Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt

Additional Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt Information

Winner of the 1982 National Book Award for Biography, Mornings on Horseback is the brilliant biography of the young Theodore Roosevelt. Hailed as a masterpiece by Newsday, it also won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography. Now with a new introduction by the author, Mornings on Horseback is reprinted as a Simon & Schuster Classic Edition.

Mornings on Horseback is about the world of the young Theodore Roosevelt. It is the story of a remarkable little boy, seriously handicapped by recurrent and nearly fatal attacks of asthma, and his struggle to manhood: an amazing metamorphosis seen in the context of the very uncommon household (and rarefied social world) in which he was raised.

His father is the first Theodore Roosevelt, "Greatheart," a figure of unbounded energy, enormously attractive and selfless, a god in the eyes of his small, frail namesake. His mother, Mittie Bulloch Roosevelt, is a Southerner and celebrated beauty, but also considerably more, which the book makes clear as never before. There are sisters Anna and Corinne, brother Elliott (who becomes the father of Eleanor Roosevelt), and the lovely, tragic Alice Lee, Teddy Roosevelt's first love. And while such disparate figures as Abraham Lincoln, Mrs. John Jacob Astor, and Senator Roscoe Conkling play a part, it is this diverse and intensely human assemblage of Roosevelts, all brought to vivid life, which gives the book its remarkable power.

The book spans seventeen years -- from 1869 when little "Teedie" is ten, to 1886 when, as a hardened "real life cowboy," he returns from the West to pick up the pieces of a shattered life and begin anew, a grown man, whole in body and spirit. The story does for Teddy Roosevelt what Sunrise at Campobello did for FDR -- reveals the inner man through his battle against dreadful odds.

Like David McCullough's The Great Bridge, also set in New York, this is at once an enthralling story, with all the elements of a great novel, and a penetrating character study. It is brilliant social history and a work of important scholarship, which does away with several old myths and breaks entirely new ground. For the first time, for example, Roosevelt's asthma is examined closely, drawing on information gleaned from private Roosevelt family papers and in light of present-day knowledge of the disease and its psychosomatic aspects.

At heart it is a book about life intensely lived...about family love and family loyalty...about courtship and childbirth and death, fathers and sons...about winter on the Nile in the grand manner and Harvard College...about gutter politics in washrooms and the tumultuous Republican Convention of 1884...about grizzly bears, grief and courage, and "blessed" mornings on horseback at Oyster Bay or beneath the limitless skies of the Badlands. "Black care rarely sits behind a rider whose pace is fast enough," Roosevelt once wrote. It is the key to his life and to much that is so memorable in this magnificent book.

What Customers Say About Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt:

It is refreshing to read the story of someone's life and not have it end with their death. Reading about Teddy's asthma and how he managed to rise above the condition offers hope to other young asthma sufferers and the story is a "good read."

I run out of superlatives to express how I feel about Dave McCullough and his work. He brings you right into the heart and mind of a young TR, from his upbringing to his coming into manhood. I am an avid reader of histories and biographies, and I am here to tell you NONE are better than McCullough. His book on the early life of Teddy Roosevelt is just incredible. He left me wanting to learn more about TR, especially through his presidency. If you love history, or you're a fan of Teddy Roosevelt, then I highly recommend this book, you will not be disappointed.

I couldn't finish this book though I tried many times. It read like a documentary full of boring facts and details rather than the gushing reviews I saw when I chose it. I skipped over many chapters but gave up about 2/3 of the way through.

was a man whose integrity and philanthropy knew no bounds. David McCullough completed "Mornings on Horseback" in 1980 and while not much has changed Teddy Roosevelt's life McCullough has enjoyed a surge in fame. "Mornings of Horseback" is cut from the same cloth as "Truman" and "John Adams" maybe not quite to the same level since it only covers the first 28 or so years of TR's life. Each family member brought a unique characteristic to the family - Mittie was the quintessential southern-belle, Theodore Sr. A word of caution - this is not the definitive biography on TR - these is no mention of his days as a "Rough Rider" or his presidency. However, it McCullough's ability to analyze the progression of TR's life and relate it back to his childhood and family dynamics is clearly on display.

Also intriguing is the description of the Roosevelt family trips - painted in great detail by McCullough. McCullough is best known for his Pulitzer Prize winning portrayals of Truman and John Adams - each worthy of being a lifetime achievement. The life of a Roosevelt was one of learning, duty, and integrity - to violate these principles was to invite shame on the family. "Mornings on Horseback" truly is a story of a "lost way of life" I know that I stole that from the front cover but it is the perfect description. McCullough explores the personalities of Theodore Sr., Mittie (TR's mother) and the grandmother. The Roosevelt family excursion down (and up) the Nile river where they lived in comfort on a flotilla passing the days fishing, hunting, loafing, and exploring.

What we do have is a portrait of the family and the dynamics that made "TR" "Teddy".Highly recommended5 Stars

Good because it more clearly focuses on TR, but bad because of the importance that TR's father had on his life. This is not much of a criticism since McCullough is one of the best biographers and popular historians of our day.The first half of the book is mostly about TR's father, Theodore Roosevelt Sr. I gave "Mornings on Horseback" four stars because. The early chapters cover the same material as McCullough and I enjoyed them even more.

The one difference appears to be a Roosevelt family tree (for TR's parents, children and siblings) that appears on the inside cover of the hardback, but does not appear in the paperback. I read the hardback, but I have examined the paperback closely and it appears to be the same, page for page. The book details TR's early life, detailing his upbringing, time at Harvard, early political experiences and the personal tragedies that shaped his life. Much of the last part of the book deals how the three years spent on his Dakota ranch (after the death of his mother and wife) that transformed him physically into the man that most people today recognize as TR.

I got a glimpse of TR, but did not get to know him as clearly as I would have like to. His father was a seminal influence on TR's life, so recounting TR Sr.'s life and influence on TR are important, as is the picture of the late 19th century that TR was brought up in. (His father died at a relatively young age leaving TR as the male head of the family while he was only 19 and his mother and wife died within 11 hours of each other). The picture of his college days and first term in the NY State Assembly is not an entirely flattering one (at least that is how I see it). Note: The hardback book is listed as being unabridged, but no such label is provided for the paperback edition, implying that it is abridged in some way.

As I said at the beginning of this review, in my opinion this is not one of McCullough's best biographies. To some degree this is due to the fact that the book focuses on TR's formative years and not on the years that he took center stage in American history. The book made me want to read more about TR and I have begun to do so, but I wish that McCullough had provided more of a comprehensive picture. After having finished this review, I read H.W.Brands biography of TR, which I liked very much. He comes off as a rather eccentric, rich and supercilious young man who was sickly and physically unimposing. I liked this book, but it is not quite as good as the other books that McCullough has written. I thought that they are more tightly written, conveying the same impression of TR, but in a more compact manner.

He appears to be somewhat curious character and one that does not make the best first impression. He was not the sort of man that made friends easily and was not universally well liked, but he was earnest, honest, courageous, hardworking and excessively loyal, and these qualities made people respect him when they got to know him. Brands does not delve into the life of TR's father, which is both good and bad. While it is a good book, I feel that a reader would be somewhat better served by a book such as Brands', where you get the same information about TR's early life, but in a somewhat more compact manner, plus the information about the rest of his life.