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Roosevelt's Centurions
PRESIDENTIAL SERIES
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INTRODUCTION - ROOSEVELT'S CENTURIONS (SPOILER THREAD)
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Bentley, Group Founder, Leader, Chief
(last edited Apr 18, 2012 01:14PM)
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All American presidents are commanders in chief by law. Few perform as such in practice.
In Roosevelt’s Centurions, distinguished historian Joseph E. Persico reveals how, during World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt seized the levers of wartime power like no president since Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War.
Declaring himself “Dr. Win-the-War,” FDR assumed the role of strategist in chief, and, though surrounded by star-studded generals and admirals, he made clear who was running the war.
FDR was a hands-on war leader, involving himself in everything from choosing bomber targets to planning naval convoys to the design of landing craft. Persico explores whether his strategic decisions, including his insistence on the Axis powers’ unconditional surrender, helped end or may have prolonged the war.
Taking us inside the Allied war councils, the author reveals how the president brokered strategy with contentious allies, particularly the iron-willed Winston Churchill; rallied morale on the home front; and handpicked a team of proud, sometimes prickly warriors who, he believed, could fight a global war.
Persico’s history offers indelible portraits of the outsize figures who roused the “sleeping giant” that defeated the Axis war machine: the dutiful yet independent-minded George C. Marshall, charged with rebuilding an army whose troops trained with broomsticks for rifles, eggs for hand grenades; Dwight Eisenhower, an unassuming Kansan elevated from obscurity to command of the greatest fighting force ever assembled; the vainglorious Douglas MacArthur; and the bizarre battlefield genius George S. Patton.
Here too are less widely celebrated military leaders whose contributions were just as critical: the irascible, dictatorial navy chief, Ernest King; the acerbic army advisor in China, “Vinegar” Joe Stilwell; and Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, who zealously preached the gospel of modern air power.
The Roosevelt who emerges from these pages is a wartime chess master guiding America’s armed forces to a victory that was anything but foreordained.
What are the qualities we look for in a commander in chief?
In an era of renewed conflict, when Americans are again confronting the questions that FDR faced—about the nature and exercise of global power—Roosevelt’s Centurions is a timely and revealing examination of what it takes to be a wartime leader in a freewheeling, complicated, and tumultuous democracy.
Mod
World War II, the largest and most consequential conflict in human history, was the ultimate test of presidential leadership. In Roosevelt's Centurions, distinguished historian Joseph E. Persico shows how President Franklin D. Roosevelt and a cadre of handpicked commanders aced that test, guiding America's armed forces to a smashing victory that was anything but foreordained.
Having remade the American economy in the wake of an unprecedented financial collapse, Roosevelt had assured his place in history even before the attack on Pearl Harbor. But America's entry into the fight against the Axis compelled him to focus his formidable political skills on an even more monumental task: assembling and managing a team of proud and sometimes prickly warriors who could execute a plan for victory. Taking us inside the Allied war councils, Persico shows how "Dr. Win the War"—as FDR now styled himself—selected his commanders, brokered strategy with contentious allies, and rallied public support for the war effort. Though often derided for his haphazard management style, the Roosevelt who emerges in these pages is a master delegator with a supple strategic mind who is not shy about overruling the wishes of his military advisors.
To complement his portrayal of an active and engaged FDR, Persico offers indelible portraits of some of the outsize figures of World War II, the men who roused the "sleeping giant" that defeated the Axis war machine: the dutiful yet independent-minded Army Chief George C. Marshall, charged with revitalizing a force whose troops trained with broomsticks for rifles and eggs for hand grenades; Dwight Eisenhower, the genial Kansan elevated from obscurity to command the greatest fighting force ever assembled; and the mercurial, vainglorious Douglas MacArthur. Here too are the less widely celebrated military leaders whose contributions were just as critical: the irascible, dictatorial Navy Chief Ernest King; acerbic China expert "Vinegar" Joe Stilwell; and Hap Arnold, an early and zealous proponent of the gospel of air power and its potential to revolutionize modern warfare.
What are the qualities we look for in a commander-in-chief? In an era of renewed conflict when Americans are again confronting the questions that FDR faced—about the nature and exercise of global power—Roosevelt's Centurions is a timely and revealing examination of what it takes to be a war leader in a messy, complicated, and tumultuous democracy.
Mod
"When I was a boy growing up in the South Bronx, my heroes were Roosevelt's Centurions. As a soldier for thirty-five years, I made them my mentors and models. These men were human, fallible, and occasionally vain, but we were certainly blessed to have such Americans leading the Greatest Generation during the world's greatest conflict. Of course the greatest centurion of all was FDR himself, who knew how to lead his commanders, stroke their egos, and get the best from them, yet never leaving any doubt as to who was commander in chief. Joe Persico, my valued collaborator on my memoirs, has brought his formidable talents to bear to bring the Centurions to life. He is at the top of his game in this defining classic."
