Presidential Biographies
Those in italics are those I have in my library
Washington
Ron Chernow, Washington, A Life 2010
Douglas Southall Freeman: Washington (Abridgment of 7 volume)
Richard Brookhiser: Rediscovering George Washington: Founding Father
Morris H. Hancock: Washington’s Life and Military Career, 1902
James Thomas Flexner, George Washington: The Forge of Experience, 1965
James Thomas Flexner, George Washington in the American Revolution, 1967
James Thomas Flexner, George Washington and the New Nation, 1970
James Thomas Flexner, George Washington: Anguish and Farewell 1972
(SF Recommended: Flexner’s 4 volume)
James Thomas Flexner, Washington: The Indispensable Man (abridgment 1974)
Joseph Ellis, His Excellency: George Washington
Richard Norton Smith, Patriarch: George Washington and the New American Nation
(SF: dry, narrow, focus on presidency)
John Ferlin, The Ascent of George Washington
(SF: a negative argument)
David O. Stewart, George Washington: The Political Rise of America’s Founding Father (2021, (read from library, excellent)
J. Adams
David McCullough, John Adams 2001
Page Smith, John Adams (2 Vol) 1962
John Ferling, John Adams: A Life
James Grant: John Adams: Party of One
(SF: poorly written, good focus on economics)
Joseph Ellis, Passionate Sage: The Character and Legacy of John Adams)
(SF: dry, academic, character analysis, philosophical treatise)
Joseph Ellis, First Family: Abigail and John Adams
Stephen G. Kurtz: The Presidency of John Adams: The Collapse of Federalism 1795-1800
Lynne Withey: Dearest Friend, A Life of Abigail Adams
Jefferson
Dumas Malone, Jefferson the Virginian
Dumas Malone, Jefferson and the Rights of Man
Dumas Malone, Jefferson and the Ordeal of Liberty
Dumas Malone, Jefferson the President First Term
Dumas Malone, Jefferson the President Second Term
Dumas Malone, The Sage of Monticello
Merrill Peterson, Thomas Jefferson and the New Nation 1970
Joseph Ellis, American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson
Alan Pell Crawford, Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson 2008
Jon Meacham, Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
Willard Sterne Randall, Thomas Jefferson: A Life
(SF: least favorite, focus on legal studies and career)
John Ferling: Jefferson and Hamilton: The Rivalry That Forged a Nation
Election:
John Ferling: Adams vs. Jefferson: The Tumultuous Election of 1800
Madison
Ralph Ketcham, James Madison: A Biography 1971
Andrew Burstein and Nancy Isenberg, Madison and Jefferson
Richard Brookhiser, James Madison
Kevin Gutzman, James Madison and the Making of America
(SF: more about the making of the constitution)
Lynn Cheney, James Madison: A Life Reconsidered 2014
Bruce Chadwick: James and Dolley Madison
Garry Wills: James Madison AP
Elizabeth Dowling Taylor: A Slave in the White House: Paul Jennings and the Madisons
Noah Feldman: The Three Lives of James Madison
Monroe
Harry Ammon, James Monroe: The Quest for National Identity
Harlow Unger, The Last Founding Father: James Monroe
(SF: not an objective historian)
Tim McGrath, James Monroe: A Life
J. Q. Adams
Marie Hecht, John Quincy Adams: A Personal History of an Independent Man
Paul Nagel, John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, a Private Life
Joseph Wheelan, Mr. Adams’s Last Crusade
Harlow Unger, John Quincy Adams
Lynn Hudson Parsons: John Quincy Adams
James Traub, John Quincy Adams: Militant Spirit
Jackson
Marquis James, The Life of Andrew Jackson (1930)
Arthur Schlesinger, The Age of Jackson
(SF: more a history of the time)
Robert Remini, Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Empire
Robert Remini, Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Freedom
Robert Remini, Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Democracy
Robert Remini, The Life of Andrew Jackson
Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger: Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans
H.W. Brands, Andrew Jackson: This Life and Times 2005
