Theodore Rex

Edmund Morris captures the essence of Theodore Roosevelt better than I'm any other biographer could attempt to do, I'm sure. Although being extremely in depth (over 550 pages), Theodore Rex never once approaches "boring." Morris writes of one of my favorite presidents like a fiction book, with so much description that one could imagine the scenes quite vivedly. Aside from having started reading a little late and struggling to squeeze the whole book in by the end of the summer, I found reading this biography to satisfy my love for history.

While Morris deserves much credit for his imaculate storytelling, the book reads so easily moreso based on the fact that Roosevelt was one of the most interestingly childish presidents we've ever had. The President, at any time during his seven and a half years in the white house, could be found playing tennis against members of his Administration, trekking about the Rocky Mountains, bear hunting in Arkansas, or sparring with his jujitsu trainer. The impression I recieved of Roosevelt was that he was a giant ball of energy; every thing he did was punctuated with hearty shouts of "Bully, bully!" After a long succession of corrupt, stagnant presidents, Roosevelt was an accidental breath of fresh air that ultimately propelled the country infinantly forward.

The book is split into two sections, his first term and his second. Opening dramatically with President McKinley's assassination, Theodore Rex begins with "Teddy's" inheiritance of the White House and continues to recount the numerous acheivements the young president can be accredited with. These include setting a precedent by inviting Booker T. Washington to a private White House dinner, building up a sleek new navy and parading them about the Pacific, mediating an anthracite mining labor dispute, defending the Monroe Doctrine in the Venezuelan affair, pushing a Cuban reciprocity bill through Congress, securing Panama for canal construction, and appointing several African Americans to federal offices. This was just his first term.

Roosevelt's personality and character at times almost overshaddowed his accolades. He was exceptionally well read and had an obvious thirst for historical perspective in dealing with the activity of his day. Moral, fair, and ever advocating a "square deal" for all Americans, TR was an impassionate speaker, gnashing his teeth and pounding his fist into his palm as he delivered his epic oratories. I was absolutely captivated by the character, for it seemed Edmund Morris honestly couldn't have concieved a more attractive literary personality.

The President's second term was equally historic. He continued to prove to trusts that the federal government held power over monopolies--not the other way around. Roosevelt also started a consumer protection movement, forshaddowing the Progressive movement that would shortly follow. Abroad, he won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in arbitrating and bringing a Japanese-Russo conflict to compromise.

Theodore Roosevelt was a unique American president. Reading Emund Morris's Theodore Rex has only further cemented, in my mind, TR's place among the top five presidents this nation has ever had. He was a political force, an objective mind, and a go-getter all compiled into one statesman, and Theodore Rex was able to invite me into the Rooseveltian White House--a masterful biography.