Summer Reading for Potus Geeks: Keep Cool With Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge was a forgotten President for many years, after the economic prosperity of his term transitioned into the great depression and many laid blame for the economic downturn at the feet of Republicans, most notably Herbert Hoover, but to a lesser extent Silent Cal. His reputation was rehabilitated toward the end of the 20th century when being a fiscal conservative was in vogue once again, and he has been praised for his common sense rhetoric, his brevity and his fiscal frugality. His persona has sort of a lovable nerd quality to it adding to his recent popularity. Here are a few biographies of Coolidge to consider if you want to get to know Silent Cal better.
1. Coolidge by Amity Schlaes (reviewed here in this community): Amity Schlaes does a wonderful job of giving us insight into the type of person that Calvin Coolidge was, in spite of her subject's guarded nature. She describes how he was terse, truculent at times, jealous and controlling of his spouse. But he was also very principled and held himself to high standards. (For example, when he wrote a series of 10 articles for a magazine and only 6 were used, he took it upon himself to refund the money for the unused ones.) The author also gives a good accounting of Coolidge's grieving process following the unexpected death of his 16 year old son Calvin Jr. Schlaes portrays Coolidge, warts and all. From that accurate portrayal emerges a story of a man unwavering from his beliefs that place fiscal conservatism at the forefront. This is an excellent accounting of a forgotten president, his life and times. It is a wonderful study of a president firmly confronting competing social and economic values and issues. Whether or not one agrees with Coolidge's approach to the issues, the author does a superb job of informing the reader in an intelligent and insightful manner what Coolidge was like and why he did what he did.
2. Coolidge: An American Enigma by Robert Sobel: The author traces Coolidge's life story from New England childhood to retirement. He argues hat Coolidge was more of a "hidden-handed" type of leader than most historical assessments suggest. While not an activist in the manner of FDR, Coolidge was far from passive. Soberl notes how Coolidge gave more press conferences than any other previous president and how he inaugurated the use of radio. His belief that government should exist for the people, not the other way around. is explored. Sobel presents a portrait of Coolidge as a statesman of High moral character and unimpeachable integrity. He devotes a considerable part of the book to a consideration of Coolidge's controversial economic policies and makes a strong case that the prosperity of the twenties was a genuine economic revival based on sound free market principles. He refutes the notion that Coolidge was blissfully ignorant of the danger to the economy posed by an unregulated stock market.
3. Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President by Donald McCoy: Written in 1967 by a professor of history at the University of Kansas and a leading authority on mid-20th century US history, McCoy’s biography of Coolidge avoids both effusive praise and unfair criticism, steers a middle course between the two extremes of thought on Coolidge. McCoy concludes by calling Coolidge “a man of his time” but “not for his time.” This biography is well organized, systematic and often insightful. This work is firmly focused on Coolidge himself and not primarily on his times.
4. Silent Cal’s Almanack edited by David Pietrusza: Noted historian David Pietrusza has compiled and edited selections from the words of Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge was noted for his brevity, but this book shows that Coolidge possessed an understated eloquence and wit. Each carefully chosen quote or anecdote is a pleasure to read. Pietrusza wraps it all together with some pretty decent prose of his own.
5. A Puritan in Babylon: The Story of Calvin Coolidge by William Allen White: Written in the 1930s by the famed progressive journalist, White is less than flattering at times in telling the story of the life of his subject. White is from the school that blames Coolidge for the great depression that would follow his time in office. He blames Coolidge for not taking action to prevent the build up of credit and speculation in the stock market and for not limiting the money supply, preferring to let the market make its own correction. Throughout the book, Coolidge is shown as an honest politician who lived off his salary and who stayed in boarding houses when he was Governor and Vice President. The book is divided into four sections. It is a good selection for a more contemporary view of Coolidge.
6. Calvin Coolidge by David Greenberg: If you want a shorter version of Coolidge's life, this is the volume from the American Presidents Series. One of the themes the author continually develops about this popular former president is that he was a reserved and intensely private character and as such, his biography is more difficult to write. In spite of this, the author does a good job of covering President Coolidge's life and his historic impact and significance. He presents the story of a humble, private man who was dedicated to efficiency and integrity was also a groundbreaking president in his use of the media to connect to average Americans. He was one of the first presidents to make use of radio, motion pictures and media interviews on a regular basis in a way that ushered in more modern practices that we are used to seeing today. The author suggests that Coolidge became discredited after the advent of the Great Depression, but has become more relevant in the last few decades because of the resurgence in popularity of his fiscally conservative ideas. Not everything about Coolidge and his time in office is presented as being positive but the final analysis appears fair, balanced and favorable.