Colin L. Powell, General, USA (Retired)
" Joseph E. Persico has done it again! Roosevelt’s Centurions is a riveting, analytic recounting of FDR as top World War II strategist. Nobody before has written on Roosevelt as talent scout with the brilliant insight of Persico. I found Persico’s elucidation of the FDR-George Marshall relationship marvelous. A grand book for the ages!"
Douglas Brinkley, author of Cronkite
"Benefiting from his years of studying Franklin Roosevelt and his times, Joseph Persico has brought us a briskly-paced story with much wisdom and new insights on FDR, his military liege men, World War II and political and military leadership."
Michael Beschloss, author of Presidential Courage
"To a remarkable degree we inhabit a world originated by Franklin D Roosevelt - on World War II battlefields, in the gilded halls of diplomacy; above all, inside FDR's fertile, inscrutable imagination. Joe Persico brings all this to life with stunning originality, insight, and narrative drive. Familiar names- Marshall, Patton, Eisenhower, Churchill - are here rescued from caricature. So are the strategic and political decisions that inform today's debate over civil liberties in wartime. The last word on Roosevelt's war, it's safe to say, will never be written. But it's hard to imagine anyone writing any better ones than these."
Richard Norton Smith, author of THE COLONEL: The Life and Legend of Robert R. McCormick, 1880-1955
"With rigorous research, a fine eye for detail, and an entertaining ability to recount history, Joe Persico deftly portrays the men behind the man, in addition to skillfully presenting the star himself, FDR, as recruiter-in-chief. A must-read for Americans concerned about war leadership then and now."
Evan Thomas, author of Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Struggle to Save the World
"Whatever his flaws, Franklin Roosevelt had an eye for talent, according to this sweeping, top-down account of 1939–45 from the point of view of FDR, his cabinet and his leading generals and admirals.. . . Long wars demand long books, but these are 550 pages of lively prose by a good writer who knows his subject. . . . A fine, straightforward politics-and-great-men history."
Kirkus Reviews
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by
Bentley, Group Founder, Leader, Chief
(last edited Apr 22, 2012 09:42PM)
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rated it 4 stars
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Here is a news article on a recent local event and some of the survivors of that raid.
B-25 bomber fly-over largest of its kind since WWII
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — Three of the 80 American aviators whose 1942 bombing raid of Japan helped change the course of World War II were honored Sunday, April 18, with a fly-over of B-25 bombers, the type they flew to attack Japan.
Thomas Griffin, 92, of the Cincinnati area, David Thatcher, 88, of Missoula, Mont., and Dick Cole, 94, of Comfort, Texas, who was the co-pilot for raid leader Jimmy Doolittle, stood as the B-25s flew overhead at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. The vintage airplanes had taken off minutes before from a runway behind the museum.
A fourth member of the 1942 raider group, Robert Hite, 90, of Nashville, Tenn., had joined the group’s reunion earlier in the weekend but had to return home on Saturday, Air Force officials said.
The crowd that had gathered to see the Raiders and witness a memorial service in their honor applauded. Sunday was the 68th anniversary of the raid.
The fly-over was timed to occur just before Air Force officials lauded the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders at a memorial dedicated to the men, just outside the Air Force Museum. The 17 privately owned B-25s were flown from around the country to the Dayton region this past week, in what Air Force officials said was one of the largest such gatherings since World War II.
The word “hero” is over-used in this country and broadly applied to sports figures, rock stars and others, museum director Charles Metcalf told the crowd at the memorial service.
“Today, in the truest sense of the word, we are among heroes,” said Metcalf, a retired Air Force major general.
Cole, who grew up in Dayton, said the raiders’ annual reunions around the country are intended to honor the memory of the sacrifices of their fallen comrades.
“It is an acknowledgement of those who have gone before us,” Cole told the crowd. “We all shared the same risks.”
The men then signed autographs for visitors to the museum. They signed hundreds of autographs for well-wishers during the three-day reunion, museum officials said.
Eight of the Doolittle Raiders survive. The other four were unable to travel to Dayton for the reunion. They are William Bower, 93, of Boulder, Colo.; Frank Kappeler, 96, of Santa Rosa, Calif.; Charles Ozuk, 93, San Antonio, Texas, and Edward Saylor, 90, Puyallup, Wash.
