The American Presidents: Biographies of the Chief Executives from George Washington through Barack Obama

by David C. Whitney, Robin Vaughn Whitney

With scrupulous scholarship and engaging immediacy, The American Presidents illuminates the lives, times, and legacies of the 44 men who have shaped the office and our nation. This perennial best-seller is now completely up-to-date, including a full profile of the first African American commander-in-chief, President Barack Obama. Includes: *Close-up portraits capturing each president's trials and triumphs, ambitions and fears, battles with Congress, bold decisions, and haunting mistakes *At-a-glance tables highlighting key facts about the presidents and their terms, first ladies, vice presidents, presidential elections, cabinets, and political control of Congress *A sweeping tour of presidential historic sites, including the Eisenhower Center in Abilene, Kansas, and the Coolidge Homestead in Plymouth, Vermont *Timelines at the start of each section, which provide a brief overview of each president's major life events *Lively anecdotes revealing the influence of each man's childhood, education, and previous career on his style, successes, and missteps in office *Quotes from the presidents and reflections from their contemporaries and historians REVIEW

Genres: History, Biography, Presidents, Nonfiction, Reference, Politics, United States

648 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1969

Reviews

[Flan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short biographies of all the Presidents of America so far, packed into one giant volume - that was pretty much it to scare me.

But David C. Whitney's writing was enough to win me over. The undertones of american patriotism to admitting the scandals and the faults and flaws with some presidencies were written flawlessly. The written execution of the short biographies were simple, informative and educative. I could sense pride and impartiality in the writing with every president portrayed without prejudice regardless of their actions. It was like being taught by an old fashioned, yet respectable and socially compatible teacher that all students come to love.

I read this to gain some background knowledge for my A2 Government & Politics class and I am absolutely content with what I got. This was exactly what I needed to introduce myself to American Politics - understanding the rich history that lay with all the presidents thus far written concisely without missing any details in a manner that allowed me to absorb the information without difficulty.

Just a side note: I didn't read up on all the presidents. Below are the names of the presidents I did read about and events/facts that I found of particular interest for each:

George Washington - The first President of the United States. Drew up Constitution.
Abraham Lincoln - Emancipation Proclamation. Assassination.
Theodore Roosevelt - Roosevelt Corollary. He also prowled the streets at night to lookout for police officers that were not doing their duty. At the time, corruption was high in the police department.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt - Cousin to Theodore Roosevelt. New Deal.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy - New Frontier Program (the Peace Corps). Proposal of expansion of civil rights. Appointment of younger brother Robert Kennedy as Attorney General. 'Alliance for Progress' (10 year plan to develop Latin American countries). Overthrowing of Fidel Castro in Cuba (failed). Assassination.
Lyndon Baines Johnson - 'Great Society' (social protection laws). Vietnam war (attempt to prevent communists overtaking South Vietnam, sent ground troops.) Assassination of Martin Luther King & Robert Kennedy during LBJ's presidency.
Richard Milhous Nixon - Resignation to avoid impeachment after Watergate Scandal. Nixon's visit to China for trade purposes. "Pentagon Papers" scandal (top secret information about Vietnam War released). Rejection of drafts by young soldiers. Unbeknownst to the American public or Congress, Nixon promised North Vietnamese leaders $4.75 billion dollars if they ended the war. Repetition of vetoes. Congress pass law that requires the Executive to consult with Congress before sending U.S. troops to war.
Ronald Reagan - Oldest President. "Reaganomics". Biggest recession since WWII. Appointment of first woman in court (Sandra Day O'Connor). Reagan Doctrine (increase of military strength, action or aid to fight Soviet backed governments in the Middle East, Afghanistan, Africa, Central America and the Caribbean). Bin Laden trained by the U.S. to fight against Soviets in Afghanistan.
William Jefferson Clinton - Lewinsky scandal (affair with intern). Impeachment by House and trial by Senate.
George W. Bush - Did not win popular vote. Tax cuts passed each year during first term. "No Child Left Behind" bipartisanship. Government funding for embryonic stem-cell research and prohibition of government funding for abortion. Withdrawal from Kyoto Protocol and International Ballistic Missile Treaty. Deployed National Missile Defense System. American involvement in Middle East (reversal of Republican policy). New cabinet position of Homeland Security after 9/11 attacks. Passing of the Patriot Act. Failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, justification of war. Assassination of Saddam Hussein. Abu Ghraib (prisoner torture scandal). Slow response to Hurricane Katrina. Scandals led to both houses of Congress to be lost to Democrats. Set up Guantanamo Bay and secret prisons (also known as "black sites"). Injected large sums of taxpayer money into banks (also a reversal of Rep. policy of limiting Government intervention in markets).
Barack Obama - First black President. First President to make full use of internet to raise money for campaign.

