Pols

by Jack Beatty

In Pols , Jack Beatty presents a writer's portrait gallery of America's most famous and infamous politicians. Whether it's John Dos Passos' brilliant six-page treatment of the life of Theodore Roosevelt, H.L.Mencken on Warren Harding's vapid orotundity, Richard Hofstadter on Herbert Hoover's cult of the individual, Hodding Carter on the terrifying rise of Huey Long, Robert A.Caro on the lonely integrity of Sam Rayburn, Fred Greenstein on the subtle wisdom of Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Rovere on Joe McCarthy the liar, Mike Royko on a day in the life of Richard M. Daley, Lou Cannon on Ronald Reagan's use of humor, or James Fallows on the passionless presidency of Jimmy Carter, these and other classic pieces come at the American breed of politicians from every sort of angle. Particularly at the height of this political season, it's both edifying and a joy to read some of America's greatest political biographers on a century of its most notable politicians. The writers in Pols show us American politicians in all their stripes --cowardly and brave, charismatic and enigmatic, in charge and lost at sea. Pols , a brilliant collection for the bookshelf or nightstand of any political junkie or fan of good writing, is a literary investigation into American political history at its earthiest and its most high flown.

Genres: History

544 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

For all the complaining that Americans do about politics, the American political system has created some of the greatest characters in our national history, along with some of the best writers. In "Pols: Great Writers on American Politicians from Bryan to Reagan," editor Jack Beatty has compiled profiles of some of the most fascinating American politicians of the 20th century from some of our finest writers.

Standout chapters selections include John Dos Passos on Teddy Roosevelt, H.L. Mencken on Warren Harding, Hodding Carter on Huey P. Long, Norman Mailer on JFK, and Philip Roth on Nixon. But by far my personal favorite comes from a book the author wrote about another historical figure - Beatty chose Robert Caro's profile of Sam Rayburn from Caro's 4-volume biography on LBJ. I was not familiar with the iron man from the Midwest before reading this treatment, but now I want to devour everything I can about Rayburn.

Indeed, that's the only quibble with a book like this, that gives you selections of great writing . . . you want to go out and drop some serious dollars on all the great biographies the editor has teased you with.

Highest recommendation.

[Harry Daubitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some underwhelming, some superb. This collection is hit and miss but the good excerpts were worth the read

[Max · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have adjective-order problems with this book. Is it a collection of notable essays about American politicians? Or a collection of essays about notable American politicians? Maybe if I read introductions I would know!

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

decent collection of writings. some must read, some awful