Jon Meacham, American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House 2008
Van Buren
John Niven, Martin Van Buren: The Romantic Age of American Politics
(SF: very detailed, with little guidance through facts)
Donald Cole: Martin Van Buren and the American Political System
Ted Widmer, Martin Van Buren AP
Major Wilson, The Presidency of Martin Van Buren APS
W. Harrison
Freeman Cleaves, Old Tippecane: William Henry Harrison and His Time, 1939
Robert Owens, Mr. Jefferson’s Hammer: William Henry Harrison and the Origins of American Indian Policy
Gail Collins: William Henry Harrison
Richard Hildreth: The People’s Presidential Candidate: Or the Life of William Henry Harrison
Norma Lois Peterson: The Presidencies of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler
Tyler
Oliver Chitwood, John Tyler: Champion of the Old South
Edward Crapol, John Tyler: The Accidental President
Gary May, John Tyler
Christopher Leahy, President without a Party: The Life of John Tyler
J. J. Perling: The President Take a Wife
Julia Gardiner Tyler biography
Norma Lois Peterson: The Presidencies of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler
Robert Seager II: And Tyler Too
Polk
Robert Merry, A Country of Vast Designs: James Polk, the Mexican War, and the Conquest of the American Continent
Walter Borneman, Polk: The Man Who Transformed the Presidency and America 2008
Sam Haynes, James K. Polk and the Expansionist Impulse
John Seigenthaler: James K. Polk AP
Taylor
Jack Bauer, Zachary Taylor: Soldier, Planter, Statesman of the Old Southwest 1985
John Eisenhower, Zachary Taylor 2008
Holman Hamilton: Zachary Taylor: Soldier in the White House
Elbert B. Smith: The Presidencies of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore APS
Fillmore
Elbert B. Smith: The Presidencies of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore APS
Robert Rayback, Millard Fillmore: Biography of a President, 1959
Paul Finkelman, Millard Fillmore 2011 (very prejudiced against Fillmore, not valid history)
Charles M. Snyder: The Lady and the President: The Letters of Dorthea Dix and Millard Fillmore
Pierce
Roy Nichols, Franklin Pierce: Young Hickory of the Granite Hills 1931
Peter Wallner, Franklin Pierce: New Hampshire’s Favorite Son 2004
Peter Wallner, Franklin Pierce: Martyr for the Union 2007
Michael Holt, Franklin Pierce 2010
Buchanan
Philip Klein, President James Buchanan: A Biography 1962
(SF: errors in being too forgiving)
Jean Baker, James Buchanan 2004
(SF: one sided and harsh)
John Quist and Michael Birkner: James Buchanan and the Coming of the Civil War
Elbert B. Smith: The Presidency of James B. Buchanan APS
Lincoln
Doris Kearns Goodwin, The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
Michael Burlingame, Abraham Lincoln: A Life (2 volumes) 2008
Ronald White, A. Lincoln: A Biography 2009
David Donald, Lincoln 1995
Stephen Oates, With Malice Toward None: The Life of Abraham Lincoln 1977
Benjamin Thomas, Abraham Lincoln 1952
Doris Kearns Goodwin, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln 2005
Eric Foner, The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery 2010 (Pulitzer)
James McPherson, Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief 2008
Allen Guelzo, Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President
(SF: tedious except for exceptional last chapter)
Douglas Wilson: Lincoln’s Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words
Garry Wills: Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America
Joe Wheeler: Abraham Lincoln: A Man of Faith and Courage
Abraham Lincoln: Speeches, Letters, Miscellaneous Writings, Lincoln Douglas Debates 1832-1859
Abraham Lincoln: Speeches, Letters, Miscellaneous Writings, Presidential Messages and Proclamations, 1859-1865
Mario Cuomo and Harold Holzer: Lincoln on Democracy: His Own Words, with Essays by America’s Foremost Civil War Historians
Douglas L. Wilson: Lincoln Before Washington: New Perspectives on the Illinois Years