Barack Obama's biography was short as the revision of this book only occurred in 2009 (I think).

I highly recommend this book to anyone from beginners to pros of American Politics. It's great for History too.

[Susan (aka Just My Op) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit it, history didn't interest me very much while I was in school, and I've forgotten most of the little I learned. I thought it was high time I learned a bit more and that a high-level introduction to the presidents of the United States would be a good start. This book, the eleventh addition, fits the bill very well. Of course, a single volume covering all the presidents up to the current time has to cover each administration only in broad strokes.

Each section starts with the important dates of that president's life and political career. Important decisions and policies are included, along with background on those decisions. For such a compact book, there are also quite a few excerpts of speeches given by the presidents. There are about 35 pages of condensed information at the back of the book, and a portrait or photograph of each president. This eleventh edition ends with the election of Barack Obama.

All in all, this is a great book for someone who wants to brush up on U.S. Presidents before delving more deeply into any individual one, or someone like me who just didn't pay enough attention to history classes.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was hoping this book would help me understand why the US is the way it is now. I should have known that question was much too complicated for a single book. But I am much closer to understanding. The book is well written. The back is full of lots of interesting lists. It's a great resource. The biggest thing I learned is that each of these presidents were mere humans trying to do their best with the situation they found themselves in. My opinions of all the presidents were raised by reading their stories: especially James Buchanan and Andrew Johnson. My vote for the worst president (through 2009, when this edition was published): Warren G. Harding. He had no opinions of his own and went with the crowd every time. My vote for the best president: Abraham Lincoln. He had a strong sense of right and wrong. He had incredible benevolence for the south despite their bad choices. The south would have been much better off had he lived to finish his second term.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

With my recent crusade to study the lives of our American presidents, I picked up this copy of "The American Presidents" by David C. Whitney to refresh my general knowledge of the succession of our leaders from the beginning of our nation.

This particular edition published in 1969 only leads up to President Nixon, however, the latest re-publication extends to Obama.

I enjoyed this book for the purpose that it served me and recommend it as an excellent accompaniment to one's American history resources, though I would consider it mostly a reference book, not necessarily a "cover to cover" read.

[Lindsey Sparks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview of the presidents and for the most part it was unbiased. I was surprised by how much I learned about George HW Bush. I felt like I knew that time period since I was alive and watched the news with my parents, but there was a lot that went over my head as a kid and that I never learned in school since it was the present and not history. This book made me dislike Teddy Roosevelt almost as much as I dislike FDR and enforced my love of Silent Cal "I veto everything" Coolidge.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gives a short overview of each of the presidents. Covers their rise to the presidency, highlights what they did while in office and tells about their lives after they left the White House. Does not go into much depth but does give a concise bit of data about each president.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book (pre-1900's era Presidents) was very interesting, but my interest started flagging the more recent the Presidents became. Getting through Nixon, Reagan and all the rest was torture. But I did it!!!

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me forever to read this book but it was a good overview of the lives of our U.S. Presidents up until William Jefferson Clinton. It is not an entertaining book, but an excellent reference if someone is interested in POTUS.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just enough information about every president up to Reagan to remain interesting yet light.

[Chase Parsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection is a definite diamond in the rough. Each president is written about in entertaining prose, and the analysis is clear. A great book to have lying around the house for reference.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was very interesting & informative. Learned some new things.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exactly what it sounds like and nothing more. 10-25 page summaries of each presidency and the life of the men before and after.

