I had to smile when I saw the title “Don’t Know Much About The American Presidents” because I really don’t. History and Geography have always been my weaknesses in school and since graduating I’ve tried to avoid them both at all costs. (Though I have to say I am hands on and actually traveling is making Geography make a bit more sense to me. Not sure what I can do to help out with my lack of knowledge on History though.)
This book is quite long, clocking in at over 700 pages. But considering that we have had 44 Presidents and each one has a profile in this book, it makes sense! Part I is “The Making of the President – 1787″, Part II is the Presidential Profiles “The Life and Times of America’s Chief Executives from George Washington to Barack Obama”, Part III is “What Should We Do with the President” and then of course the book ends with a bunch of appendices.
Each profile varies in length, some are 30 pages, others are only 9 pages. I like books like this because I can easily read just one profile or a handful of profiles depending on how much time I have. I also can read it in between reading other books (provided the other books aren’t presidential!) without getting confused. I don’t think I would ever try to tackle such a large book in one setting. (Maybe if I was a history buff!)
I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
In his New York Times bestselling Don’t Know Much About® series, Kenneth C. Davis has made subjects from history to geography to the Bible accessible and entertaining to buffs and amateurs alike.
Now, he’s taking on the American presidents. From the brutes to the intellectuals, from Washington Obama, Davis uses his same entertaining question-and-answer style to debunk the myths about of America’s leaders and tell the real story, which—when told by Davis—is far more fascinating than the version you learned in school.