Mornings on Horseback

Mornings on Horseback

4.11 of 5 stars 4.11  ·  rating details  ·  7,310 ratings  ·  612 reviews

Winner of the 1982 National Book Award for Biography, Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life, and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt is the brilliant biography of the young Theodore Roosevelt. Hailed as a masterpiece by Newsday, it also won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography. Now with a new introduction b

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Paperback, 445 pages
Published May 12th 1982 by Simon & Schuster (first published 1981)
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Janis
Oct 26, 2007 Janis rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: history buffs/readers of biographies
A biography covering the early life of Theodore Roosevelt, from his childhood through his years as a Dakota rancher, this book is also a fascinating account of the entire colorful Roosevelt family and the times in which they lived. I could hardly put it down. I especially loved the way the author was able to draw such vivid pictures of this dynamic man -- Roosevelt reading Anna Karenina while guarding thieves at gunpoint...in horseback and dressed in full "dude" outfit, telling his cowboys to "h...more
Erik Graff
Sep 16, 2012 Erik Graff rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: Americans
Recommended to Erik by: no one
Shelves: biography
Having just finished a book about the Spanish American War and the U.S. military occupation of the Philippines, I decided to proceed to a biography of one of those responsible for all that unneeded misery: Theodore Roosevelt. Having recently read his 1776 with enjoyment, I selected McCullough's Mornings of Horseback.

It wasn't quite what I expected, being a biography of the man and his family going only up to his unsuccessful race for the mayoralty of New York, but perhaps it served as an antidot...more
Craig
I love David McCullough and think he is a national treasure. "Truman" is my favorite biography of all time, I loved Mr McCullough's narration of "The Civil War," and he is from Pittsburgh to boot.

I liked "Mornings on Horseback" a lot. It left me wanting to learn more about Theodore Roosevelt and visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park and the "Bad Lands" of both Dakotas. I now smile when I see video clips of "TR" and strive to be more like him (and his father) in some ways. For me, though, what...more
Marjorie Hakala
Sep 08, 2008 Marjorie Hakala rated it 4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Marjorie by: I nicked it off Liz's to-read list
I read this in two and a half days (hey, I was on vacation). I had no particular interest in TR going in, but once I got into this book, I kept missing bits of conversations because I was sneaking in a few more paragraphs about the Roosevelts' nineteenth-century rich-people escapades. McCullough packs in a lot of historical background here, and he got me to think twice about things like philanthropy in a time apparently without liberal guilt (with our vast wealth we'll give generously to many ch...more
Tracey
Borrowed audiobook from CrankyAsAnOldMan

Into chapter 3, where the family takes the Grand Tour of Europe in 1869. I'm really enjoying the story of this remarkable family & am impressed by the amount of history McCullough brings in to the narrative. Wonderfully narrated by Edward Herrmann (with some sort of interstitial/pinch hitting by a woman)- I'd like to find more of his work as well!
...
I really feel as if I've gotten to know this family, as well as quite a bit about the time period. I fo...more
Diane
To give a brief summary of the book, I'll just quote the subtitle of the book: "The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life, and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt. " It is not at all a comprehensive study of TR's life. Rather, it is a study of the family he came from, and how he became who he was. The book ends when TR is in his mid-twenties - just ready to launch his comprehensive political career. It was fabulous.

If you want to know more about TR - read Edmund Mo...more
Lightreads
Combination biography of Teddy Roosevelt’s early years and historical portrait of a time and class. This is a book which emphasizes letters, much to my pleasure. McCullough writes good history in the way that he can pick just the right details to give you as complete a picture of people as possible without droning on for pages about, oh just for an example, what George Washington ate for breakfast on each successive day of the week. The portrait of aristocratic life in New York in the last decad...more
Michael
A satisfying and well written portrait of Roosevelt’s youth. It’s up to the reader to make the linkages between his origins and him as President. That’s the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars. For what McCullough intends, it was very satisfying to me:

