Biography & Autobiography : Presidents & Heads of State

Every four years Americans go to the polls to elect a leader—a personage of unimpeachable sobriety and moral standing who will serve as a paragon for the rest of us. But truth be told, presidents and their families are people too—with quirks and character flaws like everyone else . . . and plenty of skeletons rattling around in their closets. Oval Office Oddities is a grand compendium of fascinating, sometimes embarrassing presidential facts, gaffes, and oddball behaviors—available in plenty of time for Election Day!. White House Whoopee: We've all heard about the dalliances of Clinton and Kennedy—but what were Washington, Jefferson, FDR, and Ike doing behind closed doors?. America's Imelda: Mary Todd Lincoln had an endearing little clothing fetish . . . and once purchased 300 pairs of gloves in a single month!. Go West, Young Prez: "California Dreamin'" was not a top presidential priority . . . since no Commander in Chief bothered to visit the neglected coast until Rutherford B. Hayes did in 1880. Crazy Jack: Many prominent leaders were absolutely convinced that John Adams was stark raving bonkers!. more...

Price: $10.99

In Polk , Walter R. Borneman gives us the first complete and authoritative biography of a president often overshadowed in image but seldom outdone in accomplishment. James K. Polk occupied the White House for only four years, from 1845 to 1849, but he plotted and attained a formidable agenda: He fought for and won tariff reductions, reestablished an independent Treasury, and, most notably, brought Texas into the Union, bluffed Great Britain out of the lion’s share of Oregon, and wrested California and much of the Southwest from Mexico. more...

Price: $17.00

Includes A Summary View of the Rights of British America and Notes on the State of Virginia complete; seventy-nine letters; "Response to the Citizens of Albemarle," 1790; "Opinion on the Constitutionality of a National Bank," 1791; and many other writings. more...

Price: $20.00

Who was Richard Nixon? Here is a nuanced and surprising portrait of a brilliant and contradictory man, alone in the White House, memorizing scripts for public appearances and even for one-on-one meetings with his own staff and cabinet -- building a house of deception. Reeves tells the astonishing story of a presidency doomed from the start. more...

Price: $18.00

From the acclaimed bestselling author of The Conquerors. Michael Beschloss has brought us a brilliantly readable and inspiring saga about crucial times in America's history when a courageous President dramatically changed the future of the United States. With surprising new sources and a dazzling command of history and human character, Beschloss brings to life these flawed, complex men -- and their wives, families, friends and foes. Never have we had a more intimate, behind-the-scenes view of Presidents coping with the supreme dilemmas of their lives. more...

Price: $15.95