Nothing to Fear: FDR's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America

by Adam Cohen

A revealing account of the critical first days of FDR’s presidency, during the worst moments of the Great Depression, when he and his inner circle launched the New Deal and presided over the birth of modern America

Nothing to Fear brings to life a fulcrum moment in American history—the tense, feverish first one hundred days of FDR’s presidency, when he and his inner circle swept away the old order and reinvented the role of the federal government. When FDR took his oath of office in March 1933, thousands of banks had gone under following the Crash of 1929, a quarter of American workers were unemployed, farmers were in open rebellion, and hungry people descended on garbage dumps and fought over scraps of food. Before the Hundred Days, the federal government was limited in scope and ambition; by the end, it had assumed an active responsibility for the welfare of all of its citizens.

Adam Cohen offers an illuminating group portrait of the five members of FDR’s inner circle who played the greatest roles in this unprecedented transformation, revealing in turn what their personal dynamics suggest about FDR’s leadership style. These four men and one woman frequently pushed FDR to embrace more activist programs than he would have otherwise. FDR came to the White House with few firm commitments about how to fight the Great Depression—as a politician he was more pragmatic than ideological, and, perhaps surprising, given his New Deal legacy, by nature a fiscal conservative. To develop his policies, he relied heavily on his advisers, and preferred when they had conflicting views, so that he could choose the best option among them.

For this reason, he kept in close confidence both Frances Perkins—a feminist before her time, and the strongest advocate for social welfare programs—and Lewis Douglas— an entrenched budget cutter who frequently clashed with the other members of FDR’s progressive inner circle. A more ideological president would have surrounded himself with advisors who shared a similar vision, but rather than commit to a single solution or philosophy, FDR favored a policy of “bold, persistent experimentation.” As a result, he presided over the most feverish period of government activity in American history, one that gave birth to modern America.

As Adam Cohen reminds us, the political fault lines of this era—over welfare, government regulation, agriculture policy, and much more—remain with us today. Nothing to Fear is both a riveting narrative account of the personal dynamics that shaped the tumultuous early days of FDR’s presidency, and a character study of one of America’s defining leaders in a moment of crisis.

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

372 pages, Hardcover

First published December 24, 2008

Reviews

[Aaron Million · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adam Cohen presents a nicely balanced account of Franklin Roosevelt's famous first one hundred days as President, including a little bit prior to his inauguration. Nicely balanced in the sense that Cohen does not press a political agenda or judgment either way regarding the New Deal although generally he seems favorable to most aspects of it while also acknowledging its failings; as well, the narrative is a consistent mix of policy prescriptions and personal anecdotes, resulting in a flowing narrative that still hits on the main points Cohen wishes to focus on. In the beginning, Cohen helps to set the stage by examining some of the decisions made by Herbert Hoover in 1931-1932, and how the electorate clearly wanted a change, more out of frustration at Hoover and fear of starvation than anything else. Cohen, instead of a scatter-shot approach, decides to zero in on a handful of influential people at the beginning of the Roosevelt Administration: Lewis Douglas, Frances Perkins, Raymond Moley, Henry Wallace, and Harry Hopkins.

Especially interesting are the chapters covering the farm crisis and the background of Wallace, the new Secretary of Agriculture. While history later viewed him as a mystical appeaser, in the early 1930s he was a recognized expert on farming, had an in-depth knowledge about many plants and crops, and was familiar with the issues that the nation's farmers were facing. The farming situation was almost of equal importance as the overall economic situation, since at that time there was still a significant percentage of people directly employed in farming or some type of agricultural endeavor. Also, some pockets in the Midwest were beginning to see farmers turn radical, and in a few cases, violent.

Perkins was the new Secretary of Labor, and was a pioneer in that she was the first female Cabinet member. Considering the political and social climate of today, this still ranks as an important appointment. Many people (men) doubted her abilities, simply because she was a woman. She was a very accomplished woman and had a genuine and deep concern for righting the wrongs faced by working people, and helping to get as many of them employed as possible. Cohen writes that she dismissed the sexism and did not let it affect her, yet one wonders how she could have completely pushed it out of her mind. She deserves a great deal of credit for persevering in a male-dominated political environment, standing her ground, and not forgetting who she was trying to help. She was Labor Secretary the entire time that FDR was in office (twelve years and one month). The only other Cabinet member to achieve that was Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes.

Moley, and especially Douglas, were quite conservative, although Moley grew more so after he left the Administration. They both worked on economic matters, with Douglas being the Director of the Budget. Cohen seems to focus part of the book on them to show that, contrary to popular belief, not everyone involved with the New Deal was conservative. FDR himself even showed some fiscal conservatism as, going into office, he really did want to balance the budget. In fact, he had worked at that while he was Governor of New York. But, as the economic crisis deepened, he moved towards the left and away from worrying about balancing the budget.

Cohen finishes with a very good epilogue, briefly following all of the main characters after the Hundred Days ended and through the rest of their lives. Many times, books seem to end abruptly, with no or barely any mention of what happened to the people following the event(s) the book discusses. Cohen also reviews the long-term impact of the New Deal and how, in the 21st century, much of it is still very much with American society. If anything, I would have liked to have seen a few other people such Ickes spotlighted as well. But that is not a criticism. Anyone interested in FDR, his Cabinet, the period surrounding his inauguration, or the New Deal, will find this book quite interesting.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

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“Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the 100 Days that Created Modern America” is Adam Cohen’s 2009 review of the early days of the Franklin D. Roosevelt presidency. Cohen is a former lawyer and member of the New York Times editorial board. He is currently an editor at The National Book Review.

As its title suggests, “Nothing to Fear” is not a comprehensive biography of Franklin Roosevelt nor is it a thorough examination of his entire New Deal program. Instead, it is a narrative that stitches together a review of FDR’s first “Hundred Days” and mini-biographies of five of his closest advisers.

The 318-page book begins as FDR takes office and Cohen thoughtfully devotes most of the first chapter to setting the economic backdrop against which Roosevelt assumed office. As part of this exercise the author castigates the Hoover administration for its failures, but otherwise very little political bias is evident. Only when two of the book’s final three paragraphs are devoted to lambasting contemporary conservative politics is this spirit of near-neutrality destroyed.

In some ways Cohen’s book resembles a mini “Team of Rivals” but without the same analytical depth or character development which Goodwin injected into her book (covering the Lincoln administration). Nonetheless, this successful journalist’s writing style leads to a narrative which proves remarkably engaging despite the occasionally dry underlying topics.

“Nothing to Fear” provides the reader with a good – but not great – review of FDR’s first “Hundred Days.” Its best feature is the series of biographical sketches it offers of Harry Hopkins, Frances Perkins, Henry Wallace, Lewis Douglas and Raymond Moley – individuals instrumental in driving Roosevelt’s early legislative initiatives but who have been largely (if not quite entirely) forgotten.

Cohen’s narrative occasionally becomes so focused on these men and women at the center of FDR’s progressive program that it loses contact with the Hundred Days altogether, if only for a few pages at a time. And although the reader frequently encounters President Roosevelt himself, his character and personality (as well as his politics to a significant degree) remain mostly unexplored.

Because FDR’s Hundred Days did not end the Depression – or witness all of his notable progressive achievements – the book feels somewhat incomplete when it ends. In an effort to mitigate this, the final chapter briefly covers FDR’s agenda beyond the Hundred Days and follows the primary characters past Roosevelt’s presidency. Still, one gets the sense this book would love to have had its mission expand to cover the entire New Deal.

Overall, “Nothing to Fear” offers an engaging review of the earliest months of FDR’s presidency. Cohen provides a solid, but not exceptional, review of these “Hundred Days” and often excellent biographical vignettes of some of his key advisers. However, this is a book which will best serve readers already familiar with Roosevelt seeking to learn more about his inner circle, not for readers new to FDR intent on reading “just one” book on each U.S. president.

Overall rating: 3¾ stars

[Donald Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great history of the first hundred days of the Franklin Roosevelt presidency and five of his most prodigious advisors. This was a critically monumental time of our history, adding to the pleasure of reading this book. The author made the real lives come in to focus, revealing the foibles and the accomplishments. Thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[Bob Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt came to office in March of 1933, banks, businesses and farms were failing, unemployment stood at 25%, thousands of Americans were going hungry, and an increasing number of citizens were talking of armed rebellion. And FDR was promising “action and action now” but he was a fiscal conservative, and he had only a few untested ideas, “experiments” he called them, on how to pull the nation out of the Depression.

Thankfully, at this very critical time, FDR made some really excellent choices when it came to the selection of advisers. Raymond Moley, who coined the phrase “new deal”, helped revive the banking system and move vital new legislation quickly through congress. Henry Wallace, the new secretary of agriculture, helped save farmers with legislation that propped up commodity prices by paying them to grow less. Frances Perkins, as secretary of labor and the first woman cabinet member, pushed a reluctant president to support federal relief and public works, minimum -wage and maximum-hours laws, a ban on child labor, and other progressive initiatives. Harry Hopkins as administrator of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, focused on rapidly getting money out to the states and the hungry people who needed it and created the country’s first federal welfare program. And Lewis Douglas, as the first budget director, was the counterbalance, pushing Congress to pass the Economy Act that actually slashed the federal budget.