I hope these suggestions give the Coolidge lovers out there a great selection of reading material to choose from as you prepare to beat the summer heat by keeping cool with Coolidge.
1. Coolidge by Amity Schlaes (reviewed here in this community): Amity Schlaes does a wonderful job of giving us insight into the type of person that Calvin Coolidge was, in spite of her subject's guarded nature. She describes how he was terse, truculent at times, jealous and controlling of his spouse. But he was also very principled and held himself to high standards. (For example, when he wrote a series of 10 articles for a magazine and only 6 were used, he took it upon himself to refund the money for the unused ones.) The author also gives a good accounting of Coolidge's grieving process following the unexpected death of his 16 year old son Calvin Jr. Schlaes portrays Coolidge, warts and all. From that accurate portrayal emerges a story of a man unwavering from his beliefs that place fiscal conservatism at the forefront. This is an excellent accounting of a forgotten president, his life and times. It is a wonderful study of a president firmly confronting competing social and economic values and issues. Whether or not one agrees with Coolidge's approach to the issues, the author does a superb job of informing the reader in an intelligent and insightful manner what Coolidge was like and why he did what he did.
2. Coolidge: An American Enigma by Robert Sobel: The author traces Coolidge's life story from New England childhood to retirement. He argues hat Coolidge was more of a "hidden-handed" type of leader than most historical assessments suggest. While not an activist in the manner of FDR, Coolidge was far from passive. Soberl notes how Coolidge gave more press conferences than any other previous president and how he inaugurated the use of radio. His belief that government should exist for the people, not the other way around. is explored. Sobel presents a portrait of Coolidge as a statesman of High moral character and unimpeachable integrity. He devotes a considerable part of the book to a consideration of Coolidge's controversial economic policies and makes a strong case that the prosperity of the twenties was a genuine economic revival based on sound free market principles. He refutes the notion that Coolidge was blissfully ignorant of the danger to the economy posed by an unregulated stock market.
3. Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President by Donald McCoy: Written in 1967 by a professor of history at the University of Kansas and a leading authority on mid-20th century US history, McCoy’s biography of Coolidge avoids both effusive praise and unfair criticism, steers a middle course between the two extremes of thought on Coolidge. McCoy concludes by calling Coolidge “a man of his time” but “not for his time.” This biography is well organized, systematic and often insightful. This work is firmly focused on Coolidge himself and not primarily on his times.
4. Silent Cal’s Almanack edited by David Pietrusza: Noted historian David Pietrusza has compiled and edited selections from the words of Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge was noted for his brevity, but this book shows that Coolidge possessed an understated eloquence and wit. Each carefully chosen quote or anecdote is a pleasure to read. Pietrusza wraps it all together with some pretty decent prose of his own.
5. A Puritan in Babylon: The Story of Calvin Coolidge by William Allen White: Written in the 1930s by the famed progressive journalist, White is less than flattering at times in telling the story of the life of his subject. White is from the school that blames Coolidge for the great depression that would follow his time in office. He blames Coolidge for not taking action to prevent the build up of credit and speculation in the stock market and for not limiting the money supply, preferring to let the market make its own correction. Throughout the book, Coolidge is shown as an honest politician who lived off his salary and who stayed in boarding houses when he was Governor and Vice President. The book is divided into four sections. It is a good selection for a more contemporary view of Coolidge.
6. Calvin Coolidge by David Greenberg: If you want a shorter version of Coolidge's life, this is the volume from the American Presidents Series. One of the themes the author continually develops about this popular former president is that he was a reserved and intensely private character and as such, his biography is more difficult to write. In spite of this, the author does a good job of covering President Coolidge's life and his historic impact and significance. He presents the story of a humble, private man who was dedicated to efficiency and integrity was also a groundbreaking president in his use of the media to connect to average Americans. He was one of the first presidents to make use of radio, motion pictures and media interviews on a regular basis in a way that ushered in more modern practices that we are used to seeing today. The author suggests that Coolidge became discredited after the advent of the Great Depression, but has become more relevant in the last few decades because of the resurgence in popularity of his fiscally conservative ideas. Not everything about Coolidge and his time in office is presented as being positive but the final analysis appears fair, balanced and favorable.
I hope these suggestions give the Coolidge lovers out there a great selection of reading material to choose from as you prepare to beat the summer heat by keeping cool with Coolidge.