William Marvel: Mr. Lincoln Goes to War
Douglas Wilson: Honor’s Voice: The Transformation of Abraham Lincoln
Philip Van Doren Stern: The Life and Writings of Abraham Lincoln
Martha Hodes: Mourning Lincoln
L. Pierce Clark: Lincoln: A Psycho-Biography
Richard Carwardine: Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power
John C. Waugh: Re-electing Lincoln: The Battle for the 1864 Presidency
A. Johnson
Hans Trefousse, Andrew Johnson: A Biography
Howard Means, The Avenger Takes His Place: Andrew Johnson and the 45 Days that Changed a Nation 2006
(SF: insightful but scattered)
David Stewart, Impeached: The Trial of President Andrew Johnson and the Fight for Lincoln’s Legacy
Eric McKitrick, Andrew Johnson and Reconstruction 1960
Annette Gordon-Reed: Andrew Johnson AP
Albert Castel, The Presidency of Andrew Johnson APS
Lately Thomas: The First President Johnson: The Three Lives of the Seventeenth President of the United States of America
Brenda Wineapple: The Impeachers
Grant
William McFeely, Grant: A Biography 1981
(SF: well known for negative feelings about Grant)
Geoffrey Perret, Ulysses S. Grant: Soldier and President 1997
(SF: hyperbole, fawning, but captivating)
Brooks Simpson, Ulysses S. Grant: Triumph Over Adversity 1822-1865
Jean Edward Smith, Grant 2001
Josiah Bunting, Ulysses S. Grant (American Presidents)
H.W. Brand, The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses S. Grant in War and Peace 2012
Ronald White, American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant
Ron Chernow, Grant 2017
U.S. Grant: Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant
Hayes
Ari Hoogenboom, Rutherford B. Hayes: Warrior and President 1995
Hans Trefousse, Rutherford B. Hayes
Harry Barnard, Rutherford B. Hayes: And His America 1954
Ari Hoogenboom: The Presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes APS
Charles Richard Williams: The Life of Rutherford Birchard Hayes, Volumes I and II
Election:
Roy Morris, Jr.: Fraud of the Century: Rutherford B. Hayes, Samuel Tilden, and the Stolen Election of 1876
Garfield
Millard, Candice, Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President 2011
Kenneth Ackerman, Dark Horse: the Surprise Election and Political Murder of President James A. Garfield 2003
Allan Peskin, Garfield: A Biography 1978
Margaret Leech, The Garfield Orbit
Justus D. Doenecke, The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur
Arthur
Thomas Reeves, Gentleman Boss: The Life and Times of Chester Alan Arthur 1975
Zachary Karabell, Chester Alan Arthur 2004 AP
Justus D. Doenecke, The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur
Scott S. Greenberger: The Unexpected President: The Life and Times of Chester A. Arthur
Cleveland
Robert McElroy, Grover Cleveland: The Man and the Statesman, Volumes I and II
Allan Nevin, Grover Cleveland: A Study in Courage 1932
H. Paul Jeffers, An Honest President: The Life and Presidencies of Grover Cleveland 2000
Alyn Brodsky, Grover Cleveland: A Study in Character
Horace Samuel Merrill, Bourbon Leader: Grover Cleveland and the Democratic Party 1957
(SF: intended to present negative view of subject)
Matthew Algeo: The President is a Sick Man: Grover Cleveland…Secret Surgery…Vilifies Press
Richard E. Welch, Jr.: The Presidencies of Grover Cleveland APS
Henry Graff: Grover Cleveland AP
B. Harrison
Charles Calhoun, Benjamin Harrison
Harry J. Sievers, Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Warrior
Harry J. Sievers, Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Statesman
Harry J. Sievers, Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier President
Homer Socolofsky and Allan Spetter, The Presidency of Benjamin Harrison 1987
McKinley
Margaret Leech, In the Days of McKinley 1959
Wayne Morgan, William McKinley and His America 1963
Louis Gould, The Presidency of William McKinley 1980
Scott Miller, The President and the Assassin: McKinley, Terror and Empire at the Dawn of the American Century 2011
