They don’t get better than this—three volumes of Theodore Roosevelt, one of the most fascinating biographical subjects imaginable and a true inspiration.

William McKinley was the president who straddled two centuries, established the United States on the Global stage, and was ultimately overshadowed by his successor.

Benjamin Harrison. He was president. Not a lot more to say, but I did my best.

Only non-consecutive president, born up the street from me, really didn’t want anyone who wasn’t a white man to vote. Grover Cleveland this week!

Chester A. Arthur. The Man. The Myth. The Mustache.

Regal House Publishing originally posted this as part of their Book Bound Series. It’s a feature on the wonderful Montclair Book Center.

James A. Garfield (the president, not the cat). This is an excellent book that focuses on his assassination and the medical missteps that, if avoided, could’ve saved him.

This week I wrote about Rutherford B. Hayes, primarily focusing on the Compromise of 1877 that ended Reconstruction, set African Americans in the South back to pre-Civil War conditions, and made Hayes president. It’s a sad, fascinating story and one everyone should know.

This week I wrote about my favorite one-volume biography and one of my favorite Americans, Ulysses S. Grant. He was a man with flaws, a man who stumbled, a man who knew the taste of failure. But ultimately, he was one of the greatest individuals this nation has produced and an inspiration in so many ways.

This week I discuss David O. Stewart’s book about Andrew Johnson’s impeachment trial. It’s a good book about a terrible man.

Finally, we emerge from the darkness and find Abraham Lincoln. Burlingame’s excellent two-part biography exhaustively details our greatest president and his complex, brilliant life.

In memory of one of my favorite writers, Cormac McCarthy, and the way his gorgeously bleak novel reminds me of my mother and her undying love and support.

As far as presidents go, they don’t get much worse than James Buchanan. I’m fascinated by the awful presidents, but unfortunately, this book left me wanting more.

I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of Candi Sary’s wonderful novel, Magdalena. It will be out July 11th, and you should make a point of reading it then!

Another forgettable president and, honestly, a forgettable biography. It’s disappointing, really, there’s an interesting story here, but Holt didn’t find it. This is a key period in our nation’s history (the lead-up to the Civil War), and the biographies of these presidents are severely lacking.

Unexpected. Unsettling. Unforgettable. This book completely took me by storm. I couldn’t put it down and found the hours ticking away as I fell further and further into Awad’s web.

We’re almost there, Lincoln is right around the corner, but first, we have to get through Millard Fillmore.

A post about a wonderful novel by one of the most talented writers working today, Brandon Taylor. I can’t recommend his work highly enough.

Zachary Taylor this week. Meh, but you don’t have to read the book, just read this instead.