Radical action was necessary to pull the US out of the Depression, and thanks to the work of FDR, these advisers, and a surprisingly cooperative congress, a government that had traditionally shunned social programs, suddenly took on a strong, active role in providing relief for a hungry, reeling, out-of-work America.

The New Deal didn’t end the Great Depression, but it moved the nation towards a more healthy economy. By 1937, due in part to a series of federal programs-- the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Agricultural Adjustment Act, the Federal Emergency Relief Act, the Public Works Administration, the Civil Works Administration, and the Works Progress Administration--the unemployment rate had dropped to 14%. The gross national product had come back to 1929 levels. And for people who were still unemployed, there was now a safety net.

There are striking parallels between FDR’s time and the present. Unemployment is higher than it has been in years. Businesses and banks have been failing at alarming rates. Citizens continue to lose their homes to foreclosure. And ongress has acted controversially, in this case, bailing out banks and businesses and passing a hotly contested health insurance reform bill.

In 1935, Republican presidential candidate, Alfred Landon, made FDR’s new Social Security program a campaign issue, telling Americans that to fund the new program, money would be taken out of their paychecks, money that they would never see again. Does it sound at all like the dire predictions we have been hearing from health insurance reform naysayers?

Roosevelt went on to defeat Landon in a landslide in 1936, and social security continues to provide income for retired seniors and persons with disabilities these 75 years later. Those times are not identical to these times, but in ‘Nothing to Fear, Cohen serves us up a timely history lesson.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It might bore some people but I LOVED this inside look at FDR's cabinet. It's far more about Frances Perkins, Henry Wallace and Harry Hopkins (among others) than Roosevelt. But really you can't understand how we got to modern america without understanding something about this. It seems to me this is the beginning of much of what most of us think America stands for.

[Elisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Important to know that, though FDR stands as one of the most competent and history-making presidents in the US, he couldn’t have achieved much without a team. Lincoln did the same when he was in office (must read: Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin).
And what a find Frances Perkins is! Wow. I didn’t even know she was the first female Cabinet member, let alone how much she got done, with heart and principle before and beyond anything else.

[Elan Garfias · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully readable account of the First New Deal, told primarily through the careers of Raymond Moley, Rexfrd Tugwell, Francis Perkins, Harry Hopkins, and Henry Wallace. Perkins and Wallace in particular have really interesting backstories, while Moley and some of the other budgetary figures brought in by Roosevelt ended up breaking with the president and going over to the opposition. Yet he represents a key part of the early administration that's pretty easy to gloss over in hindsight. Though now known for his spending projects, Roosevelt started off as a reduce-the-deficit type politician, which explains how the massive jobs projects that came to characterize the WPA and other make-work schemes started off with the threadbare budget of the CCC. Given the massive expansion of federal agencies, many of the so-called alphabet agencies began with a few guys in an office and then grew pretty ad-hoc from there. While I had to reread some of the chapters on banking reform, Nothing to Fear moves at a great pace and closes with a speedrun of the Second New Deal era and the political afterlives of its protagonists.

[Leah K · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book focuses on Roosevelt and his cabinet as they worked on creating the New Deal. And if you've ever been thankful for unemployment benefits, child labor laws, banking standards, minimum wage, 40 hours work weeks, etc - you can thank those people, nearly 90 years later. This was an interesting book that was brimming with information. So much information that there's no way I could retain it all. I did learn about Francis Perkins, the first female cabinet member who you can appreciate for just about every effort to support low income families and children AND labor and union laws - she was a badass. I learned a lot, and as a history geek, I enjoyed it.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

As indicated by the subtitle, NOTHING TO FEAR: FDR'S INNER CIRCLE AND THE HUNDRED DAYS THAT CREATED MODERN AMERICA, this book is heavily biographical, focusing on key members of President Franklin Roosevelt's cabinet and other close advisers who helped cobble together the greatest burst of legislative activity in American history.

One standout figure is Frances Perkins, FDR's labor secretary and the first female cabinet member in U.S. history. It's a shame that, when people speak of the role of women in the 1930s and '40s, she's not mentioned in the same breath as Eleanor Roosevelt (who, after all, did not actually make policy). I came away from Adam Cohen's book with a newfound appreciation of how much of the New Deal is attributable to Perkins's work and ideas. She and Harry Hopkins are probably the two most admirable figures (aside from Roosevelt himself) in the government's response to the Depression.

The book also provides a highly useful examination of the agricultural reforms instituted by the New Deal, as well as the often-overlooked (and macroeconomically insane) efforts to cut spending in the Economy Act of 1933, authored and pushed by FDR's budget point person, Lewis Douglas.

The rest of the tale is standard fare--critiquing President Hoover's awful economic policies, walking through the Roosevelt administration's response to the banking crisis. All in all, I closed this book thinking to myself, once again, "thank god for the New Deal," but the book itself was not as remarkable as it was marketed to be. Recommended reading only if you have minimal familiarity with the "100 Days" that launched Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. If Goodreads offered a half-star option, I'd rate it 3.5 stars.

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Franklin D. Roosevelt began his presidency in 1932 during the Great Depression. Americans were suffering 25 per cent unemployment. Banks were failing rapidly as panicked depositors demanded to withdraw their savings. Farms were being repossessed and farmers were thrown off their land. The new President put together an unconventional cabinet determined to stop the economic bleeding and feed the hungry. History tells us that they succeeded beyond all expectations.

During the Trump era we have become cynical and mistrustful of our federal government, with good reason. Hyper partisanship has become the norm. Compromise is a sign of weakness. Unreliable news reports skew basic facts. During the New Deal era people trusted the President. The Federal Government, Democrats and Republicans alike, dedicated themselves to helping American workers improve their lives. The contrast between the two eras saddens me greatly and invokes anxiety about the future.

