Rating: 
Summary: Shortest 773-page book I ever read
Review: A really fascinating biography; I often caught myself laughing out loud or reading to my wife an astounding description of some TR characteristic or adventure. I am amazed that something so well researched and full of factual information could be so entertaining! I did not want it to end and am looking forward to Thodore Rex, poised on my shelf!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Bio
Review: I have a weakness for reading presidential bio's. Can't get enough of them. I thought that nothing could get better than Caro and LBJ and then I read Truman, and then John Adams. This book, however, takes the prize. I could not wait to return to it every evening to rejoin TR. Morris has a knack of being able to bring the person alive (even in his much maligned "Dutch"). I can't wait to start Vol. 2. TR is waiting for a few more enjoyable evenings.
Rating:
Summary: MAGNIFICENT
Review: Would it be pretentious to compare this superlative biography to "War and Peace?" If so, I'm about to be pretentious. Roosevelt's story has the sweep and breadth of epic fiction, but if any novelist -- even Tolstoy -- dared to create a character as rich, contradictory and accomplished as "Teddy," he or she would be pilloried from here to Timbuktu. Morris writes better than 99.9% of the writers out there; there's not a single false phrase or idea here. This is simply an extraordinary book about an extraordinary man. And geuss what -- I NEVER read biographies, can't usually stand 'em. Trust me when I say this book is one of the greatest reading experiences you will ever have. 800 pages fly by as if they were 8. Wow!
Rating:
Summary: Well written introduction to an amazing man
Review: Edmund Morris did significant damage to his reputation with his bizarre biography of Ronald Reagan, _Dutch_. But reading this work, it's easy to see why he was selected for the work. Morris' review of Theodore Roosevelt's life prior to his presidency is a tour de force of great writing. Morris uses natural prose that seems more suited to a novel to amaze the reader with the accounts of young Teddy Roosevelt, a remarkable man irrespective of his ascent to the presidency.Morris starts right at the beginning, addressing the turmoil that helped shape Teddy during the American Civil War and the political infighting that Roosevelt blamed for the death of his father. A son of privilege, Morris doesn't shrink from the advantages Roosevelt had during his life, and he's more than willing to address Roosevelt's mistakes as well as his successes. But Roosevelt was such a driven man, he managed to overcome his mistakes and be consistently successful for most of his life. Morris has done a great job of packing this volume with information without making it overly wordy. Instead it's an easy read that fairly flies by. I'm looking forward to reading _Theodore Rex_.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Biography!
Review: Consistent with what you would expect from Mr. Morris, this is an excellent biography of an intriguing individual. Details abound with most originating from the words of TR and those around him during his early life. Son of a wealthy family, constantly weakened by sickness and asthma as a child, his rise to the Presidency makes for an excellent read. There are many reasons this book won a Pulitzer and has NEVER gone out of print for 21 years-but the main one is it is really good.
Rating: 
Summary: A nearly great biography
Review: Morris gives us an incredibly clear view of Roosevelt's life; and, he clearly sets it in the context of his times. Few biographies provide as much information about a person's character as this. Morris presents all of Roosevelt's qualities, both good and bad. Roosevelt's combination of an enormous drive to succeed and his personal repressions are laid out making it easier to understand why he acted the way he did. The single flaw in this book, as noted by other reviewers, is Morris' lack of exploration of the paradox of Roosevelt's personality. On one hand Roosevelt championed political reform and the need to improve the lives of average people; but at the same time he was a snob and slick politician. (This same kind of paradox could be said of Bill Clinton). On one hand, it's admirable that Morris didn't add too much direct commentary that might lead to psychobabble; but, on the other, some examination of this matter should have been included. This minor criticism aside, the book is wonderfully written and gives extraordinary insight to one of our country's most fascinating presidents.
Rating:
Summary: A Cheerleader for TR
Review: Briefly, I found this book a great read. I knew little about TR's life and this was a very good introduction to a complex person. However, I felt that Morris was more of a cheerleader for TR than an objective reviewer of his life. TR's self absorbed lifestyle had obvious impacts on his family who rarely saw him and had to adjust to his loose handling of finances. Morris could have spent more time discussing this aspect of TR -- his failings and problems -- rather than his string of successes. However, I heartily recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A great biography of a truly great man
Review: TR comes to life in E. Morris' pulitzer prize winning biography. First published in 1979, The Rise of Theodore Rosevelt is the 1st volume of a preposed 3 volume work. the book begins with TR's birth and ends with President Mckinley's murder and Vice President Rosevelt's acsention to the Presidency. Only as person as interesting as TR could be the subject of a 780 page book, that ends right before he becomes President of the United States. the fact of the matter is that TR is so interesting that the pages fly by. TR is a person of such diverse interests that the reader is taken on an adventure of such excitement that it seems to be a fictional hero. But TRT of course is very real.