Robert W. Merry: President McKinley
T. Roosevelt
Edmund Morris, Rise of Theodore Roosevelt
Edmund Morris, Theodore Rex
Edmund Morris, Colonel Roosevelt
Henry Pringle, Theodore Roosevelt: A Biography 1931
John Blum, The Republican Roosevelt 1954
William Harbaugh, Power and Responsibility: The Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt 1961
David McCullough, Mornings on Horseback 1981
(SF: early life, colorful)
Nathan Miller, Theodore Roosevelt: A Life
(SF: lifeless and anticeptic)
H.W. Brands, TR: The Last Romantic 1997
Kathleen Dalton, Theodore Roosevelt: A Strenuous Life 2001
(SF: in an attempt at balance, loses the extremes of Roosevelt)
Candice Millard, The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey 2005
Jean Yarbrough, Theodore Roosevelt and the American Political Tradition 2012
Doris Kearns Goodwin, The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism 2013
Patricia O’Toole, When Trumpets Call: Theodore Roosevelt After the White House 2005
Taft
Henry Pringle, The Life and Times of William Howard Taft 1939
Louis Gould, The William Howard Taft Presidency
Doris Kearns Goodwin, The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism 2013
Wilson
Arthur Walworth, Woodrow Wilson: American Prophet
Arthur Walworth, Woodrow Wilson: World Prophet
Now in one volume
John Milton Cooper, The Warrior and the Priest: Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt 1983
Kendrick Clements, Woodrow Wilson: World Stateman 1987
(SF: filled with facts and readable, but too thin)
August Heckscher, Woodrow Wilson: A Biography 1991
Louis Auchincloss: Woodrow Wilson
John Milton Cooper, Woodrow Wilson: A Biography 2010
A. Scott Berg, Wilson 2013
Ray Stannard Baker, Woodrow Wilson: Life and Letters (7 or 8 volumes)
Arthur S. Link, (five volumes through first part of presidency, never finished)
Arthur Link: Woodrow Wilson and the Progressive Era, 1910-1917
Phyllis Lee Levin: Edith and Woodrow
Harding
Francis Russell, The Shadow of Blooming Grove: Warren G. Harding and His Times 1968
(SF: more of a tabloid expose)
John Dean, Warren G. Harding
Andrew Sinclair, The Available Man: The Life Behind the Masks of Warren Gamaliel Harding 1965
(SF: broad, hurried, platitudes)
Robert Murray, The Harding Era: Warren G. Harding and His Administration 1969
Samuel H. Adams, Incredible Era: The Life and Times of Warren Gamaliel Harding 1939
Robert H. Ferrell: The Strange Death of President Harding
Carl Sferrazza Anthony: Florence Harding: The First Lady, The Jazz Age, and the Death of America’s Most Scandalous President
Eugene P. Trani and David L. Wilson: The Presidency of Warren G. Harding APS
Coolidge
Amity Shalaes, Coolidge 2013
Robert A. Woods, The Preparation of Calvin Coolidge 1924
Horace Green, The Life of Calvin Coolidge 1924
Claude Fuess, Calvin Coolidge: The Man from Vermont 1939
(SF: close to a hagiography)
William Allen White, A Puritan in Babylon: the Story of Calvin Coolidge 1938
(SF: flawed and opinionated)
Donald McCoy, Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President 1967
Robert Sobel, Coolidge: An American Enigma 1998
Robert Ferrell, The Presidency of Calvin Coolidge APS
Hoover
William E. Leuchtenburg, Herbert Hoover APS
David Burner, Herbert Hoover: A Public Life 1979
(SF: a dull, lackluster writer)
Eugene Lyons, Herbert Hoover: A Biography
(SF: a fan of Hoover, gives good insight into the personal side of Hoover)
Martin Fausold, The Presidency of Herbert C. Hoover 1984
Richard Norton Smith, An Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover
George Nash, The Life of Herbert Hoover: The Engineer
George Nash, The Life of Herbert Hoover: The Humanitarian
George Nash, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Master of Emergencies
Kendrick Clements, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Imperfect Visionary
Glen Jeansonne, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Fighting Quaker
