It's...packed with an incredible depth of research and thoughtful analysis, all of it devoted to exploring the literary output of our presidents ... It’s a chance to look at these historical titans through the lens of the words they themselves put down on paper. And really, what better way to gain insight into their inner lives and thoughts? ... Through it all, Fehrman guides the reader toward an understanding of how these books both shaped and were shaped by the times in which they were written ... Authors in Chief is an absolutely absorbing read.
... [a] joyfully engrossing debut ... Surely that eternal task has never had so comprehensive a chronicle as this one. When contemplating the tall mountain of literary garbage Fehrman had to scale in order to write with such authority, even the adventurous reader must pale in terror ... Fehrman also consistently pays these writings the compliment of reading them critically ... juicy controversies and conversation-starters are the consistently found treats of Author in Chief, regardless of where you find yourself on the political spectrum. And the implication throughout—that books are vitally important to the nation’s soul—will surely appeal to red and blue state readers alike.
... delightfully instructive ... immensely enhanced by [Ferhman's] awareness of American publishing history, which allows him to present all these political volumes in a cultural and business context ... supplies not only the intermittent history of American publishing already referred to but also some thumbnail historiography ... If Mr. Fehrman can sometimes teeter on the syrupy brink of seeing the presidency as an awesome burden (LBJ’s phrase), his judgments remain almost always clear-eyed and sound. Some of the most entertaining can be found in footnotes ... Mr. Fehrman’s own style is relentlessly peppy and digressive; he is forever setting up a story and then racing off in pursuit of another before returning to the first. The interruptus effect makes a number of his chapters feel like the presidency of Grover Cleveland. Brief appearances by unsung American readers strive to add a democratic amplitude to the author’s history of publishing and literary tastes, but they result mostly in narrative confusion ... Even so, overexuberance beats sourness, and Author in Chief ends up being one of the best books on the American presidency to appear in recent years ... Mr. Fehrman does justice to his several dozen subjects, who through their books keep spinning, even when in their graves
Books by presidents ... it’s a vexed and miscellaneous genre ... So credit to Craig Fehrman for the compendiousness, readability, and general exuberance of his Author in Chief: The Untold Story of Our Presidents and the Books They Wrote ... as Author in Chief proceeds, covering the epochs at a comfortable chronological clip—Washington to Monroe ... Adams to Grant ... Hayes to Roosevelt—a strange Friday the 13th–style tension begins to build. Your scalp starts to itch. What’s going to happen, after all this thoughtful middle-to-highbrowism, when we arrive at the feast of illiteracy that is Trumptown 2020? ... the after-Trump republic—if there is one—will no doubt be looking, with some desperation, for a return to presidential dullness. To fat, pedantic memoirs by worried men. We’ll want it then, this healing, heavily paginated monotony.
Fehrman offers a breezy, anecdote-rich account of the memoirs and autobiographies that have helped candidates running for office. He makes no attempt at comprehensiveness, and the reasoning behind his selections is elusive — and quirky. Readers learn about familiar and unfamiliar books: those written by presidents and their ghostwriters, but also others that veer away from the output of presidents, such as the Bible, almanacs, Jaws and The Da Vinci Code ... Most presidents’ books have aimed to entertain, and that might also be said of Author in Chief. But Fehrman has done his homework. His bibliographical essays are impressively thorough, particularly on works on the study of writing, publishing and reading. His readers will learn a lot about how our presidents’ books have been written, published and sold. To learn what is in them, however, they will have to follow the guidance Fehrman offers and read the books themselves.
Fehrman...offers thorough research and anecdotes across 448 pages. Bookworms, lovers of history, and political junkies will find a lot to like here ... This election year, voters in search of the long view ought to read Author in Chief, a book that is conversational, engaging, and compelling, backed by extensive research and appendices.
... [an] eye-opener of a read ... For both the scholar and the casually curious, there is a lot to learn about our presidents ... This story cannot be told without layering in the birth of the publishing industry and the growing pains of transportation, and Fehrman weaves a detailed tapestry from these threads ... There are the predictable standouts—Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Grant, Roosevelt and Kennedy—and some outstanding surprises, such as Coolidge, Truman and Reagan ... Fehrman ensures their words will continue to matter.
Illustrations grace the text, and extensive bibliographic notes brim with intriguing facts. Both history buffs and politics enthusiasts will relish this.
... a spritely, quote-filled selective survey ... Important aspects here include an annotated appendix of particular publications attributed to presidents, and the author’s essays at the beginning of the endnotes for each chapter citing relevant interviews and secondary works ... This narrative presents an engaging and enlightening perspective on the history of the presidency.
... entertaining and illuminating ... Fehrman’s deep research delivers a wealth of intriguing tidbits, which are complemented by a generous selection of illustrations. Bibliophiles and presidential history buffs alike will relish this gratifying deep dive into an underappreciated genre.
A lively account ... offers highly personal looks at the men who have occupied the White House ... Beyond just presidential authorship, Ferhman also paints inspiring portraits of how our presidents consumed books ... The author goes even further, providing insight on the general history of reading and publishing in America. Overall, the author covers a great deal of ground that even major biographers have skipped over in favor of 'sexier' storylines, yet to the book lover, these stories will be unquestionably enticing. Even the footnotes, appendix, and sources offer bookish gems ... Fehrman’s illuminating blend of presidential and publishing history with literary criticism will appeal to amateur historians and bibliophiles alike.
