Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Franklin D. Roosevelt by Robert Dallek - Available

Franklin D. Roosevelt

A Political Life

by Robert Dallek
Rick Adamson
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available
Named a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post and NPR
“We come to see in FDR the magisterial, central figure in the greatest and richest political tapestry of our nation’s entire history” —Nigel Hamilton, Boston Globe
“Meticulously researched and authoritative” —Douglas Brinkley, The Washington Post
“A workmanlike addition to the literature on Roosevelt.” —David Nasaw, The New York Times
“Dallek offers an FDR relevant to our sharply divided nation” —Michael Kazin
“Will rank among the standard biographies of its subject” —Publishers Weekly

A one-volume biography of Roosevelt by the #1 New York Times bestselling biographer of JFK, focusing on his career as an incomparable politician, uniter, and deal maker
In an era of such great national divisiveness, there could be no more timely biography of one of our greatest presidents than one that focuses on his unparalleled political ability as a uniter and consensus maker. Robert Dallek’s Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life takes a fresh look at the many compelling questions that have attracted all his biographers: how did a man who came from so privileged a background become the greatest presidential champion of the country’s needy? How did someone who never won recognition for his intellect foster revolutionary changes in the country’s economic and social institutions? How did Roosevelt work such a profound change in the country’s foreign relations?
 
For FDR, politics was a far more interesting and fulfilling pursuit than the management of family fortunes or the indulgence of personal pleasure, and by the time he became president, he had commanded the love and affection of millions of people. While all Roosevelt’s biographers agree that the onset of polio at the age of thirty-nine endowed him with a much greater sense of humanity, Dallek sees the affliction as an insufficient explanation for his transformation into a masterful politician who would win an unprecedented four presidential terms, initiate landmark reforms that changed the American industrial system, and transform an isolationist country into an international superpower.
 
Dallek attributes FDR’s success to two remarkable political insights. First, unlike any other president, he understood that effectiveness in the American political system depended on building a national consensus and commanding stable long-term popular support. Second, he made the presidency the central, most influential institution in modern America’s political system. In addressing the country’s international and domestic problems, Roosevelt recognized the vital importance of remaining closely attentive to the full range of public sentiment around policy-making decisions—perhaps FDR’s most enduring lesson in effective leadership.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 7, 2017

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780525497516
      • File size: 858278 KB
      • Duration: 29:48:04

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Franklin D. Roosevelt is remembered for his leadership during the Great Depression and WWII, dealing with his disability from polio, and his efforts in conservation--but this work focuses on his political sense and accomplishments. Rick Adamson offers an even, easy-on-the-ears narration. He varies his tone slightly, which makes some of the more arcane sections flow without becoming tedious. The audiobook is more analysis than storytelling, so interested listeners will need to concentrate. Adamson's reading helps keep one engaged. He wisely doesn't set off direct quotes with a change of voice, which would be at best cartoonish, given how well known FDR's voice is. While the work doesn't break any new ground, it's an interesting examination of the political life of one of the twentieth century's greatest leaders. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 4, 2017
      Dallek (Camelot’s Court), an acclaimed biographer of earlier American presidents, covers nearly every aspect of F.D.R.’s life in a characteristically adroit work that is balanced in coverage and prudent in assessment. While Dallek does not add in any major way to existing knowledge of F.D.R., his emphasis falls on the two great crises of F.D.R.’s presidency—the Depression and WWII—and highlights F.D.R.’s emergence as a skillful politician. Given the book’s paucity of attention to issues regarding women, people of color, the environment, and civil and human rights, it’s not quite the timely work it is being framed as. When those issues arise it’s within chronological coverage of the New Deal and war. Readers may tire from the book’s relentless parade of declarative statements, though few will challenge Dallek’s characterization of Roosevelt as “an instinctively brilliant politician” and all will benefit from Dallek’s principal addition to earlier works on F.D.R.: the convincing argument that as early as May 1943 F.D.R. was showing signs of the illness that would kill him. The result is a comprehensive retelling of a major American life that will rank among the standard biographies of its subject. Agent: John W. Wright, John Wright Literary.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Loading