Gary Dean Best, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Keeper of the Torch
Charles Rappleye, Herbert Hoover in the White House: The Ordeal of the Presidency
F. Roosevelt
Jean Edward Smith, FDR
H.W. Brands, Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Conrad Black, Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Champion of Freedom
(SF: many facts, too little analysis)
Frank Freidel, Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Rendezvous with Destiny
(SF: a major project that fizzled)
Ted Morgan, FDR: A Biography
(SF: many holes and disappointment in reading it)
James MacGregor Burns, Roosevelt: The Lion and the Fox 1882-1940
James MacGregor Burns, Roosevelt: The Soldier of Freedom 1940-1945
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., The Age of Roosevelt: The Crisis of the Old Order 1919-1933
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., The Age of Roosevelt: The Coming of the New Deal 1933-1935
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., The Age of Roosevelt: The Politics of Upheaval 1935-1936
Geoffrey C. Ward, Before the Trumpet: Young Franklin Roosevelt 1882-1905
Geoffrey C. Ward, A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt 1905-28
Doris K. Goodwin, No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt
Jeff Shesol, Supreme Power: Franklin Roosevelt vs. the Supreme Court
Adam Cohen, Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the 100 Days that Created Modern America
Jonathan Alter, The Defining Moment: FDR’s Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope
Joseph Lash, Eleanor and Franklin
Robert Sherwood, Roosevelt and Hopkins: An Intimate History
Peter Collier, The Roosevelts: An American Saga
(SF: trying to prove a yellow journalism thesis, doesn’t work)
Alonzo Hamby, Man of Destiny: FDR and the Making of the American Century
Jim Bishop: FDR’S Last Year
Franklin Roosevelt: The Essential Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Robert H. Jackson: That Man: An Insider’s Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt
Robert H. Ferrell: The Dying President: Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1944-45
Truman
David McCullough, Truman 1992
Robert Ferrell, Harry S. Truman: A Life 1994
Robert Dallek, Harry S. Truman 2008 (APS)
Alonzo Hamby, Man of the People: A Life of Harry S. Truman 1995
A.J. Baime: The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months that Changed the World
Matthew Algeo: Harry Truman’s Excellent Adventure
Eisenhower
Jean Edward Smith, Eisenhower in War and Peace 2012
David A. Nichols: A Matter of Justice: Eisenhower and the Beginning of the Civil Rights Revolution
David A. Nichols: Eisenhower 1956
Michael Korda: Ike: An American Hero
Carlo D’Este, Eisenhower, A Soldier’s Life
(SF: excellent up until 1942)
Geoffrey Perret, Eisenhower
Peter Lyon, Eisenhower: Portrait of a Hero
(SF: dense and dry)
Jim Newton, Eisenhower: The White House Years 2011
Fred Greenstein, The Hidden-Hand Presidency: Eisenhower as Leader
Evan Thomas, Ike’s Bluff: President Eisenhower’s Secret Battle to Save the World
Jeffrey Frank, Ike and Dick: Portrait of a Strange Political Marriage
Stephen Ambrose, Eisenhower: Soldier, General of the Army, President-Elect
Stephen Ambrose, Eisenhower: The President
Stephen Ambrose, Eisenhower: Soldier and President (one volume)
(SF: better than the two-volume)
Dwight D. Eisenhower: Mandate for Change: The White House Years
Kennedy
Robert Dallek, An Unfinished Life: JFK 1917-1963
Nigel Hamilton, JFK: Reckless Youth
(SF: best early life, but family withdrew cooperation for later volumes)
Ted Sorensen, Kennedy: The Classic Biography
Michael O’Brian, John F. Kennedy: A Biography
(SF: unnecessary verbiage)
Geoffrey Perret, Jack: A Life Like No Other
(SF: light, unfulfilling)
Thomas Reeves, A Question of Character: A Life of John F. Kennedy
(SF: hatchet job)
Herbert Parmet, Jack: The Struggles of John F. Kennedy
Herbert Parmet, JFK: The Presidency of John F. Kennedy