[Jeffrey Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

When first seeing the title of this book, it gives a pretty good idea of what Adam Cohen, New York Times editorial page editor and author, was going to be writing about. It is a fantastic take on President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's crucial, first 100 days, and in-depth analysis of his cabinet members who were unlike any this nation had truly seen before. These first 100 days were so important because they were the beginning of a major social change after a rather lame Hoover administration had only worsened the situation of the Great Depression, but Roosevelt would redefine what the government's role was in the lives of its citizens. Roosevelt's first 100 days would be riddled with socialistic, economic policies comprised in the first and second New Deals, and through Cohen they are described perfectly and given an enthusiastic approach to events that would normally not be interesting, except to the common historian or political scientist. I was able to find this book for a relatively cheap price on Amazon at around $15 for a brand-new copy, and it was delivered rather quickly in excellent condition. A quite enjoyable part of the book is that between pages 116 and 117 are a few laminated pages of pictures of Roosevelt, Eleanor, and his cabinet members that are usually the focus of every chapter.
Cohen's beginning to this book is filled with his personal views and an in-depth introduction to the rest of the chapters of this book but uses well researched facts to support his claims about the previous administration and the administration to come. One such sentence that Cohen eludes to the overall tone of the nation is, "After assuring a despairing nation that "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself," Roosevelt promised "action, and action now."" He starts into the first chapter by outlining the inauguration day, from the struggles of finding rides from the church to the inauguration of Roosevelt and then to the parade after. Cohen mentions the polio that had nearly incapacitated Roosevelt from being able to properly walk more than a few feet, requiring heavy metal leg braces to take those few important steps to conceal his disability from many of his peers and the American people. He also notes the general quietness of the car ride taken by Roosevelt and Hoover, with Hoover having such a distaste for Roosevelt and Roosevelt having not a care in the World for his predecessor's feelings towards him.
One thing that I found quite interesting was how Cohen would speak about each act that was passed under Roosevelt's administration, but would make a point to not only talk about those who designed, he would also give their precise backgrounds that he believed influenced their positions on these social issues. Each of them having a very unique and interesting story that clearly defined them as the people they were.
One example of this was Frances Perkins, Roosevelt's Labor Secretary, the first woman to serve as a cabinet member under a president, who came from a wealthy New England background, but insisted on denying her parents' wishes after school and moved to some of the roughest places in the nation to work to better improve their citizens situations. Cohen goes onto describe her transition from one city to the next, moving up the chain of command, eventually landing in New York City, where she would fight to promote better working conditions, higher wages, and shorter work weeks for women and children, especially. He also mentions the state of her husband who had suffered from mental illness, making her the only provider for her family, but when Roosevelt, who she had first had a distaste for, would offer her the job of labor secretary, she consulted her husband on what he believed she should do. This distaste that Perkins had for the future president would change after he developed polio and changed into almost an entirely different man, she said that it had influenced him to develop a new sense of compassion for the people.
Perkins was a vital weapon to Roosevelt even before his presidency as she fought for many of the same policies as Roosevelt and his predecessor Al Smith in New York state, but Roosevelt and Perkins disagreed on the topic of giving direct relief to the people, which Roosevelt had always been very outspoken on his opposition to handouts and preferred work programs. These work programs were used in beautification and improvement of industry in the country, but they also importantly provided jobs for the people that had been unemployed, providing a new sense of self-worth to the "forgotten man."
With Perkins, Cohen also would describe her first few days, hitting the ground running and completely wiping out a corrupt "task force" that had been wildly abusing the power of the Department of Labor, even mentioning the decrepit conditions of the building she would take over from the mold on the ceilings to the roaches that swarmed the floors. Cohen's use of these details painted a very vivid picture of this woman, who on the outside seemed so bland, but was in fact a thoughtful, determined, and genuine human being that threw herself into a life that would have been avoidable thanks to her family's wealth.
The author had really done research on all of those that he covered in this book to the point here you would begin to question how he had in fact found all of this deeply personal and descriptive information. His analysis of Henry A. Wallace, Secretary of Agriculture, would not just cover his development and rise into positions, but would go back two generations to his grandfather's decisions to move West from a reverend in Pennsylvania to a farmer in Iowa. Cohen also spoke of the Wallace family's ambitions in politics, Wallace's father serving as the United States Secretary of Agriculture years before Henry A. would take the position. Cohen spoke beautifully about Henry A.'s passions for hybridization of crops and the revolutionary changes it brought to agriculture in general, and the popular publications that his family had used to influence Iowan politics. Wallace's transition from a Republican to Democrat was also importantly mentioned but would not have happened if it had not been for his family's distrust and general hate for Herbert Hoover and his administration. These politics would be important for Roosevelt as he would eventually win Iowa in an astounding victory and would use Wallace as his secret weapon to rally the farmers' unions and councils behind the Agricultural Adjustment Act that had been met with large opposition due to only a few small details.
In every chapter, Cohen would constantly take breaks from the cabinet members to speak on Roosevelt's campaigning, but was also able to tie every chapter together perfectly as if it were seamless. This was fantastic because it would offer reflections on what had brought Roosevelt from a wealthy, socialite New Yorker to the position as President of the United States. With each chapter brought more details about the policies that Roosevelt fought to enact and those would do the not-so-dirty work behind the scenes to ensure that these social changes would pass past those who had opposed any policies that were even considered slightly socialistic. Cohen's description of the use of the Roosevelt Fireside Chats was as if they were weapons in a war against poverty and would be a tactic Roosevelt used to swing the people in favor of his ideas and ensure their cooperation, especially when it was required that Americans leave their money in the banks to fix the banking crisis that became the first issue tackled by his administration.
As a Political Science undergraduate, this book really pulled me into learning about one of the greatest presidential administrations that has arguably left the blueprint for the modern democratic government and opened my mind to future solutions of economic crises. It also gave me an inside look on those cabinet members that have had a lasting impact on the state of modern economics, industry, labor, and agriculture. Even for those who aren't in the political or historical fields, it can inspire one to form a sense of compassion for the population of the United States and would give a glimpse into the early and mid-1900s of the nation.
Cohen did such a fantastic job writing this piece of literature and I'm strongly considering reading another one of his books just because of that enthusiasm he can bring to those subjects that are slightly boring. I would highly recommend this book to everyone and anyone interested in the topic or to those who just want a good book to read in their down time. Roosevelt's struggles with his physical health and his perseverance in not allowing it to hinder his hopes and dreams for America will inspire those who read this book to themselves strive for greatness and prosperity They say one can never understand the present without first understanding history, and this book is a vividly perfect reassurance of the validity of that statement.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

Twenty Five percent. Also, referred to as a quarter or even .25. That’s the percentage of American that were unemployed in the year 1934. A staggering truth for a staggering era in the history of America. These blatantly catastrophic times in history are discussed by Adam Cohen in his novel, Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days that Created Modern America.
Published in 2009 on January 8th by the Penguin Group, Cohen examines the country in the year 1933 while deliberately discussing the role of Franklin Roosevelt and his first one hundred days in office as well as how pivotal they were. Retail Price was set reasonably cheap, twenty-nine dollars, as of late you can find the book for as cheap as four dollars on sites such as Amazon or Chegg. A small fee for A former New York Times best seller. Cohen on the other hand is no stranger to the way the world works. Born on 1962, Adam Cohen would graduate from the Bronx High School of Science. Afterwards he would proceed to get not only his bachelor’s degree from Harvard college but would later go on to receive his Law Degree from Harvard Law School. Cohen would go on to become an American Journalist, author lawyer, and former assistant editorial page editor of The New York Times. Currently, Cohen served as an editor for The National Book Review. He is well qualified for such an in depth look at such a drastic time in history. His point of view however is interesting due to the fact that he didn’t just provide a biography of Roosevelt or attack the matter from an overview standpoint. Instead Cohen used individual biographies in order to push the narrative through several different issues that plagued the country. By doing this his is allowing the reader to get an extra look at how FDR dealt with each issue though his trusted colleagues.
Primarily, the 318-page book is neither a biography of Franklin Roosevelt nor a reflection of the effectiveness of the entire First New Deal, instead the theme of the book focuses on the first hundred days of Roosevelts presidency while throwing in small biographies of five of Roosevelts closest advisors. The first chapter of the book is set aside to lay some historical background; Cohen criticizes the Hoover administration for their lackadaisical outlooks on the economics of the country. Other than that, there is no clear evidence of any political bias presented by Cohen. One of the most interesting characteristics about the book is the incorporation of the biographies of Francis Perkins, Henry Wallace, Raymond Moley, Harry Hopkins, and Lewis Douglas. These individuals were pivotal to the success of Roosevelts early legislative goals but are easily overshadowed. By providing these small biographies the reader is able to get a look at FDR’s pragmatic leadership style as well.
As the book progresses, we get an underlying look at how trivial the first hundred days of Roosevelts presidency really was. Throughout the book Cohen offers readers an inside look to political responses to crises. In his first hundred days, Roosevelt and his administration would pass up to 15 bills in congress. This period of time would go down in history as one of the most intense period of lawmaking ever taken on by Congress. The New Deal pertained to five new programs in which all primarily attempted to aid in the economic depression that was at the time looming over the United States. In no specific order, they are as follows; Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), National Industry Recovery Act (NIRA), Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA), The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. These few sects are seemingly the most important new aspects introduced in the first hundred days. The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was introduced in order to provide solid relief system to the poor. The program would spend up to 500 million dollars on things such as soup kitchens and nursery schools. The FERA would get dismantled in 1935 however to be replaced by the Works Progress Administration and the Social Security Administration, also two important programs enacted to aid in the economic growth of a desperate society. In relation to aiding the ones in need the Civilian Conservation Corps was responsible for employing young men to work on conservation projects during the summer. Cohen relates the corps to a sort of military force without military action. A group of individuals who would plant trees in order to prevent things such as soil erosion. Not only did this help the employment rate but it also aided in the agriculture of the nation which was also suffering do to over farming and things of that nature, ultimately causing farmers and agriculturalist to struggle making a profit. This is where the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Administration played a larger role. The AAA was founded on the bases that if crop prices were to raise in response to the current economic crisis it would ultimately aid in the progression of the economy as it related to agriculture. The sister act to this act was the NIRA, which was placed as a direct combatant to the economy. It was broken down into two subsections the PWA and the NRA, in turn they would use government money to build infrastructure. This demand for new construction called on new jobs to be created. We would then go on to see the use of child labor as young as 12 in some cases as well. In retrospect, wages would increase, thus making the consumer market grow. If workers made more, they could spend more. One of the most long lasting of these acts was the Tennessee Valley Authority which is still in use some major parts of the country today. Through the use of damn and Coal mines, the TVA was not only able to aid in the environment by creating a more suitable environment for farming but it created one of the largest hydroelectricity providers in the country and remains so till this day. Roosevelt referred to the TVA as “a corporation clothed with the power of the government but possessed of the flexibility and initiative of a private enterprise”.
In retrospect, however, it is to my understanding that Cohen presents the information of these first hundred days in a bleak and straight forward way. I, Jared Roy, an aspiring political scientist, found the reading quite refreshing do to its unorthodox way to presenting information. It’s interesting to see how Cohen displays all of the information through these individual biographies instead of just laying out the information in black and white like a normal textbook would usually do. By mixing it up, Cohen is able to almost provide a sense of wonderment behind FDR’s decision making in dealing with a dismantled economy and a torn government. With that being said I would highly recommend such a read to others simply due to the fact that its written from a journalist standpoint. In the epilogue, Cohen states: The accomplishments of the Hundred days were in large part a matter of timing. Roosevelt took office at a moment of unprecedented national Crisis. The journalist Ernest K. Lindely Spoke for many when we warned that Roosevelt had less than a year to save the country from complete collapse. The desperate economic conditions made the America people rethink their fundamental values. They were willing to consider things where there was 25 percent unemployment that they would not have contemplated in better times.”. Its Cohen’s use of drastic diction that relays the severity of the matter into present times. These short phrases describing the dramatic times could be found spread from cover to cover in the read. It’s refreshing because it shows the double-edged sword that comes with a career in politics. Time is always of the essence regardless of the severity of the issue. In FDR’s case, he was facing complete economic collapse and Cohen is able to capture that not only through the lenses of the of the political leaders involved but through the eyes and pockets of the American people. Ultimately It’s safe to say that I agree with Cohen in the way that he presents his information as well as his representation of the First Hundred Days. The most interesting thing to me is the fact that no matter how straight forward and dell one may percept when talking about the legislature of getting some of these things accomplished, Cohen is always able to get the reader to tie historical context with things that occur in modern day. Making the reader almost wonder what would they have done in such drastic times. What would you do if the world’s most powerful county was in the palm of your hands?

