In college I majored in American History and Political Science. I was pre-law (didn't end up going down that road - probably good fodder for a post on my regular blog instead) and fascinated with Texas's history as an independent republic and the mythology of the Reagan Presidency. I minored in communications which actually is the part of my college education which I build my career as a public relations and advertising executive as well as a writer.
This past Christmas as I watched the beginning rumblings of the already competitive 2016 US Presidential Election I decided that I needed a project to keep me occupied and my blood pressure down for the next 23 months so I decided to read a biography, memoir or other book related to each of the 44 presidents, in order.
That being said, I am not doing this as a serious academic pursuit, I am doing this as a personal challenge and expecting to find some interesting facts and good stories along the way. I also hope it will make the seemingly interminable Presidential election process a little more tolerable this time around.
To keep this project even more interesting (to me), I am researching recipes, favorite foods and/or libations of each of the president to try out. I figure a few of the books may be a bit dry which I will counter with a good libation consumed in honor of that president's legacy.
Based on suggestions, reading of reviews and a few notes I had written down over the years here or there, this is "the list" as it stands. I am open to suggestions for other books to read (instead or besides). I am not opposed to reading books with conflicting political agendas or vantage points, I am doing this for fun not for political gain.
1. George Washington - George Washington's Secret Six: The Spy Ring That Saved the American Revolution, Brian Kilmeade + His Excellency: George Washington, Joseph J. Ellis
2. John Adams - John Adams, David McCullough
3. Thomas Jefferson - American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, Joseph J. Ellis
4. James Madison - James Madison, Richard Brookhiser
5. James Monroe - The Last Founding Father, James Monroe and a Nation's Call to Greatness, Harlow Giles Unger
6. James Quincy Adams - Mr. Adams's Last Crusade: John Quincy Adams's Extraordinary Post-Presidential Life in Congress, Joseph Wheelan
7. Andrew Jackson - The Age of Jackson, Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Jr
8. Martin Van Buren - A Return to His Native Town: Martin Van Buren's Life at Lindenwald, 1839-1862, Leonard R. Richards, et al.
9. William Henry Harrison - Mr. Jefferson's Hammer: William Henry Harrison and the Origins of American Indian Policy, Robert M. Owens
10. John Tyler - John Tyler, The Accidental President, Edward Crapol
11. James Polk - A Country of Vast Designs, James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent, Robert B. Merry
12. Zachary Taylor - The Life And Public Service Of General Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln
13. Millard Fillmore - Milliard Fillmore, Ted Gottfried
14. Franklin Pierce - Franklin Pierce: Martyr for the Union, Peter Wallner
15. James Buchanan - President James Buchanan: A Biography, Phillip S. Klein
16. Abraham Lincoln - Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Killer + Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, Doris Kearns Goodwin
17. Andrew Johnson - American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, Jon Meacham
18. Ulysses S. Grant - Vicksburg 1863, Winston Groom
19. Rutherford B. Hayes - Rutherford B. Hayes: One of the Good Colonels, Ari Hoogenboom
20. James Garfield - Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a Presiden, Candice Millard
21. Chester Arthur - Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur, Thomas C. Reeves
22. Stephen Grover Cleveland - A Secret Life: The Lies and Scandals of President Grover Cleveland, Charles Lachman
23. Benjamin Harrison - Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier President, Harry J. Sievers
24. William McKinley - The President and the Assassin: McKinley, Terror, and Empire at the Dawn of the American Century, Scott Miller
25. Theodore Roosevelt - Imperial Cruise: A Secret History of Empire and War, James Bradley
26. William H. Taft - The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism, Doris Kearns Goodwin
27. Woodrow Wilson - Wilson, Scott A. Berg + Hall of Mirrors, David Sinclair
28. Warren G. Harding - The Shadows of Blooming Grove: Warren G. Harding in His Times, Francis Russell
29. Calvin Coolidge - Why Coolidge Matters: Leadership Lessons from America's Most Underrated President, Charles C. Johnson
30. Herbert Hoover - Freedom Betrayed: Herbert Hoover's Secret History of the Second World War and Its Aftermath, Herbert Hoover and George H. Nash
31. Franklin D. Roosevelt - The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope, Jonathan Alter - or - The Plots Against the President, Sally Denton - or - Those Angry Days, Lynne Olson
32. Harry S. Truman - Truman, David McCollough
33. Dwight D. Eisenhower - Soldier and President, Stephen E. Ambrose
34. John Kennedy - Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy (opting out of a bio given the vast amount of coverage and history I have already been exposed to regarding JFK)
35. Lyndon Johnson - The Path of Power, Vol. 1, Robert A. Caro
36. Richard Nixon - Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America, Rick Perlstein
37. Gerald R. Ford - Write It When I'm Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford, Thomas M. Defrank
38. James E. Carter, Jr. - Turning Point: A Candidate, a State and a Nation Coming of Age, Jimmy Carter
39. Ronald Reagan - Subversives - The FBI's War on Student Radicals and Reagan's Rise to Power, Seth Rosenfeld
40. George H. W. Bush - The China Diary of George H. W. Bush: The Making of a Global President, George H. W. Bush + Jeffrey A. Engel
41. William Jefferson Clinton - My Life, Bill Clinton
42. George W. Bush - Decision Points, George W. Bush
43. Barack Obama - A Detailed Response to Benghazi, Barack Obama
This past Christmas as I watched the beginning rumblings of the already competitive 2016 US Presidential Election I decided that I needed a project to keep me occupied and my blood pressure down for the next 23 months so I decided to read a biography, memoir or other book related to each of the 44 presidents, in order.
