Best biography on the Teddy Roosevelt?

[kfili]

Just finished reading endurance and undaunted courage, wanted to pick up something on Teddy Roosevelt but there are so many options. Any recommendations? Full disclosure I'd rather read something that paints a positive light than a negative one. Thanks

 

[kfili]

Any suggestions?

 

[eamyrick]

Rise of Theodore Roosevelt is awesome. River of Doubt is also great (will remind you of how soft we are today)

 

[Hondo]

I too have been wanting to read more about TR following my introduction to TRCP. The Wilderness Warrior looks like a good read to me based on reviews. I'll be watching this thread.

 

[LookinforDirt]

I second The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt. It’s been awhile since I read it but I remember really liking it.

 

[neil.hansford]

River of Doubt is very good. I highly recommend.

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[SWOHTR]

There's a lot. Edmund Morris' trilogy is good but long. With TR there is a lot to digest: the youthful asthmatic side that transformed into a strong, intelligent man; the wilderness side; the political and military side. Just to name a few. Wilderness Warrior, while good, will give you a "biased" read on his development of "natural America" and not discuss so much of his political and military sides. The Morris trilogy will give you a thorough understanding of his life through a political lens but not so much about his relationship with John Muir and the conservation of "natural America." I would simply offer pick one and read it. I haven't read anything yet that painted TR in a negative light. He did so much good in his lifetime: the national forests, grew the Navy, held the New York Police accountable, just to name a few.

"River of Doubt" is a good book but not a biography. It focuses on one thing that TR did after his presidency.

There are also books that he wrote that may interest you: "Hunting Trips of a Ranchman" and "The Wilderness Hunter." Good reads, dated, sometimes hard to "understand."

I will also offer that on my reading list are "Mornings on Horseback" and "The Path Between the Seas," both which are TR-centric but may leave out details which you may find interesting.

When you read about him, just think - there's a reason we carved his face into the side of a mountain.

 

[Owens]

I thought Mornings on Horseback was really good. It covers his younger years, before he was President. It seemed like a good one to start with. My favorite of the 3 TR books I've read.

I also read and enjoyed the Naturalist. It overlaps Mornings on Horseback but obviously more focused his passion for the natural world.

I just read River of Doubt a couple weeks ago. As SWOHTR said, it is specifically focused on his trip down the river in South America. But also good.

 

[davidsapp]

River of Doubt is a great read.

 

[coloyooper]

The Naturalist- Theodore Roosevelt - A Lifetime of Exploration, and The Triumph of American Natural History

Listened to it on Audible during a pronghorn hunt a couple years ago. Pretty good. Definitely helped pass the time in a 110° blind

 

[Centralcoastca]

I just started reading Theodore Roosevelt in the Badlands: A Young Politician's Quest for Recovery in the American West. Pretty good so far.​

 

[Rokbar]

African Game trails was a great read. About his safari after the presidency. One could only imagine what his eyes saw in those days!

 

[wildwilderness]

I don’t recall the Title of the one I listened too, but definitely was impressed with learning more about Teddy Roosevelt.

 

[ODB]

Morris’ books are good.

TR was, like all great people, complicated.

I tend to think the outdoors community conveniently overlooks certain aspects of him as they print more t-shirts, stickers, and coffee mugs, and ask: “What would TR do?” I think sometimes they wouldn’t really like the answer.

 

[Yoder]

I highly recommend the Morris books. They have them on Audible if you want to listen instead. We have had quite the pathetic lot of Presidents in my lifetime, Republicans and Democrats. Looking back in the context of history, I think Teddy was a great man. It's a shame what we have to pick from now.

 

[NE Herd Bull]

African Game Trails was a great read. About his safari after the presidency. One could only imagine what his eyes saw in those days!

^^^^^^^^
I have a hard bound 1st edition
Great read, great vintage photographs
This was during a different time with different ethical hunting standards. However I will admit that I am taken-aback by the sheer amount of game that he and his son Kermit "collected" for the Smithsonian on that safari. 512 Animals over 10 months.
Smithsonian-Roosevelt African Expedition

 

[Kbhillhunter]

The entire Edmund Morris series is the best IMO. Mornings on Horseback is also very good.

 

[mtwarden]

thanks Gents! just ordered Mornings on Horses, need a good read

 

[LongWayAround]

River of Doubt took me awhile to get into but once I did, I tore through it.

I'll have to check out some of these other suggestions.

 

[SWOHTR]

River of Doubt took me awhile to get into but once I did, I tore through it.

I'll have to check out some of these other suggestions.

The simple idea of "I won't die here because it will burden my son" is one to really reflect on.