[Zeida Alvarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book on modern America that boasts about teamwork, not just a president. FDR’s grand work on the New Deal during his first hundred days would not have been as impressionable and impactful if it was not for his inner circle. Adam Cohen delightfully displays the bipartisan comradery that FDR wanted and needed and the push that was given to him from his administration to navigate the first few months through riveting narrative.
The title of the book, Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and The Hundred Days That Created Modern America provides the basis Adam Cohen wanted to express on how the first hundred days of FDR’s presidency that could only happen because of the success of his inner circle. Cohen wanted to provide the effectiveness of FDR’s inner circle and the proactive leadership styles of FDR in a grounded way. The book’s language is engaging and energetic; it provides the best and worst moments in an endearing light for the focus of the inner circle, which is a side that is not typically sought after for showing the greatness of FDR. Nothing to Fear was published by the Penguin Group in 2009 through Penguin Books. The book is sold at Barnes and Noble for $17 and on Amazon for $14; I was lucky to have gotten it through a third party on Amazon for around eight dollars. However, the book is still relatively cheap and easy to get a hold of, so there are just more and more positives for Cohen’s Nothing to Fear.
Adam Cohen is an American author, journalist, and lawyer. He is known for previously being a part of the New York Times editorial board, as well as a staff attorney for ACLU in the 1990s during the Harper v. Hunt case. Cohen is currently an editor at The National Book Review and resides in New York City working for the administration of Mayor de Blasio.
Nothing to Fear, allows for the conversation on FDR’s eagerness, without real thought, to get things done to be told through the workings of his inner circle and how the inner circle was the real reason for the success of the New Deal. Cohen allows for a spotlight for each of the five people that make up FDR’s team, Frances Perkins, Harry Hopper, Henry Wallace, Raymond Moley, and Lewis Douglas to shine through with each chapter through narrative prose. Each of the members bringing their flair of progress that it needed to express the highest highs and the failures of the New Deal while still intertwining the lives of the first hundred days of FDR. The book’s style works in a way to keep the New Deal in a modern language, for people young and old to fully understand the purpose of the immediate action that FDR wanted from his inner circle.
Adam Cohen sets the start of the book on the day of FDR’s Inauguration through the whereabouts of Frances Perkins. From there, Cohen creates a narrative that transitions beautifully from what is being seen into facts about the subject matter. For example, in Chapter one, “Action, and Action Now” Cohen brings up watching FDR walk into St. John’s Episcopal Church prior to the ride to the inauguration holding onto his son James with his leg braces from his battle with polio and leads into Roosevelt’s history with polio. There are further instances of narrative-to-facts that allow for a person to attach the facts to an instance to make the information much more memorable. By the next two chapters, Cohen follows the final course of Herbert Hoover’s presidency and the negatives for the first quarter of the book to make FDR’s fierce agenda be seen as the breath of fresh air for the American people. It also begins the focus of Raymond Moley, Roosevelt’s right-hand and the bank crisis that needed to be fixed quickly, but also the neglect he had felt from not being used to his fullest potential by FDR. It then goes into the frugalness of FDR and his choice to budget, Lewis Douglas, a conservative choice that would cause a stirrup in the cabinet. Cohen proceeds to go into Henry Wallace’s lead up into his role of Secretary of Agriculture and the plan of “domestic allotment” that changed farm production and the eventual farm belt depression and the creation of farming policy. The continuation of the farming dilemma was explained further and how Wallace and Rexford Tugwell worked to create the Agriculture Adjustment Act. Cohen’s next chapters work on Frances Perkins and how she became the Secretary of Labor, while showcasing the feminist moves that she made. She worked to make unemployment insurance and better working conditions in New York and how those wants led her initiative in her cabinet. Cohen ends on Hopkins and the course he took in his life from social work to becoming an advocate for relief programming during FDR’s time as governor. This relationship allowed for Hopkins to be apart of the cabinet and bring those ideas to the forefront as the WPA. Adam Cohen ties the book together by showing the reception from the public to all the work done on the New Deal by the end of the first hundred days and what was left to do within the cabinet to move forward with their plans.
In chapter six, “’Social Justice’… Has Been the Maxim of Her Life” Cohen reintroduces Frances Perkins by giving the reader her first days in office, and continuing with how she was such a qualified candidate for the industrial commissioner during FDR’s time as governor of New York, through all of her previous work and the paths her life has taken. Her life led her to Roosevelt after Al Smith and he decided to make her head of the Labor Department. There was a passage within the chapter that proves Perkins’ personality and shows that Cohen gives a real personal look to each person. The passage was what hooked me in to learning more about Frances Perkins in general, but also the extensive work that it took to be a woman to get somewhere,” Roosevelt noted the pioneering nature of the appointment, but Perkins refused to congratulate him on his open-mindedness. “It was more of a victory for Al to bring himself to appoint a woman, never appointed before,” she told Roosevelt,” than it is for you to when I have a record as a responsible public officer for almost ten years.” For me, that statement hits hard in the equality realm and that still needs to be expressed today. That passage and knowing that Perkins was all about the even playing field even back then, makes reading this book worthwhile.
Adam Cohen brings an inventive and original narrative to the history of FDR’s first hundred days. Cohen’s focus on FDR’s cabinet allows for the further expression of the great beginnings to be rooted with the help FDR had been given. Cohen’s viewpoint illustrates the pros and cons throughout the book is a well-structured and balanced way that a person may not come across when reading another book on the similar topic. This book created the primer needed for the average person to understand that FDR did not have a strict agenda, but have developed it through educated advisors.
As someone who is generally not on the lookout for books like Nothing to Fear, I was pleasantly surprised to have actually stayed with the book until the end and truly enjoyed the journey through the inner workings of the most significant plan for a better nation, a better and modern America, in general. The book allows us to go through the first hundred days with FDR and his top five aides, Frances Perkins, Harry Hopper, Henry Wallace, Raymond Moley, and Lewis Douglas. Cohen puts us in the narrative as if we are with them in the cabinet deciding the new course of action or we are late for FDR’s Inauguration with Perkins and Wallace. It makes me more grateful to see the impact through the lens of Cohen’s unbiased view, with a little sprinkle of democratic opinion rather than through a few boring lectures.
Nothing to Fear allows for the leadership and honesty FDR is so proudly remembered for to be entirely on display within the narrative of his administration that it keeps the reader hooked. It also allows for the “forgotten men and woman” of the New Deal to have their stories told as they should be, as the backbone of the first hundred days of FDR’s presidency while tying it all together to show how important the rest of the first presidential term was for history and modern-day America. If a student needs a quick read that can help them figure out who FDR’s cabinet was and how he got to be one of the most beloved presidents of the United States.

[Niat Andu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing to Fear is a book written to contain and treasure the history of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s biography and presidency. This book gives us almost every detail about the New Deal and other major reforms that were passed, everything that led up to the day of the inauguration and after. Being that this book took place during the Great Depression, you get a sense of how things were back then and how difficult it was to lead a life as an American citizen.

This book was narrated by Adam Cohen, an American Journalist who worked for the New York Times as an assistant page editor. He graduated from Harvard College and obtained his Law degree from Harvard Law School. Cohen also authored several other books besides Nothing to Fear, he co-authored the American Pharaoh; The Perfect Store; and Imbeciles. Cohen’s style of writing makes his book an easy read. Chapter one mainly focused on third person writing style because it focused more on the history; background; and introduction of the important politicians of that time.

Chapter two was slightly different because it was mainly commentary which can become quite a bore, but it was written so well it makes the reader create a dialogue in their head as they read. Overall, as a reader you feel very much involved in all the chapters. Cohen knows how to capture a story and has the gift of being able to bring that story to life. For a non-fiction book you get all sorts of imaginations as you read this book, and that’s a wonderful connection to have between the author and his audience. Cohen was able to tell this brief story of history by bringing it to vivid life. Cohen was a reliable source of information, especially knowing that he was a former assistant page editor in the New York Times, he was able to use his resources to write this exceptional book that captured the Great Depression to a tee.

