Truman

This review has been some time coming. The trade paperback edition I read is 992 pages plus acknowledgements, footnotes, bibliography, and index. Practically got a hernia carrying it around. I also had commitments to review other books so I had to put it aside occasionally to read and review shorter books, usually fiction. Despite a weekend of football watching, though, I finally finished it Sunday afternoon. Now I'm almost sorry it's done.

Anyone who loves history and biography as much as I do knows David McCullough writes like a storyteller. His prose is never dry, boring, or academic, yet he unfailingly tells the reader what is important to know about a person or an event.

I thought I knew a lot about Harry Truman, a fellow show more Midwesterner, but I didn't. I simply understood "where he was coming from" as the kids say. His childhood as a farm boy who wore glasses and was also a dedicated student was delightful to read about. In Sunday school he fell hard for a little girl with golden curls and beautiful eyes, Bess Wallace. She was his only love but they didn't marry until they were in their 30s. Mama Wallace never did consider Harry good enough for her daughter, even when she was dying in the White House near the end of his time as President of the United States. Regardless, he never said a bad word about her, ever.

Now that I know the truth about his spell as Tom Pendergast's candidate for county office and the enduring reputation as a product of that political machine, I understand a bit more about why my grandfather had such a low opinion of Truman. Of course, he would have felt that way anyway since Truman was a Democrat which made him, in Gramps' eyes, a spawn of the Devil. Hard to believe this liberal Democrat (me) came from such a staunch Republican family, but I did because when I was old enough to think things out for myself, that was the way I believed. That was a matter I never discussed with Gramps. He would have been horrified.

We were city people, but farmers and small town folks loved Truman. When he went on his whistle stop tour running for president on his own, he stopped in the small towns and he talked their language. They loved his honesty, his humbleness, the way he introduced Bess as "the boss," and his knowledge of their cares and worries. (Although one time she told him if he introduced her thus one more time, she was going to get off the train and go home.) They also appreciated his service in World War I, as a captain of artillery. The men he commanded were to remain his good friends for the rest of his life and participate as honor guards at his inaugural parade.

His Achilles heel was daughter Margaret. No one could criticize her singing or anything else about her without feeling the full strength of Truman's wrath. He had begun to think he would never realize his desire to be a grandfather when she stayed single so long, but eventually she married and Truman would hold the first of four grandsons in his arms just a few days after he was born. Doting grandpa was his proud title from then on.

It was fascinating to read about his taking office after Roosevelt's death. FDR had not liked him very much, and didn't include him in briefings and conferences, so suddenly Truman had a huge learning curve immediately ahead of him. He pulled himself up by his own bootstraps as people used to say and did very well. He was fortunate enough to find some of the best men in the country to man the cabinet and be his advisors. Dean Acheson, in fact, was a close friend until his death.

His performance in Potsdam was surprising to Stalin and Churchill. One of my favorite quotes in the book is from Churchill. He wrote in 1952, "I misjudged you badly. Since that time you more than any other man, have saved Western civilization." (p. 875)

Whether to use the atomic bomb is another period I'm glad to know more about, and Korea. To know what went on in the background and the agony those decisions cost him was a revelation to me. Once a decision was made, he stuck with it no matter how many critics condemned him.

I won't go on but, in short, this is one of the best biographies I've ever read. Thank you David McCullough for giving us this wonderful story, the life of a controversial man who was so vital in our history.

Highly recommended
Source: purchased several years ago show less

McCullough's first Pulitzer outing—I read John Adams first, years ago—his big biography of Truman. It came out at a time, 1992, that allowed for a flowering and reconsideration of Truman's time in office. Truman was an interesting figure, a fighting politician, who made excellent decisions on the bomb and the Cold War. McCullough is a little too rosy on Truman's domestic policies and takes a cold view of the idea that there WERE Soviet spies and communists in the government. Venona shows this. Hiss was a traitor. McCullough brushes this aside in his glowing portrait of Truman and his era. Still, excellent research, excellent prose, and an excellent book despite its bulk.

Author David McCullough’s writing flowed with an ease and clarity that made this biography of Harry S Truman read like a novel. It captured the complexity beneath Truman’s common man simplicity, his capacity to grow and ‘prove equal to tasks seemingly too large for him’ and brought a sense of drama to the events and accomplishments of his presidency. For me, the greatest revelation was in how limited Truman's options were when he made the decision that ended WWII and that he later refused to consider using nuclear weapons against China during the Korean war.
Overall, this was an outstanding portrait of an extraordinary man and a fascinating overview of a pivotal time in American and world history. Reading it has been my evening show more quiet time companion for several months now and I am genuinely going to miss it. show less