My intention was not to write a biography of him. What intrigued me was how he came to be. … There were pieces of the puzzle that fascinated me—his childhood battle with asthma, for example, his beautiful southern mother, the adoration he had for...more
Deb
If you like biographies, this is a good one. I always found Theodore Roosevelt a fascinating figure and admired his ethics, determination and spirit. This book delves into the early life of TR or "TeeDee" as he was affectionately called by his family. It starts out focusing on the history of his parents and the Roosevelt/Bulloch family line then moves along into the Roosevelt family dynamics, lifestyle and the personalities of TR, his parents and siblings, giving the reader/listener a foundation...more
Carolinek
I have just finished reading "Mornings on Horseback" by David McCullough. I found it to be a great book about Teddy Roosevelt's early life. It really helped me to learn a lot more about our 26th President.
It begins on the East side of New York and follows Teddy and his family's lives. You really get to know about Teddy's early life, his struggle with asthma, his college days and so much more.
I loved all the details the author gave about Teddy and his entire family. I felt like I was truly abl...more
Ob-jonny
This book only covers the beginning of his life but it was so much more interesting than the standard Teddy Roosevelt biographies out there. There were lots of funny stories in this book about a spoiled eastern youth from the city interacting with his enviroment in an awkward way. It goes into detail about Roosevelt's childhood, college years, first political offices held, and his time out west in South Dakota. The content illustrates what life was like for the elites in New York City in the mid...more
Shauna
I enjoyed learning more about Theodore Roosevelt’s mother Martha (Mittie) Bulloch who grew up in Georgia. The Civil War did divide this family. Mittie’s two brothers fought for the Confederacy and his father – Theodore Sr.– supported the Union effort.

“It is not what we have that will make us a great nation; it is the way in which we use it.”

“It is of more importance that we should show ourselves honest, brave, truthful, and intelligent, than that we should own all the railways and grain elevator...more
John
I think Theodore Roosevelt was our most interesting president. David McCullough's "Mornings on Horseback" is the story of his childhood and youth, as well as of his parents, his brother and his two sisters -- all interesting in themselves.
I listened to the audio CD version, abridged and read by Edward Herrmann, during parts of two recent road trips in the same week. To me, his childhood was not all that interesting, his youth more so. I enjoyed learning more about the rest of the members of this...more
Yvonne
Considering the mountain of information available to the author it is a wonder the book is as short as it is. I think that the reason it won a prize was because of all the author's acclaimed work which preceded it. If McCullough wrote it naturally this must be a masterpiece as well. I did not find it to be so.

It is a social history about the life of the Roosevelt family in New York. It is not a lone history of the life of Teddy who became president. It is the story of the filthy rich who, altho...more
Kent
McCullough did a good job, as usual, if judged within the limits he sets for himself. He writes up-close-and-personal biographies with the Plutarchian goal of presenting examples and morals rather than big-picture historical narrative or detailed analysis. In so doing, McCullough hews close to the standard American interpretation of herself (freedom-loving good guys whose occasional eccentricities only serve to endear), but is good enough to never actually slip into caricaturability.

It's hard to...more
Marti
I cannot recall if I have read anything else by David McCullough. This is our book group's January selection--getting it read before the holidays. The title refers to just a short period in the family's history. I found the writing to be somewhat uneven--very interesting in some places, andd rather plodding in others. It takes the author about half a dozen pages or so to cover how Teddie suffered from asthma, to the result that I was finding it hard to breathe myself. I was once diagnosed with a...more
Tim
McCullough's book on the Roosevelt family and the environment that shaped young Teddy obviously required deep research into the entire family's correspondence and the author quotes that research at much length. Overall, it is an idyllic picture and removed from the larger history of the nation. The Roosevelt's are a family of wealth and privilege and the author rests on the details of that privilege. I would have loved more detail on Teddy's interest in natural history, the nature of his studies...more
Ernie
Actually, I listened to a CD set of the abridged version while on a 10 hour drive. Fascinating early years of Teddy Roosevelt are described. There are so many popular myths about him that it was interesting to hear a more comprehensive treatment. A major focus of the book was his father, a remarkable man Theodore Roosevelt, Senior. TR Sr. was a remarkable man who died young. His values had a lot to do with TR Jr, although the author makes it clear that they were quite different in temperment. TR...more
John Cass
Mornings on Horseback is a meandering and slow paced biography covering the lives of three generations of Roosevelts. Living in Dutch New York at the end of the 19th century, the book tells of the fortunes, adventures, disappointments, and the daily lives in general of this prominent and privileged family.

The book's main focus is on the childhood of Theodore Roosevelt, who diligently kept a detailed diary as a young boy, which provides the bulk of the source material. This, together with the lar...more
Jay Connor
OK. Here's my definition of fanatic. After just finishing a wonderful extended look at Teddy Roosevelt post-presidency ("Colonel Roosevelt" - reviewed here and given 5 Stars last month); I went back and re-read David McCullough's excellent biography of Teddy's family history and his early years.

Don't let anyone convince you that "nurture" isn't a powerful contributor to who we are. Not the exclusive contributor -- Teddy's own brother Elliot bears witness to that -- but powerful, nonetheless. Tw...more
Melani
I checked this out to listen to in the car on a whim. There was really nothing else at the library that I even remotely wanted to try out. I really had no interest in Teddy Roosevelt and only checked it out because I have liked the other books that I have read by McCullough.

