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Summer Reading for Potus Geeks: Theodore Roosevelt

One of the most larger-than-life figures in Presidential history is Theodore Roosevelt, who was not only a President and a politician, but who was also an author, an explorer, a soldier, an environmentalist, and a great reformer. There are so many interesting and fascinating aspects of his life besides his presidency, including his transition from a sickly child to a robust adult, his stint as a police commissioner in New York, his time as assistant secretary of the navy before the Spanish-American War, his service in that war in the famed Roughriders, and his post-presidential exploits as an explorer.



There is a plethora of interesting books about Roosevelt, many of which have already been discussed in this series, including Doris Kearns Goodwin's most recent work The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism and Candice Millard's wonderful work The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey about Roosevelt's excursion to South America than almost claimed his life. I've also mentioned David McCullough's biography of a young Theodore Roosevelt called Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt and H.W. Brands bio entitled T.R.: The Last Romantic. Because there are so many great books about the life of this amazing man, I'll have to limit my comments on many of them to a sentence, otherwise this post will be longer than War and Peace. Here are some more TR books that may interest you:



Theodore Roosevelt: An Autobiography by Theodore Roosevelt: TR's life in his own words.

Theodore Roosevelt and His Time (Two Volume Set) by Joseph Bucklin Bishop: edited version of Roosevelt's life in his own letters.

The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America by Douglas Brinkley: The story of Roosevelt's crusade on behalf of the nation's national parks.

Theodore Roosevelt: A Life by Nathan Miller: written in 1994, this volume encompasses Roosevelt's entire life.

Theodore Roosevelt by Henry F. Pringle: This biography, published in 1931, written by as esteemed historian won the Pulitzer Prize.

Theodore Roosevelt: A Strenuous Life by Kathleen Dalton:A 2004 bio of Roosevelt that focuses on his robust nature and how Roosevelt’s struggle to overcome his frailties as a child helped to build his character.



Unreasonable Men: Theodore Roosevelt and the Republican Rebels Who Created Progressive Politics by Michael Wolraich: This book is reviewed in this community here.

The Rough Riders by Theodore Roosevelt: Roosevelt's own account of his service in the Spanish-American War.

Theodore Roosevelt by William Roscoe Thayer: A bio written by a contemporary (the author went to college with TR and kept in touch with him over the years).

Power and Responsibility: Theodore Roosevelt by William Henry Harbaugh: The bio of TR from the American Political Biography series.

Theodore Roosevelt’s History of the United States edited by Daniel Ruddy: Roosevelt's own version of the history of his nation.

Theodore Roosevelt’s Letters to His Children: As its title suggests, a collection of letters from Roosevelt to his children touching many subjects both political and personal.

Departing Glory: Theodore Roosevelt as Ex-President by Joseph Gardner: As the introduction to this post suggests, Roosevelt did not stop being a fascinating and larger than life persona after leaving the presidency, as this book describes.



Island of Vice: Theodore Roosevelt’s Doomed Quest to Clean Up Sin-Loving New York by Richard Zacks: A fun book about NYC in the 1890s, when a young and cocky Theodore Roosevelt was appointed police commissioner of a city teeming with 40,000 prostitutes, illegal casinos and all-night dance halls. It tells the story of how the Harvard-educated Roosevelt tried to wipe out the city’s vice and corruption.

Theodore Roosevelt and the Assassin: Madness, Vengeance and the Campaign of 1912 by Gerard Helferich: The story of the 1912 election campaign when Roosevelt ran for a third term as the candidate of the Progressive Party, when even a bullet to the chest couldn't stop him from campaigning.

When Trumpets Call: Theodore Roosevelt After the White House by Patricia O’Toole: Another well-written account of Roosevelt's post-presidential life.



Taking on Theodore Roosevelt: How One Senator Defied the President on Brownsville and Shook American Politics by Harry Lembeck: The story of Senator Joseph Foraker's battle with Roosevelt over the 1906 Brownsville incident.

Theodore Roosevelt and the Making of American Leadership by Jon Knokey: A 2015 work about Roosevelt's life, focusing on the development of his leadership style.

The Naturalist: Theodore Roosevelt, A Lifetime of Exploration, and the Triumph of American Natural History by Darrin Lunde: A 2016 biography of Roosevelt focusing on his life as an environmentalist.

Theodore Roosevelt by Louis Auchinchloss: This is the American Presidents Series volume about TR.

Taft and Roosevelt(Two Volume Set) by A. W. Butt: A collection of letters to and from both Presidents with the author, Colonel Archie Butt, who was a close friend and aide to both presidents.

Let the People Rule: Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of the Presidential Primary by Geoffrey Cowan: Another 2016 work, about the 1912 election and Roosevelt's campaign for the populist Progressive Party.

So there you have it, you TR enthusiasts (you know who you are!) The multi-dimensional life of Theodore Roosevelt is big enough to spawn a library of reading material to last many summers to come. Bully!