After reading “Hall of Mirrors” earlier this year, I wanted to follow up on some of the main characters. FDR played a pivotal role in restoring the economy of US after the Wall Street Crash of 1929. He is also renowned and revered for establishing America’s social security system and is often held in high regard as one the USA’s best presidents. As I wanted to learn more, I chose Jonathan Alter’s “The Defining Moment: FDR’s Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope” as I thought focusing on the early part of his presidency would be a good compliment to what I’d previously covered.
I’ve let this book percolate for more than a while after reading it. It wasn’t a bad book by any means but the amount of accolades it received left me hoping that it would be more than what it was.
As an introduction to FDR for someone like me, the book is quite an easy read. The chapters are quite short – most about 3 or 4 pages – and cover the essential components of FDR’s life. His childhood, illness, and attempted assassination are described in concise chapters and his political allies such as Elenor Roosevelt and Louis Howe each have chapters that focus on what they brought to the table. In that regard, it’s quite accessible and it probably works well as a reference book.
Alter deals with FDR’s ascent to the presidency, dust-ups with Al Smith and President Hoover, and the titular Defining Moment which was his famous inaugural address. “There is nothing to fear but fear itself”. However, the book’s greatest strength is that it does a good job of pinpointing what sets him apart from other presidents. “Hall of Mirrors” seemed to boost the idea that FDR was exactly what the American public needed in that he was not Hoover and was not beholden to Hoover’s policies. Although, Alter also leans on the idea that the USA needed a president with a fresh start, he also posits that FDR was the right personality at the right time – a charismatic individual who singlehandedly uplifted the spirit of the nation. A careful media manipulator, FDR also had unprecedented access to every American’s living rooms as radio became widespread. He was perhaps the first showman president.
As the focus on the book is the early days, we don’t get much insight into WWII or the court packing scheme. However, I was happy that the book leaned into the more anecdotal reports of what FDR was like behind his media apparatus. These sorts of reports might not get traction in other books but they do end up being a part of Roosevelt’s own mythology.
My main problem with the book was mainly that its title “FDR’s Hundred Days” doesn’t faithfully represent its contents in that the Hundred Days aren’t addressed until the final section of the book. Rather than an analysis of his first 100 days we get an overview of his early presidency. A more faithful, though more clichéd title, would have been “FDR: Becoming President”. As the chapters are also quite short, there isn’t a lot of analysis in general which I would have preferred. My own favorite chapter in the whole book, “The Chief Croupier” was also the longest and it thoroughly delved into FDR’s character.
One thing new I came away with after reading this book was that FDR not only saved the US economy, but also saved its democratic system. Although unthinkable in the present day, many US citizens would have happily elected a dictator to save them from financial destruction. FDR refused to be their dictator and became instead the only four-term US president.
I will read more about FDR as I do have three more terms to cover and there are a couple of books I’ve seen that look like they provide a good in depth analysis of his presidency. For now though, I’m happy that I have a smattering of knowledge regarding the cast and characters involved in the Roosevelt administration.