By the time FDR was inaugurated as president in 33’, America was in horrible shape. Banks were closing not only in a few states but thirty-eight other states. unemployment was plummeting, and farms were being foreclosed on because the farmers couldn’t afford to keep it going. Almost twenty thousand farms were being foreclosed on each month, which was sad because that’s how they made a living and that was their home. People were living in “Hooverville’s”, eating at soup kitchens, and digging through trash to find food, practically living like dogs. The Great Depression was by far the most devastating in American history. Cohen describes how people were getting by at the time, how many jobs people lost, and how stock prices plunged eighty-five percent. It was devastating and horrific, the entire nation was suffering from being homeless, jobless, and hungry. As a reader it really pulls you in and makes you sympathize and angry almost because at some point in our history this happened, and it forces you to think if this was to happen again, would we survive? One quote that spoke to me the most was when Harold Ickes (the incoming secretary of the interior) recalled “Millions of people were half-fed… barely clothed, and living more like kennelless dogs than human beings.” (Cohen, 15) The country suffered politically and economically, which would change overpoweringly as soon as FDR’s administration took over. Within the first three months FDR signed at least 14 major acts of legislation to fight the depression. By the end of the hundred days the banking system was reformed and back up and running. Federal relief for farmers, homeowners, and the unemployed was back to great starting pace and America was finally off the gold standard. These were all upright changes that gave American’s hope under Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration.

The book starts off with the introduction of Frances Perkins getting ready to head to FDR’s inauguration from The Willard Hotel. Perkin’s was to be the first woman to become a part of the Cabinet members and an officer of the New Deal that Franklin Delano Roosevelt assembled during that time to fight the Great Depression and Perkin’s just happened to be the perfect fit to making history. Perkin’s plays a big part in being a part of FDR’s cabinet, especially during the Great Depression. She was a social worker but also known as “America’s leading industrial reformer, and the scourge of unscrupulous factory owners.” (Cohen, 14) Perkins was a big part of history being the first woman to be hand picked by a president into the cabinet. This is very impowering for women readers, especially in this generation with all the woman power and feminist movements.

Cohen not only praises FDR but he also recognizes all the political figures that were a part of the cabinet, and so forth who advised FDR during that time. And that is why Cohen gives at least a two-page recognition to each of the advisors by giving the reader a quick biography. These advisors so to speak are the “forgotten men” they will only be remembered by historians. But Cohen gives them light because that’s the least they deserve after building this country from scratch. Without people like Frances Perkins, Rexford Tugwell, Lewis Douglas, Henry Wallace, Raymond Moley, William Woodin, Harry Hopkins, the New Deal wouldn’t have been so successful. It was the ideas of everyone as a collective that brought change to nation we live in today.

The setting influenced the plot of the book, again this book took place during the Great Depression, there’s a great differentiation between what a good president and a bad president looks like regarding Hoover and FDR. We get to experience and vicariously live through the American people and see how both presidents helped for the better or worse to overcome the Great Depression.
In my opinion I really enjoyed reading the book, it was a well-resourced and a well thought out book that represents a huge chunk of our history. Without reading this book I would have never gained so much knowledge about what took place during the Great Depression. I knew way too little about Franklin D. Roosevelt and when Cohen elaborates on his reforms and his life it’s very mesmerizing. FDR was a privileged man who later became the president of the United States while fighting Polio. Not only was he inspirational but as readers we can all use him as an example to lead our lives and overcome obstacles. Before reading this book, I was unsure to why he was viewed as a dictator of sorts. But after creating the New Deal and literally being the crutch of the American people, I would say he was one of my favorite presidents in history. He led this country with the help of his aides and his zealousness to achieve something greater than himself and that was to help all those who suffered during the Great Depression.

There is nothing to dislike about this book other than Hoover and maybe just too much commentary in some chapters. But overall, I would read a lot more by this author. I am considering reading Imbeciles because it has great reviews from what I’ve read. I love Cohen’s style of writing, it’s far from bias and it transitions well from chapter to chapter, he’s a prodigious exceptional storyteller, after all he is a Journalist.

I encourage readers to read this book if you’re interested in learning about American history and how life was like during the Great Depression. Not only do you get to experience and live vicariously through the people in this book, but you get some sense of appreciation in the world we live in now. We all have a goal and an idea of what we want to do to change the world and leave a mark and this book shows us how a handicap president was able to change a hopeless dying nation with the help of his sidekicks to bring this nation to life once and for all. I can undoubtedly tell you will not regret reading this book. This book is available on Amazon for a low price with expedited shipping if you are an amazon prime member. Have a pleasant read, hopefully my review has convinced you to purchase the book and not otherwise.

[Suzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this audiobook adn want to listen toit every year and to share it with others. I am A Democrat and a fan of FDR and the New Deal I guess that's obvious

[Paulla Ferreira Pinto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quando comecei à procura de bibliografia sobre o FDR, deparei-me com este livro e ponderei a sua imediata leitura. Optei, porém, por me iniciar com uma biografia dada a natureza mais específica das matérias aqui tratadas e por a minha curiosidade inicialmente me impelir para a vida de quem acabou por personificar um ideal social e que para muitos encarna a mítica figura de salvador de uma comunidade.
Em boa hora assim procedi na medida em que as prévias leituras sobre o FDR e a época histórica que marcou profundamente, permitiram-me ter uma ideia geral sobre os acontecimentos e a própria personalidade daquele, o que facilitou uma mais rápida, abrangente e aturada compreensão do que é nesta obra relatado, mas principalmente abriram espaço a que a curiosidade, que de início somente se focava no homem, se estendesse a todo o circunstancialismo social, político e económico da época e aos diversos actores que influenciaram decisivamente a sua presidência, nomeadamente nos cem dias iniciais do seu primeiro mandato.
No fundo, aquelas leituras criaram as condições necessárias para que me interessasse em conhecer com maior profundidade e detalhe as medidas legislativas e executivas tomadas e as pessoas, os cérebros, por detrás das mesmas, a forma como foram implementadas e as suas consequências no imediato e a longo prazo.
Ora, este livro correspondeu integralmente às minhas expectativas e satisfez inteiramente a minha curiosidade.
Desde logo porque, partindo da caracterização biográfica de cinco dos mais influentes membros que integraram a administração de FDR no primeiro quadriénio da sua presidência, traça o quadro das suas personalidades, visões sociais, políticas e experiências de vida, permitindo assim ao leitor antever as razões que subjazeram à sua nomeação para os cargos decisivos que ocuparam – não necessariamente de cariz institucional dentro do esquema governamental. O que também faculta a compreensão da direcção política que o presidente recém empossado pretendia seguir e bem assim as contradições que os diferentes enfoques ideológicos dos nomeados poderiam gerar e que surgiam de impossível conciliação (o que veio efectivamente a acontecer, nomeadamente entre Lewis Douglas, o “budget director”, e os demais, atendendo ao carácter fortemente conservador e fiscalmente restritivo do primeiro, adepto de um empedernido individualismo, tributário do doutrina do laisser faire).
Por outro lado, estas notas biográficas servem de esteio à explicação das medidas legislativas e executivas que se tornaram icónicas do New Deal. Explicação à qual o autor se dedica com a extensão que me surge adequada, relatando com algum pormenor o teor do projecto legislativo, as preocupações que o fundaram e os objectivos perseguidos, os percalços do complexo processo legislativo americano, nomeadamente a aposição de emendas pelas Câmaras do Congresso, para já não falar na inicial e bastas vezes difícil persuasão do próprio presidente pelos seus proponentes – do que é possível perceber que o pensamento político de FDR não se encontrava de modo algum sedimentado ou seguia um claro caminho progressista; pelo menos, não neste período inicial.
Oferece ainda uma resenha do destino das medidas legislativas, muitas das quais declaradas inconstitucionais pelo Supreme Court, mas que foram sendo substituídas por legislação mais estudada e cuidadosamente produzida, o que permitiu que a intencionalidade conformadora que as fundou regulasse efectivamente as relações sociais, laborais, económicas e financeiras durante as décadas seguintes, criando a estrutura legal que gerou, nas palavras do autor, a “modern america”; não sem antes enunciar as consequências imediatas no alívio da crise humanitária causada pela Depressão de 1929.
Termina com uma breve síntese da vida dos seus protagonistas após a sua saída do inner circle de FDR, o que, para uns, aconteceu pouco tempo após o início da sua presidência e, para outros, estendeu-se pelos quatro mandatos do presidente – sendo exemplo da primeira situação o acima já referido Lewis Douglas e da última Francis Perkins.
Não só esta obra me forneceu a informação que procurava como me fez interessar pela vida de alguns dos membros do gabinete de FDR, e, finalmente, relembrou-me que não há seres humanos que detenham a capacidade de, por si só, determinarem o curso da história e de resgatarem uma comunidade das disrupções naturais ou de convulsões sociais. Não há heróis solitários, nem indivíduos livres de mácula. Há, sim, circunstâncias que impelem a Humanidade a superar-se, concretizada historicamente num grupo de pessoas que executa o necessário à progressão da espécie.
Como escreveu Francis Perkins a Harry Wallace, dois dos protagonistas deste livro, a propósito do New Deal: “A lot happened out of the determination of a few people, didn´t it?”
Que nunca nos falte a determinação.

