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Edith and Woodrow: The Wilson White House |
List Price: $35.00
Your Price: $23.10 |
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Reviews |
Description:
It's hard to say who comes off worse here: President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), depicted as arrogant, egotistical, and so poor at negotiation or compromise it's a wonder he ever got involved in politics; or his second wife, Edith Bolling Galt Wilson (1872-1961), portrayed as deceptive, unreflective, and encouraging of the president's worst qualities to an extent that had grave consequences for America and the world. Journalist Phyllis Lee Levin, author of a previous biography of Abigail Adams, scathingly assesses the Wilson marriage, which took place in 1915 only 16 months after the death of his beloved first wife. It was, she argues persuasively, the fatal union of a narcissistic, self-righteous man with an uncritically admiring woman who isolated her husband from other people even before his disabling stroke on October 2, 1919. At that critical juncture, with a host of serious international issues resulting from World War I facing the nation, Edith Wilson conspired with the president's doctor to cover up the gravity of his condition and forestall any talk of the vice president assuming command. (Levin's account of Wilson's impaired physical and mental state leaves little doubt that this would have been constitutionally justified.) She kept cabinet members away from him and took it upon herself to interpret his wishes for the rest of the government. The U.S. Senate's refusal to ratify the League of Nations was one result of the way Edith Wilson handled this crisis, hence she must bear some responsibility for the diplomatic failures that led to World War II. It's never entirely enjoyable to read a book in which the author's distaste for her subjects is so evident, but Levin's relentlessly detailed (though always readable) chronicle fascinates with its depiction of "the influence wielded over great decisions by a woman of narrow views and formidable determination." --Wendy Smith
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