Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt

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It's a hit!

I really enjoyed this one. Hate to say it as I do, comparisons with the two Edmund Morris works about TR I've read lately are hard to keep myself f... (show more)

I really enjoyed this one. Hate to say it as I do, comparisons with the two Edmund Morris works about TR I've read lately are hard to keep myself from making. But I like McCullough's work better!

TR was an asthmatic, as am I. McCullough's treatment of this asthma was very interesting and I was thoroughly attentive to what he had to say about it.

TR's family life was most interesting to me as portrayed in this book. I understood much better the dynamics of his relationship with his father, for one thing. But I also appreciated getting more a feel for Mittie's background, and for where TR's fascination with naval matters originated, Mittie's brothers for instance.

The way that TR dealt with grief over the passing of first his father, then his mother and wife, came across differently to me in Mornings on Horseback than it did through either Theodore Rex or The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, Morris's works. I understand now that he was a man thoroughly committed to concentrating on life and the living, not willing in anything but the least to give pause for death or the dead.

Theodore Roosevelt was truly an epic man, that much can be said with no doubts. (show less)

 

 

by Garrett Ashley Mullet

No, it's a flop!

Never finished this one, as good as his book on Adams was, this one rots. It took soooo long covering the early stages of his life, I never finishe... (show more)

Never finished this one, as good as his book on Adams was, this one rots. It took soooo long covering the early stages of his life, I never finished it. I probably missed some excellent sections, but after 100 pages...snoozing (show less)

 

 

by Art Nicholas

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  Two of the best biographies that I have ever read (Truman & John Adams) is by David McCullough. I have also read three additional books by him – and they have all been brilliant.

  You can probably imagine my excitement when I started on “Mornings on Horseback”.

  But, as it turned out, I was to be bitterly disappointed.
  
  Don’t get me wrong: Mr. McCullough’s meticulous and detailed description of events passed is of the very quality one has come to expect of his work.

  What disappointed me... (show more)

  Two of the best biographies that I have ever read (Truman & John Adams) is by David McCullough. I have also read three additional books by him – and they have all been brilliant.

  You can probably imagine my excitement when I started on “Mornings on Horseback”.

  But, as it turned out, I was to be bitterly disappointed.
  
  Don’t get me wrong: Mr. McCullough’s meticulous and detailed description of events passed is of the very quality one has come to expect of his work.

  What disappointed me was the time span covered in the book. It starts when Roosevelt is about five and it end 15 years BEFORE he became president. Huh ????? I don’t get it.

  His childhood is all interesting and everything, but I’m sure these events are dwarfed by his presidency.

  The last chapter (that doubles as an epilogue) does touch upon his presidency – but only for two or three pages. Considering that it took Mr. McCullough TWENTY pages to describe one of Roosevelt’s asthma attacks during his childhood, I find this very peculiar.

  Talented writing for sure, but if you want to know about Roosevelt’s presidency, you will find no help here …. (show less)

   

   

  by Henrik John Brandt on Nov 11, 2009 at 11:14PM

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  Once again McCullough hits the nail on the head with this in-depth analysis of Teddy Roosevelt's early days. He not only goes into the family history of who Teddy is but how he got to be the man we all love as president. From a young bashful boy with asthma to the strong willed Progressive, McCullough examines Teddy's family relationships thoroughly. From his sheltered youth to his days on the Bad Lands in the Dakotas we watch as Teddy grows up. It is the details found in the rich primary... (show more)

  Once again McCullough hits the nail on the head with this in-depth analysis of Teddy Roosevelt's early days. He not only goes into the family history of who Teddy is but how he got to be the man we all love as president. From a young bashful boy with asthma to the strong willed Progressive, McCullough examines Teddy's family relationships thoroughly. From his sheltered youth to his days on the Bad Lands in the Dakotas we watch as Teddy grows up. It is the details found in the rich primary sources that McCullough shares the intimimacies not seen in most American history textbooks. Neatly inserted in the text is Teddy's first marriage and his love for his first wife which is so rarely discussed. We also meet a young Assemblyman from NYC who discovers himself on the floor of the capital building in Albany. The love and acceptance of his father and later his older sister Bamie draw him fatefully into the political realm.

  If there was any flaw in this piece its missing his second marriage in the same detail as his first. And of course many times McCullough becomes too detail oriented and throws the reader from the story with what color shirt Teddy was wearing or the exact temperature over the course of a 30 day period. Yet it is his primary source research that makes this a must read. (show less)

   

  by Facebook User on Jul 04, 2009 at 03:38PM

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