[Andre Gilbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing to Fear by Adam Cohen is a page-turning intimate look into the mechanics of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Administration during its first one hundred days. The author tells the story of how Franklin Roosevelt was influenced by his closest aides and confidants who pushed Roosevelt to embrace bold new solutions to pull America out of the most turbulent economic depressions in the country’s history.
Nothing to fear is also an exciting narrative that looks very carefully at the stories of the men and women who served in Franklin Roosevelt's cabinet, and particularly how their experience, brilliance, and wit served the President. These astonishing personalities, had at times, explosive encounters, but Roosevelt ably and eloquently managed the chaos, igniting a social, political and economic revolution that reshaped America and the role of government for all time.
The book is published by Penguin publishing, a widely accepted publishing group that publishes some of the most talented writers in the business. "Nothing to Fear: FDR’s inner circle and the hundred days that created modern America," is also very reasonably priced at $16 however, it can be purchased for as low as $14 and if you like reading on Kindle, for around $8. The book is an excellent find, and it is well worth the price to own this remarkable piece of history which provides great insight into how the country evolved into the America we live in today, and it provides an indication of how the nation will expand or contract in the future.
Adam Cohen, a Harvard law graduate, is the author of several other books including 'The Perfect Store: Inside eBay' and coauthor of 'American Pharaoh.' Cohen is currently the assistant editorial page editor of the New York Times. Previously, he had been a senior writer at Time, and before entering journalism, Cohen worked as an education reform lawyer. Adam Cohen’s background in law proved useful in creating this well structured, authentic and easy to understand narrative concerning some of the most controversial and daring legislation in American history since Abraham Lincoln. Cohen's astute disposition qualifies him to tell this fantastic story about Franklin Roosevelt and his inner circle.
In this book, the reader will gain an understanding of how the New Deal came into being, not just from the genius of Franklin Roosevelt's ability to look into the future, but also from the minds of his inner circle. An inner circle that was also quite visionary in understanding the need for putting America on a solid footing for the future. Franklin Roosevelt was also a very crafty man who knew how to employ the experts that he surrounded himself with to put his agenda into place.
The moment was not his alone. Franklin Roosevelt drew on the dreams, passions, and experience of those who surrounded him to forge from their collective one of the best outcomes in American history, earning him a spot alongside great Presidents such as James Madison and Abraham Lincoln, who together, had championed the American Spirit in their times.
The great depression was a far darker period in American history than most people realize. The author vividly describes the bleak and dire situation faced by most Americans as a result of President Herbert Hoover’s out of touch, arrogant approach to politics, and economics. Hoover was no stranger to dealing in absolutes, relying solely on one philosophy, that the free market would lead to an economic rebound and that better times were just around the corner. Hoover insisted time and again that the American people had only to wait it out. More astonishing than this was that Herbert Hoover was of the view that the poor, and the dissenters in America were part of the national crisis. Subsequently, Herbert Hoover treated these groups with disdain and without compassion.
In contrast, Franklin Delano Roosevelt promised action and action now! The American people agreed and chose Roosevelt’s plan giving him a landslide victory at the polls. Despite the fact that Franklin Roosevelt had many critics on both sides of the isle, Roosevelt synthesized his critic's ideas, modifying them into programs that were workable and sustainable for the American people.
One of the triumphs of this book was how Adam Cohen knitted the story from a place of despair to heights of hope. It was hope that Franklin Roosevelt wanted to bring to the American people, to renew their faith and revitalize their spirits through a broad range of economic stimulus programs, but also culturally relevant plans that preserved American identity, history, culture, art and the endurance of Americans. Franklin Roosevelt knew he had to get relief to the people quickly, so in his first 100 days Roosevelt declared a national bank holiday, educated the American public through fireside chats, restored public confidence, faith, and hope. Roosevelt, at near blinding speed, got Congress to pass legislative provisions to support initiatives, to create the relief that was so badly needed.
The author demonstrated that Roosevelt knew how to lean on his cabinet and the author does an excellent job by providing an incredible snapshot into the lives and minds of Roosevelt’s most inner circle. The book speaks to their character, their experiences and how their lives had shaped them into individuals that Franklin Roosevelt could use to orchestrate his ambitious agenda.
Franklin Roosevelt needed social reformers such as Raymond Moley, Henry Wallace, and Frances Perkins. Together these individuals, and especially Frances Perkins, helped to spearhead such revolutionary initiatives such as the "alphabet soup of agencies" that improved agriculture, infrastructure, conservation, economic relief, electricity, child labor laws, and other landmark reforms such as social security, the 40 hour work week and even fire escapes!
The reader will find that Franklin Roosevelt was an experimentalist, an open-minded individual who practiced commonsense approaches to solving problems. He was a man who was willing to listen and to try new things, but he gave everyone a hard time because he wanted to push for better results. Roosevelt desired to solve problems, but he wanted to do so cautiously and responsibly. As a result, he managed to cut the federal budget by $500 million while still providing relief to Americans by creating and implementing a new bureaucracy and government programs.
One of my most favorite and laughable moments reading Cohen’s book was the quotes from Labor Secretary Perkins. “They often talk about a new broom coming in and cleaning house when a new administration comes in,” Perkins said. “we actually had to sweep, clean and get rid of cockroaches before we could do much of any important work.” The Labor Department required a lot more cleaning up. It was a sinkhole of corruption and cronyism, perhaps the worst in the whole federal government— "a happy hunting ground,” as one contemporary account put it, “for superannuated labor union officials and the headquarters of some of the dirtiest deals in the history of the United States” (Page 158).
The use of quotes like this one provides the reader with insight into the minds of the characters, what they were thinking, how they were influenced, how they saw their world and what they thought they needed to do to change it.
Adam Cohen is brilliant in combining many of the U.S Supreme Court cases that were shaping American society and government at the time into this book. As an expert in law, Cohen provided insight into his writing that showed how Roosevelt was able to get things done. Adam Cohen's experience as a journalist has also served him well in delivering relevant and critical analysis of Franklin Roosevelt and his inner circle.
The book is of great interest to me because I have always been fascinated by the FDR Administration concerning World War II. It never dawned on me that Roosevelt was tasked with such domestic adversity as well. I knew that he had pushed one of the most progressive agenda’s in American history, especially concerning social reforms such as social security but after reading this book my eyes were opened to the intricate dynamics behind the people, behind the man, who brought the change forward. The book was written so vividly, taking into account the descriptions of what different actors were thinking and doing helped to bring the book to life.
No other book has captured the minds of these character as well as this book has, in my opinion. I found myself laughing out loud a few times because of how true to life some of the things that happened are. I felt that I had been transported back in time because the information was so relatable to my observations of the world today.
The author provided a unique viewpoint that distilled true gems. One of the most interesting conclusions that I derived from this book was that American democracy is both a dictatorship and a democracy. I gained a great deal of perspective from reading the book, and I believe that I have a better understanding of American politics by understanding historical context. I am better informed and aware of what is transpiring in politics today, and I believe that I have a much more informed intellectual capacity after seeing the world through the eyes of Franklin Roosevelt and his inner circle.
'Nothing to fear' is a relevant concept especially in the world of today. After reading 'Nothing to fear' I believe that we live in a good time in history where there is very little for us as Americans to fear. However, this book provided me with insight into better understanding how people in politics, business, and society utilize fear to manipulate others. Cohen’s book is brilliant in that it reminds us how to solve problems and how we as a people can accomplish anything as long as we do not let fear get in the way.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the 32nd President of the United States at a time when the United States was experiencing an almost apocalyptic economic crash. Undeterred, and even inspired by the disastrous Great Depression, President Roosevelt embarked on a career of economic refinement and total policy overhaul of the United States. The results of Roosevelt’s work are still evident today through numerous New Deal agencies and programs, and the works of agencies like the Works Progress Administration, such as highways, theaters, and so forth. The results of the first and second New Deals speak for themselves, but what stands to be said about the road towards the New Deal and the implementation of Roosevelt’s policy? In his book Nothing to Fear: FDR's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America, the copy of which used in this review was purchased through the Saint Leo University bookstore, Adam Cohen explores the trials and tribulations of Franklin Roosevelt, his cabinet, and his allies as they worked to get Roosevelt elected, and to implement his policies once he was successfully in office.
Perhaps one of the more interesting and unique aspects of Cohen’s look into the first 100 days of Roosevelt’s presidency is his exploration of those around Roosevelt. From the very first chapter of the book, Cohen follows those around Roosevelt as he made his way to office and worked to push his policy. In the first chapter, Cohen begins with the inauguration day experiences of Roosevelt’s Secretary of Labor, Frances Perkins. As he spins the tale of Perkins’ life-changing trip to Washington and her first experiences as a presidential cabinet member, he begins to weave in parts of Perkin’s life before inauguration day and how her experiences shaped her views on politics, and how she conducted business as a member of the Roosevelt Administration. Throughout Nothing to Fear, Cohen includes many similar passages. His attention to those around Roosevelt and how they shaped his policies, changed his mind, and helped steer him towards success paints an interesting and wholly unique picture of the Roosevelt Administration. His attention to the cabinet members, their experiences, and how they contributed towards Roosevelt’s successes as president casts the administration as a collaborative effort rather than the work of a single man. Cohen gives these men and women due respect and credit for their contributions to the first 100 days that ultimately shaped the modern United States, while giving insight into just what happened in their lives to shape their careers and inspired their efforts in the White House. In all, it is an intriguing take on Roosevelt’s presidency, in that Cohen essentially tells the whole story; the story of all involved, and how their hard work made Roosevelt’s success even remotely possible.
Turning to the personal experience aspect of Nothing to Fear, Cohen does appear at times to prattle on about the personal lives of the cabinet members and Roosevelt’s various allies. There are points where this information seems superfluous, but it’s Cohen’s careful attention to career-defining moments in the lives of Roosevelt’s allies and their families that ties these experiences into the overall narrative of the first 100 days. It answers a question one might not have pondered; why did these people pursue the policies that they did? What were their motivations? Cohen shares stories of triumph and failure while sharing how personal ties to various issues in the past had shaped the policies of the New Deal, and how it dictated how the cabinet members interacted with one another. This exploration serves a unique purpose in explaining the personal stakes that the cabinet members had in the New Deal.
The scenery of Depression Era America is explored rather eloquently by Cohen, who paints bleak imagery of an almost apocalyptic America where men fall dead in the park from starvation and cold, where families are forced to make due with a pittance, where farmers were so desperate talk of a popular uprising dominated the day. Cohen holds absolutely nothing back as he attempts to explain just how bleak the United States was in an era that was defined by a distinct lack of even the most basic amenities. This haunting imagery accurately portrays the desperation and anxiety that surrounded Roosevelt’s election and the first 100 days of the administration. This imagery is often wrapped around Cohen’s exploration of the administration’s harried work during the first 100 days, giving insight into what was occurring outside the walls of the White House while Roosevelt and his cabinet struggled to reign in the rapidly spiraling situation left by their predecessors. The aforementioned exploration of Roosevelt and his Cabinet’s personal lives by Cohen ties directly into the bleak descriptions of Depression Era America by displaying the personal ties many of the cabinet members had in the depression, such as Henry A. Wallace, Roosevelt’s Secretary of Agriculture, who had deep ties to the farm belt and felt deep sympathy for the plight of the farmers, a people so terrified and impassioned by the thought of losing everything that they routinely attacked lawyers and in one instance, even kidnapped a judge hearing foreclosure cases. The exploration of Wallace’s personal life and ties to the American farmland explains his motivations for agricultural policy. This attention to the whole picture of 1930’s America and how it ties into the overall narrative is masterfully done by Cohen, providing deep insight into an era of strife that would become an era of hope and optimism.
Regarding his exploration of the actual policies of the new deal, Cohen presents it in relation to the happenings of the time, in keeping with the personal perspectives of those involved with the administration. Again, Cohen uses the personal perspectives and real-life events of those involved to present the policy, but does so in a manner that leaves a bit to be desired. While Cohen presents a great deal of information on the policies, it is spread out and rather disjointed across the tales of the personal experiences of the administration. This keeps pace with the narrative but can become rather tedious as one tries to piece together the actual policies of the New Deal. This aside, Cohen describes the policies, agencies, and declarations of the New Deal in a forthright manner that provides a basic understanding of the policies, with regard to why and how they came to be. It is this careful weaving of personal experiences and the histories of the personnel of the Roosevelt Administration with the politics surrounding the first 100 days that gives the reader an excellent understanding of the book’s subject matter.
Cohen does a fair job avoiding noticeable bias for much of the book, presenting an empirical yet intriguing and enthusiastic account of the first 100 days. When speaking of President Roosevelt, his allies, and his cabinet, Cohen presents much of the subject matter in a casual and matter-of-fact manner. Even when addressing the opponents of the administration, Cohen uses an empirical and casual tone, though there is a slight bias if one pays close enough attention. Whether or not this slight bias against the Hoover Administration is intentional or not can be debated, though it is difficult to ignore the more negative light the Hoover Administration is presented in. In Cohen’s defense, however, the negativity in the presentation of the administration is quite in line with the attitude of the time, where many citizens and politicians (including some conservatives that had formerly supported Hoover) had grown tired with the tepid response Herbert Hoover had employed in response to the Great Depression. When discussing the Hoover administration Cohen employs the same methods he had utilized with the Roosevelt Administration, touching on the histories of those involved, their beliefs, and personal motivations for their actions. This presents the Hoover administration in a neutral, empirical light much like Cohen had presented Roosevelt’s administration under. Cohen’s presentation helps put to rest any worries of potential bias by giving the reader the reasoning behind Hoover’s now-infamous decisions.
In all, Nothing to Fear: FDR's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America is an excellent book with many merits. The unique way that Cohen spins the tale of the Roosevelt administration’s famous first 100 days allows for a great deal of insight into the machinations of one of the United States’ most noteworthy Presidents. The attention to detail and the sheer care put into the presentation of this crucial period of American history helps the reader gain a great deal of understanding, and while doing so, keeps them entertained with an enthusiastic tone and excellent pacing. By the end of the book the reader will no doubt have a great understanding of the who, what, where, when, and why of the New Deal, all while having been entertained in the process.