That being said, I am not doing this as a serious academic pursuit, I am doing this as a personal challenge and expecting to find some interesting facts and good stories along the way. I also hope it will make the seemingly interminable Presidential election process a little more tolerable this time around.
To keep this project even more interesting (to me), I am researching recipes, favorite foods and/or libations of each of the president to try out. I figure a few of the books may be a bit dry which I will counter with a good libation consumed in honor of that president's legacy.
Based on suggestions, reading of reviews and a few notes I had written down over the years here or there, this is "the list" as it stands. I am open to suggestions for other books to read (instead or besides). I am not opposed to reading books with conflicting political agendas or vantage points, I am doing this for fun not for political gain.
1. George Washington - George Washington's Secret Six: The Spy Ring That Saved the American Revolution, Brian Kilmeade + His Excellency: George Washington, Joseph J. Ellis
2. John Adams - John Adams, David McCullough
3. Thomas Jefferson - American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, Joseph J. Ellis
4. James Madison - James Madison, Richard Brookhiser
5. James Monroe - The Last Founding Father, James Monroe and a Nation's Call to Greatness, Harlow Giles Unger
6. James Quincy Adams - Mr. Adams's Last Crusade: John Quincy Adams's Extraordinary Post-Presidential Life in Congress, Joseph Wheelan
7. Andrew Jackson - The Age of Jackson, Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Jr
8. Martin Van Buren - A Return to His Native Town: Martin Van Buren's Life at Lindenwald, 1839-1862, Leonard R. Richards, et al.
9. William Henry Harrison - Mr. Jefferson's Hammer: William Henry Harrison and the Origins of American Indian Policy, Robert M. Owens
10. John Tyler - John Tyler, The Accidental President, Edward Crapol
11. James Polk - A Country of Vast Designs, James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent, Robert B. Merry
12. Zachary Taylor - The Life And Public Service Of General Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln
13. Millard Fillmore - Milliard Fillmore, Ted Gottfried
14. Franklin Pierce - Franklin Pierce: Martyr for the Union, Peter Wallner
15. James Buchanan - President James Buchanan: A Biography, Phillip S. Klein
16. Abraham Lincoln - Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Killer + Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, Doris Kearns Goodwin
17. Andrew Johnson - American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, Jon Meacham
18. Ulysses S. Grant - Vicksburg 1863, Winston Groom
19. Rutherford B. Hayes - Rutherford B. Hayes: One of the Good Colonels, Ari Hoogenboom
20. James Garfield - Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a Presiden, Candice Millard
21. Chester Arthur - Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur, Thomas C. Reeves
22. Stephen Grover Cleveland - A Secret Life: The Lies and Scandals of President Grover Cleveland, Charles Lachman
23. Benjamin Harrison - Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier President, Harry J. Sievers
24. William McKinley - The President and the Assassin: McKinley, Terror, and Empire at the Dawn of the American Century, Scott Miller
25. Theodore Roosevelt - Imperial Cruise: A Secret History of Empire and War, James Bradley
26. William H. Taft - The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism, Doris Kearns Goodwin
27. Woodrow Wilson - Wilson, Scott A. Berg + Hall of Mirrors, David Sinclair
28. Warren G. Harding - The Shadows of Blooming Grove: Warren G. Harding in His Times, Francis Russell
29. Calvin Coolidge - Why Coolidge Matters: Leadership Lessons from America's Most Underrated President, Charles C. Johnson
30. Herbert Hoover - Freedom Betrayed: Herbert Hoover's Secret History of the Second World War and Its Aftermath, Herbert Hoover and George H. Nash
31. Franklin D. Roosevelt - The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope, Jonathan Alter - or - The Plots Against the President, Sally Denton - or - Those Angry Days, Lynne Olson
32. Harry S. Truman - Truman, David McCollough
33. Dwight D. Eisenhower - Soldier and President, Stephen E. Ambrose
34. John Kennedy - Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy (opting out of a bio given the vast amount of coverage and history I have already been exposed to regarding JFK)
35. Lyndon Johnson - The Path of Power, Vol. 1, Robert A. Caro
36. Richard Nixon - Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America, Rick Perlstein
37. Gerald R. Ford - Write It When I'm Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford, Thomas M. Defrank
38. James E. Carter, Jr. - Turning Point: A Candidate, a State and a Nation Coming of Age, Jimmy Carter
39. Ronald Reagan - Subversives - The FBI's War on Student Radicals and Reagan's Rise to Power, Seth Rosenfeld
40. George H. W. Bush - The China Diary of George H. W. Bush: The Making of a Global President, George H. W. Bush + Jeffrey A. Engel
41. William Jefferson Clinton - My Life, Bill Clinton
42. George W. Bush - Decision Points, George W. Bush
43. Barack Obama - A Detailed Response to Benghazi, Barack Obama