Customer Reviews

Hats in the Ring: An Illustrated History of American Presidential Campaigns

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This book has pictures and an article for each campaign - beginning from George Washington up to the 1996 election. While I found some of the pictures to be quite interesting and the articles to be somewhat informative, I would still say that this is more of an overview kind of book - as opposed to a detailed version of our elections.

I think the author could have picked some other pictures or visuals to make the book more appealling, and could have written in more depth about the campaigns.

Nevertheless, the book is a nice book and is a book that could be used as a reference in some respects.

This book provides an overview of American Presidential elections from George Washington's first election in 1789 to William Jefferson Clinton's reelection in 1996.

Each Presidential election from 1789 to 1996 is covered by a separate chapter. The individual chapters provide information about the character and personalities of American political figures, historical and political context for the Presidential election being covered, the major issues raised during each Presidential election, the manner in which political figures and political parties approached each election, and the results of the Presidential election. The text is supplemented by illustrations and photographs of American political figures, political cartoons, campaign memorabilia, and campaign events. The book also has many examples of colorful political nicknames, campaign slogans, strong political insults, and frequent partisan reporting that show American politics has often been raucous, with gritty, down-to-earth aspects.

One flaw with the book is its uneven use of opinion: sometimes the authors' opinions are expressed in terms that are clearly identifiable as their opinions and not historical facts; other times, the authors' opinions are embedded in words and phrases that superficially appear to be factual, but actually reflect the authors' opinions more than the historical facts. A completely dispassionate discussion of the history of American political issues would be very difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. But, this book would have been better if the authors had been more consistent in using language that would make it clear to readers when the authors are expressing their personal opinions and when the authors are engaged in historical writing not based on their personal opinions.

The book is written in a style that is suitable for members of the general public, and high school and college students. The book gives a basic look at American Presidential elections for readers interested in a brief, introductory look at the subject. But, anyone interested in more detailed, more scholarly descriptions and analyses of American Presidential elections should look for other pertinent books.

Politics is the great American sport and its bats and balls are pins and bumper stickers. This is a great history of torchlight parades, whistle stops and all sorts of campaign paraphenalia. It makes me happy I saved that LBJ for the USA button--it doesn't take long for this stuff to acquire value. SAme can't be said for websites, though. Words and images here are also a healthy reminder that one great tradition of the sport is slamming the other guy--don't forget Jefferson's Sally Hemmings scandal and Lincoln "the big monkey." More fireworks, fewer veep debate lovefests, please.

Deep in the political season, this book makes for a good read. It is neither a complete history nor a complete pictorial of all the great campaigning photographs which abound. I was suprised by the iconic photographs not included. I wish I had leafed through this in the bookstore before buying. That said, it is a good book for any fan of political campaigns.