(SF: thorough, flat, before some documents released)
Doris Kearns Goodwin, The Fitzgeralds and the Kennedys
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., A Thousand Days: JFK in the White House
(SF: dense, dry, tedious, prejudiced)
Richard Reeves, President Kennedy: Profile of Power 1993
Thurston Clarke, JFK’s Last Hundred Days: The Transformation of the Man and the Emergence of a Great President 2013
William Manchester: Portrait of a President: John F. Kennedy in Profile
Chris Matthews: Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero
Ellen J. Hammer: A Death in November: America in Vietnam 1963
Ralph G. Martin: A Hero for Our Time: An Intimate Story of the Kennedy Years
Barbara Leaming: Jack Kennedy: The Education of a Statesman
James W. Douglas: JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters
L. Johnson
Robert Dallek, Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times 1908-1960
Robert Dallek, Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times 1961-1973
Robert Dallek, Lyndon B. Johnson: Portrait of a President 2004 abridgement
Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Path to Power
Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Means of Ascent
Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Master of the Senate
Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Passage of Power
Kyle Longley: LBJ’s 1968
Doris Kearns Goodwin, Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
Joseph Califano, Jr., The Triumph and Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson
Randall Woods, LBJ: Architect of American Ambition
Irwin Unger, LBJ: A Life
Lyndon Johnson: The Vantage Point
Brian Schulman: Lyndon B. Johnson and American Liberalism: A Brief Biography with Documents
Charles Peters: Lyndon B. Johnson AP
Betty Boyd Caroll: Lady Bird and Lyndon
Nixon
Conrad Black, Richard Nixon: A Life in Full
Richard Farrell, Richard Nixon: The Life
Evan Thomas, Being Nixon: A Man Divided
Tom Wicker, One of Us: Richard Nixon and the American Dream
Herbert Parmet, Richard Nixon and His America
(SF: incomplete, tedious)
Rick Perlstein, Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fractuing of America
Richard Reeves, President Nixon: Alone in the White House
Garry Wills, Nixon Agonistes: The Crisis of the Self-Made Man
Roger Morris, Richard Milhous Nixon: The Rise of an American Politician
(SF: first of a series never completed)
Steven Ambrose, Nixon: The Education of a Politician 1913-62
Steven Ambrose, Nixon: The Triumph of a Politician 1962-72
Steven Ambrose, Nixon: Ruin and Recovery 1973-90
(SF: Ambrose attempts rigorous balance on the subject)
Jonathan Aitken, Nixon: A Life
Douglas Schoen, The Nixon Effect: How Richard Nixon’s Presidency Fundamentally Changed American Politics
Anthony Summer, The Arrogance of Power: Nixon and Watergate
Tim Weiner, One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon
Theodore White: Breach of Faith: The Fall of Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon: RN: The Memoirs of Richard Nixon
Elizabeth Drew: Richard Nixon AP
Stanley I. Kutler: Abuse of Power: The New Nixon Tapes
Ford
John Robert Greene, The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford
James Cannon, Time and Chance: Gerald Ford’s Appointment with History
James Cannon, Gerald R. Ford: An Honorable Life 2013
(Replaces earlier work by Cannon)
Scott Kaufman, Ambition, Pragmatism, and Party: A Political Biography of Gerald R. Ford
Douglas Brinkley, Gerald R. Ford (AP)
Yanek Mieczkowski, Gerald Ford and the Challenges of the 1970s
Donald Rumsfeld, When the Center Held: Gerald Ford and the Rescue of the American Presidency
Thomas M. DeFrank: Write it When I’m Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford
Barry Werth: 31 Days (Ford’s first 31 days as President)
Carter
Peter Bourne, Jimmy Carter: A Comprehensive Biography from Plains to Post-Presidency
Stuart Eizenstat, President Carter: The White House Years
