Poll

I have read the Bunting book which was an easy read but I am not sure it was thorough enough for the curiousity of our group. It was written as part of a presidential biography series. That being said I don't know the other books except to note that the Memoirs of Grant have always been well regarded in the readings I have done but of course they are his writings and certainly have no historical perspective.

I may just leave the final selection to the group or try to dig up some reviews.

Any comments however would be of interest

Vince, thank you for your comments on the Bunting book. These are the titles recommended by the group members on the Ulysses S. Grant thread; I have added some others.

You are of course correct about the Memoirs and I had added them to the thread before for that reason.

However, have you read or have you heard of other books that are not on the list that we should add; I am always happy to do that and of course, folks can change their vote up to the end of the poll if they so desire; if something better comes along (like a better title which has been added).

I have also heard good things about the book by Jean Edward Smith; have you read that book about Grant? By all means, please dig up some reviews and let us know.

I think we have a comprehensive list (at least for starters) and thank you as always for your input. It is always well thought out and helpful.

Please make sure to cite the book/author you are mentioning (book cover, author's photo and link). It makes it easier for folks to know which selections you are talking about. Thanks as always Vince.

Bentley



Jean Edward Smith



by Ulysses S. Grant

(I used the book covers which showed the two separate volumes of the above Memoirs)

by Josiah Bunting

I think I goofed. I think I voted for a book while I was still researching their synopses. I had two windows open and I meant to click on the scroll bar and move the image around and I missed.

Having now done my research, I can live with my vote, and hope I didn't invalidate the whole process. But my first choice book is something else. It looks like we're using a blind ballot system though, so what should I do?

Shannon

ps: breathe easy: I don't drive!

If you scroll down to the bottom of the poll, you should see green writing which states change my vote and beside it invite friends. Click on change my vote and you should be good to go.

Let me know if this helps.

All better! Thank you!

Glad to be of help.

We have a pretty good list so far. Bentley, why don't we add:

Brooks D. Simpson

I ran across this title from the Ohio Historical Society's website. They operate his birthplace.

OK, I will add it. Thanks, I think the list is fairly comprehensive; but if we missed any good books, I am all ears. There was another book about Grant by Simpson which I had added before so he has now two books on the list. Thanks for the suggestion. It is on there now.

by Brooks D. Simpson

Patricrk, there are two alternate history selections among the above which were recommended by group members. We do not have any issue with reading and/or selecting even these books as a spotlighted or presidential series read; but of course, these need to be identified as alternate history which they were not. I have added that designation above to both selections. Sometimes a change of pace is nice; although our primary and majority of selections are usually non fiction. We also have an historical fiction area where these books would probably be more appropriate but the spotlighted and/or presidential series book selection does not always have to be non fiction (although for the most part these are the selections chosen and recommended by our group members) and most importantly that is the group's primary focus.

For example, Never Call Retreat by Newt Gingrich is the last novel in a trilogy that started with Gettysburg and continued with Grant Comes East. For those not familiar with the series, the novels are based on the concept that a few different decisions during key moments at Gettysburg could have led to a Confederate victory changing the course of the war.

Alternate History can sometimes be an interesting way to talk about the what ifs. Some people like it, some people don't. I do think folks might want to read Gettysburg first because that is the first book in the trilogy and the one that really should come first but this is a poll where we will read a book where Ulysses S. Grant is featured and that is not a conflict where he was.

Some folks find alternate history troubling and I probably would be one of those; but we offer different experiences here although we primarily focus on non fiction.

Here is a write-up on Never Call Retreat which is listed above from the Civil War News:

http://www.civilwarnews.com/reviews/b...



by Newt Gingrich

by Newt Gingrich

by Newt Gingrich

My own personal preference would be to read a biography of Ulysses S. Grant or a memoir which focuses totally on the man himself and/or was written by him.

Hope this provides you and others with any explanation needed.

Regards,

Bentley

I want to thank those members who have voted. We offer this opportunity to nominate books as well as to vote for the one you think would be the best selection. We do this so that you will be satisfied with the selections and might participate in the discussions of the books themselves. Additionally, when we create lists for each president; we track the number of votes from each poll and create future lists based upon your votes. So if a book gets 0 votes; it is at the bottom of the list and probably will never be considered for a future read. The other books with votes will be placed in a list and we will move down that list accordingly when we get around to that president again. So nominating books as well as voting is very important.

Thank you for doing that.

Bentley

I vote for "President Grant Reconsidered" by Frank Scaturro.

Hi Dick:

Unfortunately, this poll is closed. We did the discussion late last year. Let us know if you decide to read this book; we would like to hear about it.

However, there is the Clinton poll:
http://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/81...

Also, don't forget to use the "add book/author" feature, so your citation looks like:

Frank J. Scaturro

Great to hear from you.