Generally sympathetic and for me irresistibly told, very detailed life of Truman beginning with his ancestors moving to Missouri in the early 1800s. A wonderful sense of the pioneer virtues of his people, and his own very plain life, until he as unexpectedly taken up by Tom Prendergast and made a county judge (commissioner) and senator, from which he emerged later as vice president and president. Perhaps a bit too inclined to be kindly to the Prendergast machine --I have seen another franker version --but includes enough of the negatives to make his positive portrait fairly credible. Definitely the feel-good version --how we would like Truman to have been., though not as feel-good as Truman's daughter's version -- McCullough is almost show more entirely positive until the last part of Truman's presidency, but he feel that Truman mishandled the firing of MacArthur --he accepts MacArthur's claim that he would have quietly resigned if asked, which I doubt, He seems to believe that Owen Lattimore and Alger Hiss were innocent, which I think is contrary to the evidence, and omits the case of Harry Dexter White. He is more detailed about the Internal Revenue, "mink coat' and "deep freeze" scandals and makes plain that though Truman may have been personally honest, he showed very poor judgment in tolerating cronies and cronies of cronies who were not, especially successive chairmen of the DNC. While he salutes Truman's simple life in retirement, he does describe Truman's hostility to the civil disobedience tactics of the civil rights movement in the last part of his life (despite his great courage in championing civil rights when in power), and his clumsy attempts to block Kennedy's nomination (though he worked for Kennedy's election, and grieved for Kennedy's death). show less

Because Truman's life is well-documented around the time of his presidency, it is no surprise that McCullough's biography thinly covers Truman's childhood and coming-of-age stage of life. The bulk of the biography centers around Truman's careers; starting with his early venture as a clothing store owner, an eastern judge, a senator, and of course, finally, president of the United States. Having said that, I appreciate biographies that peel back layers of a person's lifestyle and personality, for better or worse. To know that Truman harbored bigoted thoughts and beliefs was startling but logical, considering the time of his upbringing. Even though he thought of himself as a good-for-nothing American farmer, he also believed he would show more amount to something great one day. Indeed, he would go from being a businessman with a failing men's clothing store to earning a seat as an eastern judge and then state senator before becoming president. Not bad for a good ole boy.
As a president, Truman faced enormous difficulties, trials, and tribulations. Only seventy-seven years ago, this sitting president had to endorse anti-lynching legislation. We can't forget his decision to definitively end World War II, how he handled Palestine, the threat of communism, and our nation's involvement in Korea. Not to mention he survived a pretty serious assassination attempt.
McCullough's coverage of the second campaign, where Dewey was the well-known favorite, was riveting and read like a thriller. Also, it should be noted that McCullough wrote with astounding detail. I could picture Stalin drawing the heads of wolves with a red pencil while talking with Secretary Marshall, trying to save Western Europe. show less

Bizarrely readable for its thousand pages, even when McCullough is harping on how healthy Truman is. Focus never departs from the subject, even though it must have been tempting to digress into analysis of the atomic bomb, the Korean war, life after the Presidency, etc. When there is conflicting information, McCullough often quotes both sources, and indicates which seems more accurate, which makes him seem trustworthy as a biographer. Although I should admit I never once looked at the endnotes or bibliography (992 pages is quite enough!).

How does one write a meaningful review of a 992-page book that covers a broad swath of United States history? David McCullough doesn’t waste a word as he writes about Harry Truman the Man, who was devoted to his family and loyal to his friends, and Harry Truman the President, who loved his country and served it to the best of his ability. One would be mistaken to think that there were two different versions of Harry Truman. His equal allotments of humor, humility, and high-mindedness governed both the private and public sides of his life. His response to questions from reporters on his first day of becoming the 33rd President of the U. S. (and the 7th VP thrust into office after the sudden death of the President) was typical: “Boys, show more if you ever pray, pray for me now. I don’t know whether you fellows ever had a load of hay fall on you, but when they told me yesterday what had happened, I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me.”

Truman faced many challenges that shaped history during his two terms in office. He is probably best known for the decision to use atomic force to expedite the end of WWII. He was also responsible for fostering the Civil Rights movement, establishing Israel as an independent nation, and instituting NATO, the Truman Doctrine, and the Marshall Plan. He even got involved in renovating the White House which was in danger of being condemned. One of the biggest thorns in his side was North Korea and the resulting “police action” as he preferred to call the war against Communist invasion. He also didn’t like the prevailing term of “Cold War” and called his relationship with Stalin “the war of nerves.” Truman was sustained through all this turmoil by a quote from another Missourian, Mark Twain: “Always do right! This will gratify some and astonish the rest.”

After spending many hours reading this fine Pulitzer winning work by McCullough, I am proud to call myself a Missourian. Truman worked hard to be a decent man doing the decent thing. I personally enjoyed the references to Harry Truman as a reader. Since I am addressing fellow book lovers, I’ll conclude with Harry’s idea of heaven according to his daughter Margaret: “…to have a good comfortable chair, a good reading lamp, and lots of books around that he wanted to read.” A fine ending to a fine life. Harry Truman died on December 26, 1972 at age 88 in Kansas City, Missouri. He and his wife Bess, who died ten years later, are buried in the courtyard of the Truman Library located in their beloved Independence, Missouri. show less