Book in Review: Truman

I picked up Truman, primarily because I wanted to understand a little more about the post WW-II events and decisions that so marked the latter half of the 20th century. What I got was something much more. An opportunity to live alongside one of the most remarkable and unlikely lives in American History.

Harry Truman was the last United States President to have been born in the 1800s. His grandparents lived during the era of the Missouri frontier and the Civil War. “The arc of his life spanned more change in the world than in any prior period in history…he had to assume command of the most powerful industrial nation on earth at the very moment when that power, in combination with the stunning advances in science and technology, had become an unparalleled force in the world.” There is a romance to the life, a seemingly fictional element in the biography. Truman did not go to college, nor did he get involved in politics until midlife. He worked a decade as a farmer until his early 30s, went to war in Europe and returned only to get married and start a men’s clothing warehouse. In many ways he was a normal middle American man, who had his share of ups and downs and financial debts.

Truman was not bred for the Presidency, nor trained for the global decisions he would have to make like an FDR or a Churchill. His rise to power could not have been more unforeseen; but with the Pendergast (a powerful Missouri political boss) backing he proved to be very successful in state government. From there, there was no looking back.

From state government to US Senator, from Senator to Roosevelt’s Vice President, from Vice President to President, from President to the creation of United Nations and Victory in Europe and Potsdam and the dropping of the atomic bomb. These first 4 months were riveting to read. And from that point the story does not cease to amaze: from a very low approval rating as President to an exhausting campaign and a most improbable victory over Dewey. Truman’s story is an unfolding of one unlikely event followed by another unlikely, momentous event. Truman’s second term included the founding of the state of Israel, the unpopular start of the Korean War, and the eventual firing of Douglas MacArthur.

It was not just the decisions and the policies implemented that really struck me as a reader. To be sure I did learn a lot more about the post-WWII world; but I found myself becoming very much attached to the key figure in the story. Truman is an admirable protagonist with a noble heart. He is just, moral, upright, wary of the temptations that come with power. He makes mistakes. His persona exudes vitality and industrial energy that is contagious to everyone who works with him. Throughout his life he possessed a deep desire to “do the right thing” no matter what. If modern generations look back on the atomic bomb or the “dangerous foreign intervention precedent” of Korea with disdain—they should read this book. Time and time again Truman is faced with two deeply flawed options in real time: drop a bomb or allow a world war to continue; intervene in Korea or watch on from a distance; use extreme governmental measures or let the crippling strike go on during wartime. An imperfect decision had to be made and rarely was there a third option.

At his farewell address in 1953 Truman said:

“When Franklin Roosevelt died, I felt there must be a million men better qualified than I, to take up the Presidential task. But the work was mine to do, and I had to do it. And I have tried to give it everything that was in me... Good night and God bless you all.”

To sum it up, this was a very enjoyable ride. I found myself at times staying up until the early morning binging, because I was so engrossed in the narrative. I was sad to finish, just like I am sad when I finish any good biography. You walk so far with the characters it is almost an emotional experience when they pass on and a new era arises.

As for the writing, David McCullough in one of the best historians alive and his prose is perfect. A remarkable story teller to match a remarkable life.