World War II was roaring to a climax. Harry Truman was meeting with the speaker of the House of Representatives and his old friend Sam Rayburn when he was called to the White House: Franklin Roosevelt was dead. Truman was now faced with more problems and decisions than any other leader in American history. While American, British, and Russian armies were smashing into the heart of Nazi Germany and World War II was roaring to a climax. Harry Truman was meeting with the speaker of the House of Representatives and his old friend Sam Rayburn when he was called to the White House: Franklin Roosevelt was dead. Truman was now faced with more problems and decisions than any other leader in American history. While American, British, and Russian armies were smashing into the heart of Nazi Germany and American troops were fighting a ferocious battle with the Japanese in the Pacific, Harry Truman took the oath of office, swearing to "protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." Suddenly - in the middle of a global war - he had become president of the most powerful nation in the world. Raised in Missouri, the son of a farmer, Truman was destined to make history. After distinguishing himself as an Army captain in World War I, Truman went on to become a judge, a senator, and the vice president before assuming the office of the thirty-third president of the United States. After a forceful victory in the war that raged almost five years, he then served the nation in the tumultuous years that followed: implementing the Marshall Plan, helping to create NATO, ordering the Berlin airlift, and courageously defending freedom in Korea. New York Times bestselling historian and novelist Thomas Fleming, an intimate of Truman and his family, provides a rare glimpse into the life and spirit of a leader often ridiculed for his "just folks" style and modesty but who surprised his critics with his direct and tenacious decision making - and in the process became one of America's greatest presidents.
Author
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name Thomas James Fleming was an historian and historical novelist, with a special interest in the American Revolution. He was born in 1927 in Jersey City, New Jersey, the son of a World War I hero who was a leader in Jersey City politics for three decades. Before her marriage, his mother, Katherine Dolan Fleming, was a teacher in the Jersey City Public School System. After graduating from St. Peter's Preparatory School in Jersey City, Fleming spent a year in the United States Navy. He received a Bachelor's degree, with honors, from Fordham University in 1950. After brief stints as a newspaperman and magazine editor, he became a full-time writer in 1960. His first history book, Now We Are Enemies, an account of the Battle of Bunker Hill, was published that same year. It was a best-seller, reviewed in more than 75 newspapers and featured as a main selection of the Literary Guild. Fleming published books about various events and figures of the Revolutionary era. He also wrote about other periods of American history and wrote over a dozen well-received novels set against various historical backgrounds. He said, "I never wanted to be an Irish American writer, my whole idea was to get across that bridge and be an American writer". Fleming died at his home in New York City on July 23, 2017, at the age of 90.