Douglas Brinkley, The Unfinished Presidency: Jimmy Carter’s Journey Beyond the White House
Jonathan Alter
Julian Zelizer, Jimmy Carter (APS)
Jimmy Carter: White House Diary
Randall Balmer: Redeemer: The Life of Jimmy Carter
Reagan
H.W. Brands, Reagan: The Life
Iwan Morgan, Reagan: American Icon
Bob Spitz, Reagan: An American Journey
(SF: Good biography, poor political observer)
Peggy Noonan, When Character was King: A Story of Ronald Reagan
Lou Cannon, Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power
Lou Cannon, President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime
Steven Hayward, The Age of Reagan: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order
Steven Hayward, The Age of Reagan: The Conservative Counterrevolution
(SF: a conservative point of view)
Craig Shirley, Reagan’s Revolution: The Untold Story of the Campaign That Started It All
Craig Shirley, Reagan Rising: The Decisive Years 1976-80
Craig Shirley, Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign that Changed America
Craig Shirley, Last Act: The Final Years and Emerging Legacy of Ronald Reagan
Richard Reeves, President Reagan
Sean Wilentz, The Age of Reagan
Paul Kengor, The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism
Rick Perlstein
Matthew Dallek: The Right Moment: Ronald Reagan’s First Victory and the Decisive Turning Point in American Politics
Garry Wills: Reagan’s America
Edmund Morris: Dutch
HW Bush
Jon Meacham, Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush
Herbert Parmet, George Bush: Life of a Lone Star Yankee
(SF: good pre-presidency coverage, more objective)
Timothy Naftali, George H.W. Bush (AP)
Tom Wicker: George Herbert Walker Bush
George H.W. Bush: All the Best
Clinton
Patrick Maney, Bill Clinton: New Gilded Age President
David Maraniss, First in His Class: A Biography of Bill Clinton
(SF: one of the best pre-presidential biographies)
John F. Harris, The Survivor: Bill Clinton in the White House
(SF: Good coverage of presidency)
Joe Conason: Man of the World: The Further Endeavors of Bill Clinton
Taylor Branch: The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President
Haynes Johnson: The Best of Times: America in the Clinton Years
Bill Clinton: My Life
W Bush
Jean Edward Smith, Bush
Peter Baker, Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House
Bill Minutaglio, First Son: George W. Bush and the Bush Family Dynasty
Bob Woodward: State of Denial: Bush at War, Part III
George Bush: Decision Points
Obama
David Remnick, The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barak Obama
David Garrow, Rising Star: The Making of Barak Obama
(SF: wordy and no discrimination of material)
David Maraniss, Barak Obama: The Story
(SF: Obama up until age 30)
Richard Wolffe, Renegade: The Making of a President
Barak Obama: Dreams from My Father
Trump
Biden
Elections
1796: The First Presidential Contest
1800: John Ferling, Adams vs. Jefferson…1800 (Ferling)
1800: The Magnificent Catastrophe (Larson)
1840: The Carnival Campaign (Shafer)
1860: Team of Rivals (Goodwin)
1876: Fraud of the Century (Morris)
1896: McKinley, Bryan, & the People (Glad)
1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft, & Debs: The Election that Changed the Country
1920: The Year of Six Presidents (Pietrusza)
1948: Harry Truman’s Improbable Victory: The Year that Transformed America (Pietrusza)
1960: LBJ vs. JKF vs. Nixon (Pietrusza)
1960: The Making of the President (White)
1964: The Making of the President (White)
1968: The Making of the President (White)
1968: The Election that Changed America (Gould)
1968: An American Melodrama (Chester, Hodgson, Page)
1972: The Making of the President (White)
1976: Marathon: the Pursuit of the Presidency (Witcover)
1976: The Election of 1976
1988: What it Takes (Cramer)
1992: The 1992 Presidential Campaign (Denton)
1992: Strange Bedfellows (Rosenstiel)
1992: Mad As Hell (Germond and Witcover)
1996: The Choice (Woodward)
2004: One Car Caravan (Shapiro)
Repertoire 