swap_horiz Truman Alternatives

1

The Power Broker

The Power Broker details Robert Caro’s exhaustive investigation into Robert Moses, a pivotal figure in twentieth-century...

New York Political Urban Planning Caro

9.5 Brilliant

2

Master of the Senate

The third volume in Robert Caro's series on Lyndon B. Johnson, this 2002 Pulitzer Prize-winning biography details his ti...

American Political Caro Lbj

9.4 Excellent

3

The Passage of Power

Published in 2012, this fourth volume of Robert Caro's biography covers Lyndon B. Johnson's transition to the presidency...

American Political Caro Lbj

9.3 Excellent

4

The Path to Power

Published in 1982, Robert Caro's book is the first volume in his acclaimed biographical series detailing the early life...

American Political Caro Lbj

9.2 Excellent

5

Means of Ascent

This 1990 book is the second volume in Robert Caro's acclaimed biographical series, focusing on Lyndon B. Johnson's cont...

American Political Caro Lbj

9.1 Excellent

6

The Glass Menagerie

Tennessee Williams's 1944 memory play, classified here as biography due to its highly autobiographical elements about hi...

American Drama Family Williams

9.1 Excellent

7

Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant

Published in 1885, this military memoir by the 18th U.S. President details his service during the American Civil War and...

Military American Autobiography Civil War

9.0 Excellent

8

American Prometheus

This Pulitzer Prize-winning 2005 biography by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin details the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer and...

Science Political Bird Sherwin Atomic Age

8.9 Great

9

The Executioner's Song

Norman Mailer's 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning true crime narrative chronicles the life and execution of convicted murderer...

American True Crime Mailer Capital Punishment

8.8 Great

10

The Best and the Brightest

David Halberstam's 1972 nonfiction work examines how elite policymakers in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations led t...

Cold War History Political Vietnam

8.8 Great

11

Walden

Henry David Thoreau's 1854 memoir details his experiences living alone in a cabin near Walden Pond, reflecting on simple...

Philosophy American Memoir Thoreau

8.8 Great

12

Washington: A Life

This Pulitzer Prize-winning 2010 biography by Ron Chernow provides a comprehensive look at the life of the first Preside...

18TH Century American Founding Father Chernow

8.7 Great

13

Shoe Dog

This 2016 memoir by Nike co-founder Phil Knight chronicles the early, risky years of building the iconic global sportswe...

Business American Nike Memoir

8.7 Great

14

Born Standing Up

Steve Martin's 2007 memoir chronicles his intense early comedy career and the development of his groundbreaking, absurdi...

Martin American Comedy Memoir

8.7 Great

15

Theodore Rex

Published in 2001, Edmund Morris's biography chronicles the presidential years of Theodore Roosevelt, from 1901 to 1909.

American Political Morris Progressive Era

8.2 Great

16

A Promised Land

This 2020 presidential memoir by Barack Obama details his early political career and the first term of his historic pres...

American Presidency Political Memoir

8.2 Great

17

The Bully Pulpit

This 2013 biography by Doris Kearns Goodwin explores the lives and political rivalry of US Presidents Theodore Roosevelt...

American Political Goodwin Progressive Era

8.1 Great

18

An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy

Robert Dallek's 2003 biography examines John F. Kennedy's political career, WWII service, and the lifelong health strugg...

Cold War American Political Dallek

7.8 Good

19

FDR

Jean Edward Smith's 2008 comprehensive biography profiles Franklin D. Roosevelt, detailing his struggle with polio and h...

American Political Smith Great Depression

7.8 Good

20

Nixon: A Life

Jonathan Aitken's 1993 biography provides a detailed look at Richard Nixon, exploring the political triumphs and scandal...

American Political Aitken Watergate

6.8 Fair