Well let me say that McCollough did not disappoint. I was very quickly drawn into his depiction of New York high society in the post Civil War era. I was enthralled as I heard about Theodore Roosevelt Senior and his wife taki...more
Lisa
Although billed as a biography of the early life of Theodore Roosevelt, it really is as much a social history as a biography. As one expects from McCullough, the work is well researched and well written.

It is a particularly engaging work because he has taken the time and effort to clearly develop the stories and characters of Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. and his wife, Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, known as Mittie. To a lesser extent, one comes to know the future president's siblings and his large and clo...more
Josh
Sadly I found this book disappointing. I think that the problem centered around McCullough having a ton of research at his fingertips, recognizing that no other author had tackled this subject, but not having a clear direction what he wanted to give his readers. The book is divided into three sections and each section goes off in different directions. The first third deals with Teddy Roosevelt's parents, how they met, and their lives. The second third deals with the Roosevelt household's adventu...more
Chris
McCullough knows his subjects inside and out. He gives us very nice context for understanding primary sources, from which he quotes liberally. I especially enjoyed his frequent turn to the Roosevelt family's letters, permitting them to speak for themselves, and revealing, better than narrative description alone could tell, this family's fascinating and strange life.

In the end, I found this account of Theodore and his family to be quite tragic – and not merely for the obvious reason of untimely d...more
Carl Nelson
Theodore Roosevelt is something of a mythic figure in history, the larger-than-life "Hero of San Juan Hill," Old West cowboy, youngest President of the United States in history, the man who was shot in the chest while giving a campaign speech and finished his speech before seeking treatment, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his peacemaking efforts in the Russo-Japanese War, the namesake of the teddy bear. Less known is that he was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Harvard, author of an estimate...more
Tim
What did I know about Teddy before this book. He was a Roosevelt - therefore rich, he shot a lot of animals in Africa, was a conservationist that set aside parks and forests in the US, and stormed the hill in Cuba as a roughrider. I now know much more about his family, the day in which he lived, politics, social norms, consensus, etc. McCullough focuses on Roosevelt's family, siblings, parents, uncles, and what it meant then to be part of a "tribe." In fact, McCullough gives just four short page...more
Aaron Lenentine
I have yet to read anything from this guy that's not five stars! The only downfall to his writing style is that he is so incredibly thorough in his research and development phase that it takes him years to complete a project.

Obviously, that's also one of his best qualities since I've yet to come across a historian who does a better job at capturing the character's true daily life, rituals and behaviors. All with a great prose! What more could you ask of a historian!?

McCullough also does a great...more
Todd
McCullough's biography of Theodore Roosevelt is unique among biographies. He establishes his goal in the preface of telling the story of how TR became the person that fits our modern image of TR. He does just as he says: as soon as TR looks like the man we recognize from history, the book ends. There was still much to be said about him, including the "Rough Riders", his presidency, the "Bull Moose" Party, etc.

But this book is complete in a very real sense. There is a story arch, much like a nove...more
Taylor
A great deal has been written about Theodore Roosevelt the solider, the statesman, the conservationist and the progressive crusader. His formative years, however, provided the foundation for each of these roles he would later play. David McCullough provides a catholic analysis of the period between the great American statesman's 10th and 28th birthdays. How he was shaped by an aristocratic father, a Southern-born mother, the closeness of his siblings, his struggle with asthma, his big city reari...more
Catherine Richmond
Author David McCullough has a gift for showing a life in all the context of place, time, and people, and allowing the reader to draw his or her own conclusions. And my conclusion is Theodore Roosevelt wasn't all that likable. He shot his neighbor's dog, among many other animals. He deserted his infant daughter, dumping her on his sister, to play cowboy. He ranched in the Dakotas and marveled over the emptiness of the land, but never thought of those who first lived there, those for whom the terr...more
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Literazzi: Mornings on Horseback 7 8 Dec 03, 2011 05:07pm  
Mornings on Horseback (Hardcover)
Mornings on Horseback (Hardcover)
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Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt (ebook)
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David Gaub McCullough is an American author, narrator, historian, and lecturer. He is a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian award.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh, McCullough earned a degree in English literature from Yale University. His first book was The Johnstown Flood (1968); a...more
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“A man who will steal for me will steal from me." Theodore Roosevelt, dismissing on the spot one of his best cowhands who was about to claim for his boss an unmarked animal.” 3 people liked it
“I feel that as much as I enjoy loafing, there is something higher for which to live.” 1 person liked it
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