Grant
Grant is a 2017 biography of Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States, written by American historian and biographer Ron Chernow. Grant, a Union general during the Civil War, served two terms as president, from 1869 to 1877. Chernow asserts that both Grant's command of the Overland campaign and his presidency have been seen in an undeservedly negative light.
Stats for nerds
9recommend
12mentions
10people
2017–2026years
92% recommend8% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Hot take (with recency bias): Ron Chernow
Homer and Virgil were historians at the end of the day. Whether what they reported as happening was true or not is as irrelevant as whether Alexander Hamilton threw away his shot at Aaron Burr or not. Their writings, just like Chernow’s, are steeped in legend.
Chernow’s work has excellently captured:
Alexander Hamilton John D Rockefeller JP Morgan Ulysses (!) S. Grant Etc.
As I type this out, perhaps the best comparison for Chernow is actually Plutarch? Either way, I haven’t seen anyone mention him and that would be an unfortunate oversight.
- It's incredible how good those books are, and I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who hasn't experienced them. I read them over two years ago and still remember many details as if I read them yesterday. This is quite rare for me, given how much I read. Strangely, I didn’t have the same experience with "The Power Broker."
Ever since finishing them, I have been on the hunt for historical biographies of similar quality. While I haven't found any that match up completely, here are a few that come close in my opinion:
* Truman by David McCullough
* Grant by Ron Chernow
* American Caesar by William Manchester
I've also read the three-part Churchill series by Manchester, but it didn’t quite measure up to the LBJ series for me.
If you have any other suggestions, please share them!
My brother in law loves Vonnegut, I read all of his books also. Personally, I don't understand the appeal
- Chernow’s biography of Grant is excellent, and very edifying for me personally. Grant was both a great and good man, and should be much more revered in American society than he is.
- Truman: https://www.amazon.com/Truman-David-McCullough/dp/1442387807
Grant: https://www.amazon.com/Grant/dp/178854160X
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt: https://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Roosevelt-Modern-Library-Pap...
- As the post mentions, it was Twain('s company) who ultimately ended up publishing Grant's memoirs at the end of his life. The post doesn't mention but it wasn't just a random relationship, they were good friends. (Sidenote: Ron Chernow's Grant is a great read. Grant is an underrated president.)
It's always interesting to read about historic figures intersecting.
- I first read about the more disturbing (i.e. waved over in school) details of reconstruction a few years ago in Grant’s biography (really good btw as was Chernow’s Hamilton). One of the most shocking events was https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilmington_insurrection_of_1... and also the New Orleans massacre. The klan would violently put down attempts by black peoples to assert themselves politically and would kill the Republicans who helped them in the process.
