Jackson Lears’ review of Doris Kearns Goodwin’s new book about Teddy Roosevelt, William Taft, and the Progressive Era is harsh and thrilling at the same time.
This is history we need to be studying. And it looks like Goodwin’s book has a lot to teach us, but it is ultimately inadequate to the task of helping us end this second Gilded Age.
The USA Trilogy of Dos Passos is important to know for the same reason.
Goodwin is a walking, talking Villager plagiarizing cliche. That doesn’t mean the book might not be entertaining.
Could it be well-researched and insightful, even just adequately knowledgeable, about the era dynamics/context beyond the personalities? Not on your life.