A Presidents Day Book Recommendation

As readers of this blog know, I am working my way (very slowly) through reading a biography of each president. I generally get my book suggestions from this list. Since starting this project I have learned a lot about our past chief executives. But, few books have surprised me as much as Ron Chernow’s biography of President Grant. It is truly a masterpiece!

Prior to reading the book I knew very little about Grant. I knew he was president and a great Civil War general who came in after the other generals messed up. Given the bios that I had read prior to Grant, I could have also told you that he was the first president to serve two terms since Andrew Jackson, which is an astonishing statistic.  But, there is so much more to Grant. While I could write pages on what stood out to me most, I am going to just point out three things and hope that this list encourages you to read the book.

1. Grant’s life pre-Civil War was marked with failure. Prior to reading Chernow’s book, I had known that Grant attended West Point and served in the military prior to the Civil War. I had assumed that Grant’s entire career was military, but in actuality, Grant separated from the military under less than ideal circumstances prior to the War. He started his service in the Civil War as a volunteer.  Grant’s non-military career was marked with significant failures and poverty. It is fascinating that a person who had such a brilliant mind for military strategy was such an abysmal business man.

2. Grant was a world traveler. After serving as president, Grant took a world tour that gave him a better view of international relations as took him as far as Russia and Japan. I suspect that few, if any, presidents prior to Grant saw as much of the world as he did (I know that John Quincy Adams was well-traveled).

3. Grant’s reputation as a failed president is not deserved. While Grant’s presidency did suffer from some scandals and poor appointments, he also made tremendous strides in appointing women and minorities to key positions. After reading Grant, I think that his reputation as a failed president just isn’t deserved, especially given the president that preceded him. Other presidents have been wrought by scandals and accusations of nepotism. Should Grant have done more work on civil service reform?  Yes.  Did he put his trust in untrustworthy people? Yes. But, he also appointed African Americans, women, Native Americans, and Jews to key posts, unlike presidents who preceded him.  He made significant efforts to ensure that African Americans in the South could live in peace and enjoy their civil rights. He truly tried to finish the work that President Lincoln had started.

Although my journey with Grant lasted almost two months (it is a long book), I am a bit sad to see it end. I encourage anyone looking for a good, meaty read to pick this book up!