state and federal jobs during his many years in government. These experiences provided a perspective that few politicians normally have coming to such a lofty office as the of president, I believe this vast experience allowed him to be decisive in his actions.
HST was also a sensitive man who was quick to react to any perceived attack. This is unusual for a politician, because politicians live and thrive in attack mode; they develop thick hides that usually ignore being criticized, as a matter of fact, criticism is usually welcomed because it provides the notoriety that they crave.
As his notes creeped closer to the times in our history that I lived through, I enjoyed reading his thoughts of Kennedy and Nixon. HST felt that Kennedy was too young and inexperienced to be President, and maybe he was right, but HST seems to forget his own inexperience. But as a loyal Democrat, HST supported the election of Kennedy and was prepared to offer advice, therefore I was surprised that there was no mention of the Kennedy assassination in his notes, diaries or memorandums…. I thought, surely such a vile act would draw him out in rage, but this periodical is remiss on this subject.
Richard Nixon on the other hand was identified early on by HST as a snake in the grass. HST did not like slippery Dick, and history has proved his instincts correct.
HST stayed close to family and friends throughout his Presidency. The book includes numerous letters to these loved uncles, aunts, cousins, wife, daughter and friends from home. Many were interesting, yet, after 400 pages they became irrelevant to the story and a distraction.
The most amusing letters were those marked unsent. He drafted these letters in anger and was probably wise not to drop these bombs! In them, HST does not hold back his wrath over perceived disloyalty and lies; I wished some of these letters had been sent!
This is not a history book, it is nonfiction and a compilation of his letters, diary entries and memorandums; it mentions great events like the Atom bomb, the Korean War and omits other events like the Kennedy assassination. To my surprise, it does not go into much needed detail on any of these historic subjects. Any biographer needs access to these documents but standing alone they do not convey the total picture of his life and Presidency and that disappoints.
The Private Papers of Harry S Truman depict an America that was a better place to live then the America we have today, and that younger, kinder, less cynical America is what I enjoyed about reading the notes and journals of this great President.
January 13, 2013
It is good at times to be underrated.
January 17, 2022
Truman's presidency was before I was thought of but he's dealt with the same thing that we're dealing with now. Mainly Russia, states' rights, Senate behavior/misbehavior, media misinformation. Then the world was smaller but the problems were just as big as they are now. He was a well-read man - probably one of the best-read presidents we've had. I bet he could just as easily been a History teacher than been a politician.
October 24, 2025
4.5 stars rounded up to 5
Includes memoranda, diary entries and letters from President Harry S Truman. It’s not for everyone, but it is very interesting if you find Truman an interesting subject, and I do find that.
The entries are passionate and funny, and show a man dedicated to his service to a country he loved, a student of history (particularly of strong leaders), and a family man through and through.
Includes memoranda, diary entries and letters from President Harry S Truman. It’s not for everyone, but it is very interesting if you find Truman an interesting subject, and I do find that.
The entries are passionate and funny, and show a man dedicated to his service to a country he loved, a student of history (particularly of strong leaders), and a family man through and through.
July 10, 2015
Harry Truman being Harry Truman
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews