Books in Brief: Eisenhower

Eisenhower, by Stephen E. Ambrose (Simon & Schuster, 637 pp., $22.95)

Shortly after World War II, a Washington economist, who was watching General Eisenhower mesmerize a crowd, turned to his wife and said: “This man is absolutely a natural for the Presidency.” Dwight David Eisenhower was a natural in many respects, which is the recurring theme of this first volume of Stephen Ambrose’s splendid biography, which concludes with Eisenhower’s election in 1952. From a Kansas boyhood that taught him the value of perseverance and teamwork, to the battlefields of North Africa and Europe, Ike was the consummate leader. Montgomery was more imperious, Patton more flamboyant. But when the chips were down, it was Eisenhower whom Churchill and Roosevelt called on to coordinate the Allied victory in Europe. And he responded with the steely determination that had characterized his difficult climb from obscurity as a staff officer (he was a major for 16 years) to the Supreme Allied Command. He wasn’t infallible, and Ambrose scores his several strategic failings—particularly his patience with Montgomery, who not only failed to secure Antwerp but squandered men and materiel in the disastrous Market Garden operation. Too, the author is appalled that Ike refused to beat the Russians to Berlin. But he hastens to add that no other Allied commander would have been so well suited for the role of winning the war while keeping everyone happy. The ease with which he achieved his and the nation’s objectives, however, had made him the indispensable man. Hence his retirement plans were delayed for another 16 years as he served his nation in a variety of offices, culminating in two terms in the Presidency.

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Alan L. Miller

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Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Eisenhower, by Stephen E. Ambrose (Simon & Schuster, 637 pp., $22.95)

Shortly after World War II, a Washington economist, who was watching General Eisenhower mesmerize a crowd, turned to his wife and said: “This man is absolutely a natural for the Presidency.” Dwight David Eisenhower was a natural in many respects, which is the recurring theme of this first volume of Stephen Ambrose’s splendid biography, which concludes with Eisenhower’s election in 1952. From a Kansas boyhood that taught him the value of perseverance and teamwork, to the battlefields of North Africa and Europe, Ike was the consummate leader. Montgomery was more imperious, Patton more flamboyant. But when the chips were down, it was Eisenhower whom Churchill and Roosevelt called on to coordinate the Allied victory in Europe. And he responded with the steely determination that had characterized his difficult climb from obscurity as a staff officer (he was a major for 16 years) to the Supreme Allied Command. He wasn’t infallible, and Ambrose scores his several strategic failings—particularly his patience with Montgomery, who not only failed to secure Antwerp but squandered men and materiel in the disastrous Market Garden operation. Too, the author is appalled that Ike refused to beat the Russians to Berlin. But he hastens to add that no other Allied commander would have been so well suited for the role of winning the war while keeping everyone happy. The ease with which he achieved his and the nation’s objectives, however, had made him the indispensable man. Hence his retirement plans were delayed for another 16 years as he served his nation in a variety of offices, culminating in two terms in the Presidency.