[Joe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book twenty-one of my presidential challenge.

Ug, what a disappointment! This book was supposed to be a little reward to myself! I'd been saving FDR for a rainy day. The last truly great President on my list, but this book was a failure.

Best case scenario: Adam Cohen was trying to make "Team of Rivals: FDR Edition" and failed. Worst case scenario: This was a covert way of him selling and getting me to read a biography of Frances Perkins. Who? Exactly. I would never have picked up a book about Frances Perkins. Not that she's not important. Cohen makes the case that she was, it's just there are probably about 2 million other biographies I'd choose to read first. I mean, come on, life is short.

Cohen seems to imagine that he's giving the reader a healthy dose of FDR as well as fascinating background on several members of his cabinet. The problem? The "healthy dose" of FDR is probably about 15% of the book. "But Joe, he's on the cover! Surely, he's in the book more than that!" Yeah, no, that's about it. All of his parts were great and I would wake up from my literary slumber only to succumb moments later when he left.

The plurality of the book is about Frances Perkins. She was FDR's Secretary of Labor during his entire time in office. She helped spearheaded a lot of his most important legislation during his first 100 days in office. So...why was her story so boring? Even her crazy husband occasionally popping up wasn't enough to keep me interested.

There were several other cabinet members thrown in but they all ultimately got short shrift compared to Perkins. I firmly believe that Cohen wrote his book about Perkins, realized that no one in their right minds would want to read it, and added all the other stuff at the last moment to get the book published. Understandable, but quite frustrating.

