Man of Destiny

July 13, 2015
For those unfamiliar with Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s carefully calculated journey to the Oval Office, Hamby (Man of the People) presents a reliable one-volume introduction to the ebullient New York governor who became the 32nd president of the U.S. Hamby, an Ohio University emeritus professor of history, hues closely to the well-established outlines of the Roosevelt’s life and times, sketching out how the highborn New Yorker plowed ahead in the backslapping world of New York state politics to emerge as an effective, almost iconic leader during America’s darkest times: the Great Depression and WWII. Much of the book is well-trod territory: F.D.R.’s domestic overreach in his alphabet soup of new federal agencies, his attempt to “pack” the Supreme Court, and his misplaced trust in Soviet leader Josef Stalin’s handling of Eastern Europe. Roosevelt’s personal sacrifices receive brief treatments: after contracting polio, F.D.R. set up a spa for polio victims in Georgia; he also managed to maintain a professional relationship with his emotionally distant wife, Eleanor, while seeking solace from long-time mistress Lucy Mercer Rutherford. Hamby’s work feels oddly old-fashioned, particularly in its outdated language, but it could be of use to some readers. Agent: Donald Lamm, Fletcher & Company.

June 1, 2015
A straightforward, "flesh-and-blood" study of the president that underscores the depth and ambiguity behind the charming facade. Hamby (Emeritus, History/Ohio Univ.; For the Survival of Democracy, 2007, etc.) recounts his early memories of hearing a Franklin Roosevelt fireside chat and the shocking announcement of his death on April 12, 1945. He fashions this study around the notion of how the life of a great personage shaped an entire era-namely, the way America wanted to see itself. FDR came from old money with a sense of "special social standing," and he was imbued on both sides of his family with the ideals of "Calvinist piety, thrift and capitalist enterprise"-none of which he actually embraced. An only child adored by his parents, he was an early leader and a bit of a trickster who knew how to get around the proper rules. When his father died and his mother, Sara, devoted herself to him, he was able to maintain his independence and marry the woman he wanted, Eleanor; by his early 20s, he had "honed his skills of manipulation and deception to a scalpel's edge." This ability served him well in his increasingly public profile. Deeply influenced by the progressive ideals of his cousin Teddy Roosevelt and Eleanor's strong commitment to public duty, FDR was becoming a leader who understood the needs of the people. Hamby moves thematically through the crucial next decades, focusing on FDR's engagement of one challenge after the next: grim social realities that remained after the exalted victory in World War I; the polio that struck him down-though he transformed his affliction into a crusading philanthropy; and the desperate economic times that prompted him to harness the country to bold new ideas. Hamby also explores what he considers FDR's crowning achievement: his "defense of democracy" during a horrendous global conflagration. Not exactly revelatory but an accessible biography that adds to the large body of existing FDR scholarship.

COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 15, 2015

In his latest work, historian Hamby (Man of the People) analyzes the life of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945). Compared to other recent biographies of the former president, Hamby's account overall is concise and fairly comprehensive, offering a mixed assessment of Roosevelt's presidency and legacy. On the one hand, the author commends Roosevelt for his perseverance and philanthropy in fighting polio. He is mostly complimentary of Roosevelt's leadership during World War II, with the exception of his postwar vision. On the other hand, Hamby is a harsh critic of Roosevelt's management of the economy, denouncing the New Deal for its "appalling counter-productiveness," claiming that it "left the nation impoverished and deprived the world of the economic stimulus an American recovery would have provided." This is a thought-provoking viewpoint; while it's true that the New Deal did not generate a robust or immediate recovery, Hamby fails to provide definitive evidence that the New Deal was responsible for the continuing economic stagnation or that the economy would have recovered faster without it. VERDICT For readers interested in a critical biography of Roosevelt; those seeking a more thorough study might consider Jean Edward Smith's FDR or H.W. Brands's Traitor to His Class.--Dave Pugl, Ela Area P.L., Lake Zurich, IL

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2015
Seventy years after his death, it is likely difficult for millennials or Generation Xers to appreciate the impact FDR and his policies had upon the lives of Americans for whom he served as president more than 12 years. Hamby, professor emeritus of history at Ohio University, was a young child when he heard of Roosevelt's death. His parents' reaction and their love for Roosevelt engendered Hamby's lifelong interest in the man. His conventional, chronological biography offers several interesting insights into Roosevelt as a man and as a politician. Although he was raised as a classic blue blood, Roosevelt also was imbued with a strong sense of public duty as well as social conscience. He was a natural politician, who seemed to radiate warmth and interest in others. Yet he was basically a solitary figure, who kept his deepest emotions to himself. Although his enemies and even some friends sometimes questioned his sincere concern for others, Hamby sees nothing phony about his appreciation for the suffering of the downtrodden and his genuine hostility towards the economic royalists who fought the New Deal. This is an easily digestible, well-researched account that is ideal for general readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)