[Nelson · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the first books I ever read. Made a point of finding the same edition that had been around the house back when (which means I didn't read updated versions that go beyond Lyndon Johnson). As a kid I was attracted to Richard Paul Kluga's drawings of each president—it was a way to learn them I guess. Back then I had some understanding of the various historical and political events that made up the key events for each figure; now, I have a more robust understanding and can see where later reading has made me critical of some of author David Whitney's takes. It's a little strange now to read "Negro" for what is surely revised to "Black" or "African American" in later editions. And Whitney's love for Woodrow Wilson—manifested in pages worth of quotations of his dire, wooden prose—is surely out of the mainstream now. The treatment of Reconstruction also probably wouldn't pass muster today either. In any case, it was fun to track down this old book from boyhood, if only to see the pictures again.

[Jdetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writing this book was obviously a difficult project, and the book certainly has flaws. But for a well researched snapshot of every president up through Obama, when the book was written, it's remarkably well executed. It goes into more detail then one might expect on every chief executive, although it spends a disproportionate amount of its time on our most recent presidents, which is somewhat frustrating. By the time we're up to Carter, I feel like we're practically getting a month by month rundown of their administrations, and details that are never offered for presidents of earlier eras. There's also a nice amount of supplementary material after the biographies, including charts of vote counts, spouses, cabinets and the like, as well as a very nice history of how the office of the president was created at the end of the eighteenth century.

[Martin Denton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book I currently have is actually the 11th edition, updated by Whitney's widow; I read the original edition when it first came out in the 1960s, when I was a child.

I loved this book when I was young: it contains concise, reasonably objective biographies of all of the Presidents of the U.S. It's respectful but never hagiography; certainly never playing to scandal or sensationalism. As an introduction to the lives and careers of the presidents, it's excellent.

One of the problems with the book is that the later chapters, about presidents who came along after the original batch (the first book ended with LBJ, if I recall correctly) are all disproportionately long. These tend to be somewhat bloated essays that don't hold their weight.

But through LBJ, the book is really quite wonderful.

[Nick Girvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is about what you’d expect for a book written on every president up through its time of publication (Nixon’s administration). Packed with lots of good info, decently nuanced but also decently whitewashed as you’d expect, and I think I liked some of the fun facts more than anything. The appendix on the White House at the end was pretty cool, I’d consider a book just on that alone.

A good read if you’re just trying to memorize the presidents or want a brief overview on US leadership, but I definitely prefer books more focused on one president or even a couple presidents. My only real issue is that it did get repetitive due to one president’s earlier career overlapping with a former president’s same events. But for what this is, it’s a decent one to have on the shelf.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the 1967 edition of this book. Being so many years removed from the writing of the book greatly added to my enjoyment. The short bios of the presidents through LBJ were interesting and motivated me to look into some presidents further. I recommend this as a nice layman’s intro to the presidents.

[Kim Marley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love reading about the Presidents

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for a snapshot of each President. Although my version was inherited from a relative and only went through part of the Nixon administration. Ha. I will have to look for the updated version.

[Gregory Tait · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay. A good primer for American Presidents. Some very interesting facts learned.

[Jonathan P Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great summary/overview of the American presidents. Not for everyone, but just what I wanted- a book containing a short biography of every President.

[Gregory · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read many years ago; re-reading as an overview of each president to complement the American Presidents Series biography.

[Courtney Skelton · Rating 3 out of 5]

The American presidents was worth the read-for the most part. The book showing how the presidency and America in general grew as conditions and necessity dictated change was needed. The back stories of every president was intriguing to read what inspired each one to seek out the highest position in the country. The only down side was the later presidents got more that the first twenty or so. It came across as there seemed to be lack of effort to talk about those (IE Franklin Roosevelt. Elected to four terms yet a relative small write up despite being the president with the longest tenure) and focus on the later presidents to where there was more material to work with. That being said, there are a lot of juicy nuggets to keep any history buff reading.

[Bladen Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again, this is a very informative book and not a lot of plot or theme or any kind of traditional book structure. I did enjoy how the book was wrote in comparison to other historical informative books though.

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great supplement to read along with my other American history reading.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

great history. some parts are hard to get through.

[Shaindel]

I read the version published in early 2001, just after Bush 43's inauguration.

There are short biographies of each president. All are impartial, fair, balanced, and interesting to read.