Eisenhower : in War and Peace
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In his magisterial bestseller FDR, Jean Edward Smith gave us a fresh, modern look at one of the most indelible figures in American history. Now this peerless biographer returns with a new life of Dwight D. Eisenhower that is as full, rich, and revealing as anything ever written about America's thirty-fourth president. As America searches for new heroes to lead it out of its present-day predicaments, Jean Edward Smith's achievement lies in reintroducing us to a hero from the past whose virtues have become clouded in the mists of history. Here is Eisenhower the young dreamer, charting a course from Abilene, Kansas, to West Point, to Paris under Pershing, and beyond. Drawing on a wealth of untapped primary sources, Smith provides new insight into Ike's maddening apprenticeship under Douglas MacArthur in Washington and the Philippines. Then the whole panorama of World War II unfolds, with Eisenhower's superlative generalship forging the Allied path to victory through multiple reversals of fortune in North Africa and Italy, culminating in the triumphant invasion of Normandy. Smith also gives us an intriguing examination of Ike's finances, details his wartime affair with Kay Summersby, and reveals the inside story of the 1952 Republican convention that catapulted him to the White House. Smith's chronicle of Eisenhower's presidential years is as compelling as it is comprehensive. Derided by his detractors as a somnambulant caretaker, Eisenhower emerges in Smith's perceptive retelling as both a canny politician and a skillful, decisive leader. Smith convincingly portrays an Eisenhower who engineered an end to America's three-year no-win war in Korea, resisted calls for preventative wars against the Soviet Union and China, and boldly deployed the Seventh Fleet to protect Formosa from invasion. This Eisenhower, Smith shows us, stared down Khrushchev over Berlin and forced the withdrawal of British, French, and Israeli forces from the Suez Canal. He managed not only to keep the peace -- after Ike made peace in Korea, not one American soldier was killed in action during his tenure—but also to enhance America's prestige in the Middle East and throughout the world. Domestically, Eisenhower reduced defense spending, balanced the budget, constructed the interstate highway system, and provided social security coverage for millions who were self-employed. Ike believed that traditional American values encompassed change and progress. Unmatched in insight, Eisenhower in War and Peace at last gives us an Eisenhower for our time -- and for the ages. - Publisher.
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My experience with Smith as a writer has been a positive one. I have read his book on FDR, and I liked that it was quite extensive, looking at the different elements of FDR, and helping to dispel how awesome he seems to be in the public mind. As I read Eisenhower, I wanted to understand how this man helped to bring America out of WWII, and into other conflicts of the Cold War.
One of the biggest strengths of this book is seeing Eisenhower through his military career. He began at West Point, with his command in WWII as a five-star general. All through this time, we see him battle his demons both politically and personally. We see him make mistakes on the personal front, as well as the professional front. I never knew that there was so much political infighting when it came to the military higher-ups. It was fascinating to read about, and was well told overall. Smith excels at showing the reader the character and significance of the men and women who influenced Eisenhower without it becoming boring and tedious. This helps the reader to understand how their character interacts with Eisenhower, both personally and politically. .
I also liked how Eisenhower is not completely left off the hook on some of his shortcomings. He had an affair with his secretary during WWII, and then almost never acknowledged her again after the war. He made some serious blunders both before and after D-Day fighting in Europe, and he occasionally let some generals off the hook only for it to come back to bite him later, but this just made him appear more human overall.
However, there are some things that I did not like about this book.
One of which would be the constant references to the other books Smith has written. On the one hand, this is a good thing as it can help the reader to see the parallels between different presidencies. On the other hand, this often made me think he was selling his other works on Grant and FDR, rather than giving any meaningful analysis of how they compare against each other. Often, I think this book was more of the latter, rather than the former as far as the comparisons go.
Still, I would say that this was a good book on Eisenhower, but not one of the greatest biographies I have read. I think I will give it a three out of five. As much as I liked it, I am eager to see what other books on him are out there for me to read.