This book sets the standard for biographys. Edmound Morris is the offer of a true masterpiece. I am now reading the second volume of his 3 volume work Theodore Rex, covering TR's Presidency and it seems to be as good as The Rise of Theodore Rosevelt. Read the 1st volume and enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: 6 Stars... a 'dee-lightful' masterpiece
Review: I had no idea that I would love this book as much as I did. I had no idea this book was as good as it is. I've never read a biography that drew me in so completely from the first paragraph of the first page of the prologue. I absolutely savored each page of "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" and while President Roosevelt's life is fascinating, it is Mr. Morris' unique style of story-telling that made reading this book such a joy. I doubt I would have enjoyed as much a TR biography written by another. I knew very little about Roosevelt going into this book and I can't understand why, as a New Yorker, I never learned about this most remarkable New Yorker in school. Children should learn his story - it's an exciting adventure that could ignite a lifelong love of history in a child. In my opinion, the thing that makes "The Rise..." great is that Edmund Morris worked so hard to convey his enthusiasm for his subject through his writing. His fascination with TR is contagious. I caught it immediately and am so glad that I did. Roosevelt was simply amazing. A true Renaissance Man. He overcame childhood illness with sheer will and determination. He authored books on subjects as wide-ranging as naval history, ornithology, the West. He took the New York Assembly by storm at 23. He was (to name a few things) a rancher, a mayoral candidate, a reformer, a police commissioner, an assistant Secretary of the Navy. And then came the Spanish-American War and his heroic stint as leader of the Rough Riders. He was semi-reluctantly drafted to be McKinley's Vice President and "The Rise..." takes us up to the days after an assassin's bullets felled McKinley and Roosevelt was (at 42) on the brink of the Presidency as McKinley hovered near death. I can't imagine the 21-year wait for "Theodore Rex" - it is a luxury to jump seamlessly from this book to its sequel, as I have. Although there is so much to this book, one thing I found particularly interesting in terms of the insight it offered into Roosevelt's maturity, wisdom, ambition and keen awareness of how to use the media came from his days as a New York Police Department Commissioner. There was a rarely enforced Sunday Excise Law which prohibited the Sunday sale of alcoholic beverages. Roosevelt sought to enforce the law without exception. It caused an uproar - he was absolutely hated by some (yet loved by others - temperance groups). But he wanted to expose corruption in the ranks and he was savvy enough to realize that sometimes any publicity is good publicity. And he was giving a lesson to legislators as well. "Roosevelt argued that honest enforcement of an unpopular law was the most effective way to bring about its repeal. Legislators should think twice about passing laws to favor some voters, then neglecting them to please others." (p.520) The lawmakers were trying to have it both ways, in passing a law to gain favor with the pro-temperance rural vote yet not enforcing it in order to cater to the tavern owners and those opposed to the law. Roosevelt exposed their scheme and cleaned up the ranks of the police department in one fell swoop. And he kept his name in the papers, gaining widespread notoriety. "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" is a wonderful book that richly deserved all the accolades it received. Morris makes other very talented biographers pale in comparison. You will love this book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent overall, but there are some shortcomings.
Review: This is one of the best historical biographies I've ever read, and the book does deserves high praise, but there are a few flaws--mostly arising from failing to really cover some established points. The brilliance of the book is that it limits itself to Roosevelt's pre-presidential life. The key to understanding Roosevelt in office is to understand how he came to be the man he was and, by limiting this effort to that period, the book affords the reader to contemplate the man as opposed to the president. The fact that Roosevelt lived an utterly amazing life certainly helps, along with a writing style that approaches the novelistic without sacrificing the historic. This allows for a lively and well paced--yet academically rigorous-- effort. The flaws, such as they are, are in the academically rigorous realm. The frustration I had with the book was it raises points of serious import about Roosevelt--even engages in some conjecture--but never really addresses them. A case in point is Roosevelt's childhood illnesses. Many--including Morris here--speculate there may have been a significant psychological component to his childhood illnesses relating to his relationship to his quite austere and demanding father. Obviously, if a case can be made for such a circumstance, the implications for the development of some of Roosevelt's adult attitudes and beliefs could be significant. However, Morris raises the issue but never really deals with it. There are a few other instances of this. They represent the only real flaw in the book. These shortcomings notwithstanding, what Morris has produced is an extraordinarily detailed yet wonderfully accessible rigorous examination of the growth and development of Roosevelt the man. This is a truly wonderful book.
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