FDR is one of my absolute favorite presidents, second only to Lincoln so I'll definitely be returning many times in my life but if you read one book on him, don't have it be this.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a radio broadcast on July 24th, 1933, Franklin Delano Roosevelt coined the term “first 100 days,” and forever gave a special meaning to that period of time in a president’s term. It is incredibly fitting; ever since there has never been a president nor Congress that has been able to make as many ambitious and important pieces of legislation as FDR’s had. By June 12th, 1933, the 101st day of the Roosevelt presidency, FDR and Congress had passed fifteen major and later memorable pieces of legislation such as the CCC, AAA, TVA, NIRA, and several more. Therefore, based on those facts alone, it can be said the detailed story of the first 100 days of FDR’s presidency really deserves to be read by all Americans and this analytical book delivers on the most important aspects of and people involved in this historic moment in American history in their full authenticity.
Adam Cohen, the author of “Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America,” is a New York native and graduate from Bronx High School of Science and later a graduate of Harvard College where he obtained his law degree. From there, Cohen briefly became a lawyer and later became an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union where he fought for equal funding for public schools in the state of Alabama. After this ordeal he began working for TIME Magazine and later The New York Times editorial board. After eight years with the Times, Cohen found himself teaching classes at Yale until he decided to serve as special policy advisor to New York governor Andrew Cuomo, and later as Chief Speechwriter for Mayor de Blasio of New York City, which is his current occupation. Based on this brief overview it is made plain to anyone that Cohen possesses incredibly strong writing skills and a profound understanding of law and the English language. It is no surprise, then, that “Nothing to Fear” is such a breeze to read as Cohen has the masterful skills to pull the reader in almost immediately, compelling them to consume page after page of top-class writing.
Published in 2010 amidst the fallout of the 2009 financial collapse, Cohen presents the book in an almost chronological order from when Roosevelt takes power until the end of the first 100 days of his presidency. It also reads like a biography, detailing each key member of Roosevelt’s cabinet, especially the interesting character of Frances Perkins, the leading industrial reformer of the government. I believe the overall theme of the book can be described simply as “unprecedented,” meaning how groundbreaking and explosive the actions that Roosevelt and his administration took during that period that really created modern America as we know it. There is a pervasive sense the author admires the man and the figures behind the first New Deal’s infancy and eventual semi-maturity and wishes to impart the wisdom they showed in that dark time for America to the nation as it stood in 2010. The reason I choose the words “I believe” is because different interpretations on what the overall theme is can be easily argued, however, a strong argument can also be made that the theme presented here in this review is the most pervasive and apparent theme throughout the entire book.
Readers going into this book should focus mainly on the biographical segments found intermittently throughout it as they give the motivations and passion behind the actions taken by all those involved in the first New Deal, including FDR himself. Cohen spends a lot of time discussing, as already stated, Frances Perkins, as well as the Agriculture secretary Henry Wallace, Raymond Moley, and Lewis Douglas, some very important figures in Washington that Roosevelt had surrounded himself with. The chapters focusing on these people are largely novel-esque in nature as if they were characters in a fictional book, doubly so with Perkins, and if that is not something you are looking for, don’t fret, as such portions are remarkably short, although chock-full of information regarding their back round which is really quite interesting to anyone who is a fan of character studies. Additional enjoyable moments in the book include how Hoover dealt with the crisis that became The Great Depression as it unfolded as well as Hoover’s attitude towards FDR when he became a lame duck president. Of course, however, the truly most interesting moments are those in the oval office while Roosevelt is attempting to tackle the depression and hammering out policies and proposals with his band of closest advisors. I suggest taking close attention to these moments, including the mini-biographies, to really get the larger picture that Cohen is attempting to show the reader.
Overall, I believe the book is good and, if anything, is a long-winded resource if one is looking for something much more substantial than the Wikipedia article on the first 100 days of Roosevelt’s presidency. I think it’s a valuable resource, especially when one would be looking for the motivations behind the New Deal from all those involved and the biographies and lives of those closest to the president. This book is highly objective, almost to a fault, and in my time reading it I found little in the way of personal interjection and opinion on what occurred in the past. However, as mentioned before, I believe the book had a particular message, that being the book should be used as a tool on how to tackle modern financial and economic issues that the country faces in contemporary times by gleaming wisdom from Roosevelt and how he led the nation during its darkest era, or at least through the very begging of that era. I argue, however, that our economy has changed significantly since the days of FDR and the New Deal and the solutions found then might not be the solutions for us today. However, perhaps Cohen only means to give the thought process we ought to have when dealing with modern issues and that he’s not necessarily advocating for a repeat of past legislation in the hopes of solving today’s problems, such as adopting a more Keynesian approach to economic stimulus among other things.
Priced at $16 in the U.S. and $20 in Canada, this book deserves much more recognition as it is a detailed and truly objective piece of writing on a great historical era. The greatest thing about the book, truly, is the length, being not too short to leave reader’s wanting more information and long enough to satisfy anyone’s needs for in-depth analysis. Therefore, I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys pre-WWII America, FDR, economics, character studies, and history buffs in general.

[Les · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finally finished this one..

While it was informative of FDR and his inner circle & the 100 days that created everything from relief programs for the jobless, Fair Labor Standards Act to Social Security..

But I almost think this guy wrote this book just to have a 3 or 4 page rant that ended the book abruptly, consisting of:

1.) How the Reagan administration called for 'starving the beast' of relief to the poor.
2.) How Gingrich oversaw the end to cash assistance to poor children in 1994
3.) How under Clinton the Glass-Steagal Act (separation of commercial & investment banking) was repealed.
4.) Then to the Bush Tax Cuts lowered taxes on the rich to lowest since the Hoover years

All good points, but I don't think this guy had to write a book about FDR to make them.

------
FDR quoting the bible:

"The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple our civilization. We may now restore that temple to the ancient truths."

~Matthew Chap 21 verse 12

[Tim Jin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 100 days of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's presidency are what leaders are made of. Out with the old and in with the new. FDR brought back confidence to the American people by backing up banking from the federal reserves, implemented labor laws, establishing unemployment and Social Security as an insurance by boosting morale for many Americans. It takes a keen ear to build up good leadership to listen. Herbert Hoover was from a different era and didn't knew how to change. Roosevelt was from the new generation and saw a need for better leadership by asking for advise from his cabinet.

"Nothing to Fear" is something that our current administration should read. Instead of having lobbyists and corporations running the country, FDR was his own puppet master with no strings attach and not just another talking head. FDR showed true leadership in the White House that has been lost many presidents after him.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audio version of this book. It was interesting reading this in the context of our times today - to see how so many of the innovations of that day remain with us; and how we are trying to replicate some of them now. You also think about the old adage "those who don't learn history are doomed to repeat it" as you see what led up to the Glass Steagall act, so that Americans would have more financial protection. Then 60 years later Clinton moved to have it repealed; Bush and his cronies pushed the envelope further... and look what happened. Another financial collapse! It is scary to see how close our country was to anarchy and again, you wonder similar things in comparison to today. I thought the part about Frances Perkins, first female cabinet member, was exceptionally interesting and I plan to read the recent bio of her for further info.

[Bookmarks Magazine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Critics agree that by focusing on five aides to the president, Nothing to Fear provides a new and interesting perspective on an epochal period in American politics. Cohen gears his writing to the lay reader, sparing the heavy policy analysis and producing a narrative both enjoyable and compelling. While the New York Times Book Review notes that focusing only on FDR's first 100 days might yield a misleading impression of the New Deal and that Cohen's framework

[Douglas Graney · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has its moments but the author does a "lazy writer" technique which too many writers of non-fiction do. That is, he'll take peripheral figures, in this case FDR's first 100 days, and write biographies of those figures. It detracts from the flow of the story and I, and I assume other readers, are not that interested in those people other than their relationship to FDR. If you're looking for a history of FDR's 100 days, you can probably find a better source.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book filled with interesting details of the first days of his presidency. It just shows what a intelligent president can do in a few months unlike others.

[Jeffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brief but punchy account of FDR's first Hundred Days. Refreshingly, FDR is not the main feature of Cohen's book - instead (rightly so) he gives a good account of the behind FDR. In a lot of the cases, they were the true impetus behind the radical change in American politics that FDR's New Deal marked - namely the rejection laissez-faire and small government ideology (that was Hoover's platform).

However, it is easy to forget that FDR himself at the beginning was a supporter of fiscal restraint - it is only after being persuaded by the likes of Perkins and Hopkins, that the role of the government was truly expanded. In fact, Perkins for me was the highlight - she is not that well-known but her work on implementing worker's rights are truly what we take for granted today. But credit to FDR in surrounding himself with great people and being able to accept their advice.

This account should probably be more widely read by current government officials, to remind them of the duty they owe to the electorate. In an age of corporate lobbying and extensive tax-cuts, this quote from FDR is probably as resonant as ever: "The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little."

[Florence Millo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing to Fear by Adam Cohen

If this had been the usual book about the Hundred Days bringing about the alphabet soup of programs, the CCC, WPA, NIRA, etc., it would have been a dreary book indeed. Fortunately, the author focused on the people who dreamed and imagined and crafted the policies that resulted in the alphabet soup of agencies whose purpose was, as Frances Perkins said, “to take the edge of human misery.” If you don’t know Raymond Moley, Harry Hopkins, Henry Wallace, Frances Perkins, and others, you will find this a most engaging book. It has certainly spurred my interest in learning even more about these people and this time in America. Not just a good read, an excellent read.

[Chet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clear, concise, easily readable explanation of how the New Deal got started in FDR's first 100 days. Legislation that largely defines how we live today. Told through the lives of Raymond Moley (Emergency Banking Act), Lewis Douglas (Economy Act), Henry Wallace and Rexford Tugwell (Agriculture Adjustment Act, leading to the Home Owners' Loan Act, abandoning the gold standard, Tennessee Valley Authority, and Securities Act of 1933), Francis Perkins (Public Works, and labor standards), and Harry Hopkins (relief). A manic recovery period that led us from the Great Depression and into the future.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good mini-biographies of five key architects of the main policy changes that launched the New Deal - a fascinating time in our history. I would have welcomed a longer profile on the last 3 (the progressives Frances Perkins, Henry Wallace and Harry Hopkins) and more analysis of how Roosevelt himself evolved from his pragmatic, agenda-less start to become the president most associated with government liberalism. Though maybe that's Cohen's point: the dedication and collaboration of key administration officials, along with the support of Senator Wagner and other Congressional leaders and the pressure of radical farmers and militant unions, deserve much of the credit.