Synopses & Reviews
American Caesarsand#160;takes a fresh look at the lives and careers of the twelve leaders of the American empire since World War II, from Franklin D. Roosevelt to George W. Bush. President by president, the noted biographer Nigel Hamilton strips away myths and wishful thinking to record our most recent presidents as they really were: leaders guiding the fortunes of an unruly empire, on a world stage. Hamilton relates and examines the presidentsandrsquo; unique characters, their paths to Pennsylvania Avenue, their effectiveness as global leaders, and their lessons in governance, both good and bad. With uncompromising candor he looks at how these powerful men responded to the challenges that defined their presidenciesandmdash;FDRandrsquo;s role as a war leader, Harry Trumanandrsquo;s decision to mount a Berlin Airlift rather than pursue military confrontation with the Soviets, Lyndon Johnsonandrsquo;s undertaking of controversial Civil Rights legislation and his disastrous war in Vietnam, Jimmy Carterandrsquo;s handling of the Iran hostage crisis, George H. W. Bushandrsquo;s effectiveness in guiding the world during the collapse of the Soviet Union, and his sonandrsquo;s fateful invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as other salient episodes in modern American history. In the Suetonian manner, Hamilton also looks at the presidentsandrsquo; private livesandmdash;some noble, some flawed, some deeply moving.
Review
"A delight of a summer book: history for the beach, politics for the deckchair, and waspish entertainment come rain or shine."and#8212;London Guardian
Review
"An outstanding book. . . . A commanding study on the nature of personal authority and the presidency."and#8212;Irish Times
Review
"Enthralling . . . [Hamilton] succeeds brilliantly, . . . offering bracingly clear, if necessarily digested, accounts of the main global events that occurred from the onset of World War Two to our own time."and#8212;Irish Independent
Review
"Provocative, stimulating, infuriating, and readable history."and#8212;Herald Scotland
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"An impressive gallop through eighty years of U.S. history."and#8212;Literary Review
Review
"Hamilton does a superb job of getting at [the presidents'] essences. . . . Anyone who enjoys reading history, and loves to look behind the curtain to see the wizards at work, will find this book well worth reading."and#8212;Internet Review of Books
Review
Honorable Mention in the General Non-Fiction category of the 2010 Los Angeles Book Festival
Synopsis
Modeled on one of the most famous histories of ancient Rome, "The Twelve Caesars," Hamilton looks afresh at the lives and careers of the 12 leaders of the American empire since World War II, from Franklin D. Roosevelt to George W. Bush.
About the Author
Nigel Hamilton is one of Britains most distinguished biographers: a recipient of the Whitbread Prize for Biography and the Templer Medal for Military History. His books include The Brothers Mann; his official three-volume life of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, Monty; his two-volume biography Bill Clinton; and his bestselling JFK: Reckless Youth, which was made into an ABC miniseries. He has also published two works on the history and practice of biography. Hamilton became the first professor of biography in Britain, at De Montfort University, and he currently lives in the United States, where he is senior fellow in the McCormack Graduate School, University of Massachusetts, Boston.