A solid public servant-upbeat and positive even when things didn't go well or the way he hoped they would. Rather than being a 'complete dope' I found Truman to be hard working, honest and honorable. It was fascinating to hear the same events from Truman's perspective. I have always heard the FDR story from Roosevelt's perspective.with Eleanor treating Truman as an imbecile in need of serious help. I confess that I grew up during a time where the mention of Truman either caused eye rolling sneers or tight lipped stoney looks. That Mousy Little Man From Missouri Revisited This was a fascinating look at the life of a man who became the leader of the free world in its worst hours through accident, and had to make the hardest decision any man had ever had to make - do we drop the bomb or do we continue to fight? He then went on to be elected in his own right and become much loved by the American people. When you think about it the Vice President should know everything the President knows, it's only a split second between being the Vice President and becoming the President if there's an accident or an assassination.

The way he was treated by Roosevelt and the minions surrounding him borders on disgusting. I think this President is the least understood but I believe him to be the most honest. How could they not have kept him in the loop about the Atomic bomb development when they knew Roosevelt was extremely ill? He hadn't wanted to be Vice President, he had a horror of becoming the President through the President passing away (he was very sick) and sure enough - his nightmare came true. Truman he was not treated with respect when he became Vice President. I was quite amazed at the way American politics works, so different to ours in Australia under the English system. Yes, because there was so much to listen to I think I probably missed quite a bit. Here too is a telling account of Truman's momentous decision to use the atomic bomb and the weighty responsibilities that he was forced to confront on the dawning of a new age.ĭistinguished historian and Pulitzer-Prize-winning author David McCullough tells one of the greatest American stories in this stirring audio adaptation of Truman - a compelling, classic portrait of a life that shaped history. Senate, McCullough shows a man of uncommon vitality and strength of character.

The life and times of the 33rd president of the United States, Truman provides a deeply moving look at an extraordinary, singular American.įrom Truman's small-town, turn-of-the-century boyhood and his transforming experience in the face of war in 1918, to his political beginnings in the powerful Pendergast machine and his rapid rise to prominence in the U.S. Hailed by critics as an American masterpiece, David McCullough's sweeping biography of Harry S.

Pulitzer Prize, Biography/Autobiography, 1993

Truman by david mccullough summary