4 of 5 stars
Dunn’s book covers not just a pivotal year in the political career of Franklin Delano Roosevelt but also a vital time in the history of the United States. In a time of incredible turmoil Dunn shows how the cool headed FDR prevailed against incredible odds to become the first President to be elected to a third term. Dunn does an excellent job to highlight the tension of the times which might otherwise be lost in the historical mists. Famed aviator Charles Lindbergh openly sympathizes with the Nazis and leads a section of the isolationists opposed to the US’s entry into the upcoming war. As isolationists and interventionists battle it out in Congress, Paris is captured by Hitler and the people of the UK face increasingly destructive bombing raids of The BLitz.
FDR manages through political cunning and an uncanny ability to remain calm in the most stressful of situations to steer Congress towards allowing limited aid to the UK while at the same time maneuvering to discredit his potential opponents for the presidency in both the Democratic and Republican Party. And yes he does all of this while paralyzed from the waist down. One can’t help coming away from this book recognizing the political genius and courage of Roosevelt in a single year in which the US, and the world, faced tremendous danger.