The American President: The Human Drama of Our Nation's Highest Office by Philip B. Kunhardt III

The American President: The Human Drama of Our Nation's Highest Office Reviews

• 
  Peter Wolfley

  This could be the finest collection of presidential pictures ever assembled. I also liked how they broke up the president profiles into various styles of Presidents. It's probably an overly simplistic way of looking at history but it makes for interesting reading.
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  Zack McCullough

  When assessing the quality of a book, one must always take into account the purpose of the book. For example, if a book is meant primarily to entertain, and one critiques it for not being informative enough or scholarly enough, that would not make much sense. Having said that, I think the authors of this book intended for their book to do two things, and I think they did those two things well.
  First, the authors wanted to humanize the presidents of the United States by presenting them as flawed, yet mostly well-intentioned men. Instead of describing the presidents as political leaders pushing agendas that one may or may not agree with, the book emphasizes the different backgrounds, personalities, and influences that each president experienced that made him the leader that he was. I think the authors do a pretty good job of presenting all presidents impartially, whether they be Democrat, Republican, Federalist, or Whig. I think maybe the authors were a bit partial to the last president covered in this 1999 book, Bill Clinton, which brings us to our next intention.
  The second intention of the authors, I think, was to restore the positive image of the presidency in a time of scandal and partisanship that was prominent in the late 1990s. In doing so, the authors were careful to present each and every president as uncritically as possible. This is not to say that they ignored obvious failings such as Richard Nixon's Watergate scandal. But even when there was an obvious failing, they presented the president as a man that made a mistake, or got caught up in the wrong ideas, or perhaps experienced mental exhaustion. They presented the presidents as, "only human."
  I understand the intent of the authors, and I appreciate their handling of the presidents and their legacies. I think it is good to see them all as basically good, with dreams and aspirations. But there were times were it felt odd not to criticize. After all, out of 41 presidents covered in this book, we have to admit that at least some of them were probably not driven by well-intentioned dreams and aspirations, but were instead primarily motivated by basic greed and lust for power. The co-existence of both great good and terrible evil is, after all, "only human."
• 
  Keith Parrish

  The Presidency is largely considered to be the most demanding, most public, most powerful office on Earth. The calibre of men who have held the office is astonishing in its variety. Ranging from some who actively disdained the office to those who relished it, success and failure have come to those ill-suited for it and for those who were born to it. In this book, Philip Kunhardt goes through every man to sit in the office (up through Bill Clinton) to examine what made some successful and others not. Eschewing the traditional chronological approach, Kunhardt places the 40 presidents into groupings such as those who came into the office accidentally, those who focused on foreign affairs, etc. Kunhardt presents brief 3-4 page biographies concentrating on the Presidential administrations of each one. He shows how the personality affected the Presidency and what went into the key events in the life and administration of each man. The book is also richly illustrated with photographs and paintings of the White House through the years and also includes fascinating sidebars and a section of each man's thoughts from primary sources. This for me is the definitive history of the Presidency. What needs to happen is an update after every President leaves office.
• 
  Jeff

  a big coffee-table book bought for me by a square aunt that actually worked out. A brief (usually 8-15 page) discussion of each president, with plenty of pictures and usually at least one picture of the evolution of the White House building itself for each president. It's organized by themed groups, as opposed to chronologically, but I jumped around anyway. Not heavily ideological.
• 
  Judy

  A brief look at each of the presidents--usually 10-15 pages with illustrations. The presidents are arranged by themes (generals, dark horse, etc.) rather than chronologically. Fairly standard information. I was expecting a more in-depth analysis of each president, but this book would be interesting for someone who wants a basic overview of the presidency and the men who have held the office.
• 
  Julie

  This book divided presidents into different "categories" and then gave a short overview of each and why they fit into a particular category. I found out some interesting info on presidents I was not really familiar with.
• 
  Delmer

  This book is probably one of my most favorite books in my collection. I'm a history nut, and this book does not disappoint; it provides you with detailed information about our presidents that you might not have known, nor learned about it in school!
• 
  Christine

  It was interesting to read about ALL the presidents (up to Clinton). I loved seeing all the photos & other pictures, as well as the sidebars about the First Ladies. After reading this, one president that left me wanting more was James Garfield. He seemed like a really decent guy!
• 
  Rose

  The authors grouped the different presidents in categories; that made it difficult to follow the chronological order.However, I did learn a great deal. They gave an excellent overview of how the American presidency has changed through the years and how the various Presidents have changed it.
• 
  Michael

  The biographies were well written but I didn't care for the way the book skipped around on the presidents. They were grouped in catergories like military heros, professional poloticians, etc.
• 
  Nate

  This book gives a nice overview of the presidents. It brings some interesting groupings, though they don't all really work.
• 
  Katy

  Buzzfeed List, November 2017, "9 Books That Actually Helped Me Win On 'Jeopardy!'"