Commander In Chief

October 10, 2016
Biographer Hamilton (The Mantle of Command) combines polished writing, a command of various sources, and broad insight in this account of Franklin Roosevelt’s pivotal WWII year. It was in 1943 that Roosevelt definitively established himself as leader of the Anglo-American alliance. The struggle for dominance between Roosevelt and Winston Churchill is usually presented from the latter’s perspective. In contrast, Hamilton focuses on Roosevelt, presenting him as a war leader “with not only a vision of the future, but how to achieve that future.” The key to his plan was the United Nations. It would be established as a consequence of the destruction of Nazi Germany, which meant a full-scale, cross-channel invasion of Europe. Churchill accepted the concept but made every effort to undermine it. The result was a test of wills. Churchill, seeking to husband British resources and fearing that a Continental invasion would end in disaster, “presented an obsessive argument for the invasion of Italy and the Balkans.” By mid-1943 his recalcitrance placed the coalition “in grave peril.” At Quebec in August the negotiations were “near homicidal,” but the endgame saw Churchill accepting the inevitable. Hamilton shows why Roosevelt “had every reason to feel supreme” with the U.S. becoming “the leading power of the free world.” Agent: Ike Williams, Kneerim & Williams Literary.

January 1, 2016

Herman, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for Gandhi & Churchill, relies on new sources to help us know the sometimes controversial, always larger-than-life Gen. Douglas MacArthur, who served as a U.S. military leader through three wars--World War I, World War II, and the Korean War.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2016

In this follow-up to The Mantle of Command: FDR at War, 1941-1942, which focused on Franklin D. Roosevelt's wartime strategies, biographer Hamilton (senior fellow, McCormack Graduate Sch. of Policy and Global Studies, Univ. of Massachusetts Boston) chronicles Roosevelt's actions in 1943, particularly his often contentious encounters with Winston Churchill and America's changing partnership with Britain. British-American relations were critical during this time period; what is less understood is that there were difficult, selfish, and at times shady aspects of this alliance--and at the heart of these dealings were Roosevelt and Churchill. Hamilton marches through 1943 in great detail, exposing the surprising reverses that tried the patience of the normally stalwart Roosevelt, while also throwing light on the political machinations that would lead to Alllied victory in World War II. While the pacing may appear slow to general readers as a result of the painstaking descriptions, history buffs and scholars will find this to be a fascinating read, clearly relating the many surprising story threads that comprise a now legendary relationship between two global powers. VERDICT A solid choice for readers and scholars of World War II, American history, British history, and political science, as well as fans of Roosevelt, Churchill, and biography. [See Prepub Alert, 3/23/15.]--Benjamin Brudner, Curry Coll. Lib., Milton, MA

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.