The Man In The Arena: Selected Writings Of Theodore Roosevelt: A Reader

The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings of Theodore Roosevelt: A Reader

By the time he was twenty-five the future President of the United States was already a published author. From The Naval War of 1812 through his four-volume The Winning of the West, Teddy Roosevelt proved himself as a master historian ... but readers of his vivid and entertaining books will never make the mistake of labeling him a stodgy academic.The future president was also a great outdoorsman, with such works as Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail and African Game Trails capturing his rough and ready lifestyle.Theodore Roosevelt was part Francis Parkman, part Lowell Thomas, and one hundred percent spirit of America and master of the printed page.The Man in the Arena collects self-contained excerpts from some of his greatest works including such revealing memoirs as The Rough Riders, the Autobiography, and Through the Brazilian Wilderness, in an effort to capture the many aspects of a great American who was indeed larger than life and his own best "Boswell."From Publishers WeeklyWhat do you get when you combine an obsessive reader, a "wild and wooly" adventurer and an ironclad political will with a reformist sensibility? Teddy Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States (who was also a naturalist, a biographer, a hunter and a Nobel Prize winner-among other things). This collection of his writings gives credence to Henry Adams's assertion that Roosevelt was "pure Act": there was, it seems, no subject (or foe) he was afraid to tackle. Editor Thomsen breaks down Roosevelt's impressive and wide-ranging literary output into four categories (Historian, Memoirist, Adventurer and Man of Letters), within which the reader is treated to a wide assortment of Roosevelt's historical analysis, travel writing and criticism. Although well known as a travel and adventure writer, Roosevelt's literary side has received less attention; his essays on Dante, contemporary poetry and the popular literature of his day show a man of finely tuned sensibilities. If there's a fault to this collection, it lies in the fact that no clear theme determines inclusion, and as such the book lacks a sense of coherency. While readers will appreciate the virtuosic variety of Roosevelt's writing, they will find themselves a bit unsure as to what it is that separates these essays from others not selected, as Thomsen never shares his reasoning with the reader.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.Review"I have always been spellbound by the man's prodigiousness that I found as much virtue in his ceaseless activity as I have in his purposes . . . He was an extraordinarily accomplished president . . . my God, what a superior man TR was."-Senator John McCain, author of Worth the Fighting for-A Memoir"Reveals the prodigious intellect, irrepressible character, and remarkably entertaining style."--Caleb Carr on The Naval War of 1812"Theodore Roosevelt was the most professional - and widely published - writer of all American presidents." - Henry F. Graff, Columbia UniversityAbout the AuthorTheodore Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States (the first of the twentieth century), as well as recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, historian, naturalist, bestselling author, and perhaps the most multifaceted and dynamic figure ever to grace the residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.