Source: Dayton Daily News - Writer - John Nolan
[image error]
Private operators of vintage B-25 bombers took off Sunday, April 18, from a runway behind the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, then flew over a memorial service outside the museum for the Doolittle Raiders who flew a top-secret bombing raid of Japan 68 years ago Sunday. This image shows 10 of the 17 B-25 planes that were flown to Dayton for the Doolittle Raiders' weekend reunion, which ended Sunday.
message 6:
by
Bentley, Group Founder, Leader, Chief
(last edited Jun 30, 2013 01:41PM)
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rated it 4 stars
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We will begin the discussion on June 4, 2012.
The book itself will be released on May 29, 2012 so even if you do not get an advance copy; you will be able to purchase your copy at your local book store, or any of the on line book sellers like Amazon. There is also a Kindle edition which is available for pre-order if you want to acquire the book as a download on May 29th.
This book discussion will be led by Alisa and Jill will be her back-up.
Bryan Craig will be the subject matter expert also joining the discussion from the Presidential Series perspective and Bentley will be overseeing the discussion making sure that things go smoothly.
There will be 30 copies available for our group and for our moderators.
The list has been started of moderators who will be involved with the discussion and will be receiving a book:
1. Bentley
2. Alisa
3. Jill
4. Bea
5. Bryan Craig
There remains 25 copies that we will be offering to group members.
These are the requirements to be considered to receive this FREE book.
a) You must have a US address - RH will send the book free to US addresses only.
b) You must indicate to Bentley that you will read the book, discuss the book actively in the weekly threads and post, write a review of the book and post it here on the Final Comments thread or HBC, and also participate and post a question or two for the author - Joseph Persico who will be joining us.
c) If you received a previous book from us; we will review your standing on that book and see if you participated as agreed. We want to give everyone a chance and there are a limited number of books so we really want active participation from folks we give the books to.
Procedures:
a) Post your interest here on this thread FIRST and indicate that you agree to the T&C's which are quite basic and the same as we had for the previous ARC.
b) Send Bentley VIA PM a copy of your full name and address with zip code indicating where you would like the book to be sent.
c) If you post that you are interested here on this thread in getting a copy of the book, Bentley will make sure to reach out to you and send you a PM so that you can reply to him with the information. If you are not a friend of Bentley's - he will send you an invite, accept the invite and then you will be able to PM Bentley right away. But remember the first step is to express your interest here on this thread. We reserve the right to make the final decision on the recipients of these books; we want to be absolutely fair but we want to have an active discussion.
SO REMEMBER THE FIRST STEP IS TO POST HERE FIRST AND EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST.
I am interested. I agree to the conditions. TY
I am interested in the book also. I agree to all terms and conditions as stated.
Thanks to Bently for the offer but I don't think I have the background that would allow me to critique this book fairly. I would like to be included in the group reading when that occurs.
Mod
Jim why of course we would love to include you in our discussions. The book also will be released on May 29th.
I am interested, and I agree to the terms and conditions.
and of course that means I agree to all the terms and conditions
what a great opportunity. where do i sign up?
Sal wrote: "what a great opportunity. where do i sign up?"an i agree to the terms and conditions
I would love to read and review this book since I am very immersed in WWII history at the moment. You are welcome to look at my other reviews of WWII history books and see if my style suits the publisher.
:oI'm interested and agree to the the Terms and Conditions :)
Also, I would like to add that I agree to the Terms and Conditions.
This is my favorite historical period, and I agree absolutely with all terms and conditions. :)
I got a message from you and tried adding as friend but I am a little unsure how to complete process. Perhaps if you, Bently, would be so kind as to send me a personal email, I believe you already have the address. I would feel much more comfortable giving out that information there
Sounds like a great opportunity and an interesting book. I am new to this group so I would prefer a member with more seniority than myself to get one of the advanced copies, but it can't hurt to get my name known for future events like this
I'd love to receive the book as well and would gladly post the review and participate in the discussions. I'll send the PM as per the rest of the terms and agreements.
I am very interested in WWII, especially in the unique leaders during that treacherous time. I will read the book and will post reviews and participate in discussions, if given the opportunity. Please keep in mind that I would do this as someone who is not an expert in the field, but a serious amateur. Thank you.
Yes, I am very interested as well. I agree to terms and conditions.Thanks!
Bentley, I am very interested in reading about WWII and would love a copy. I agree to all the terms and conditions,
Bentley, I can't tackle the FDR read in June; however, I look forward to following the discussion.
I am very interested in reading FDR and the Commanders He Led to Victory in World War II. I agree to all the terms and conditions.
Bentley, I agree to all the terms. I've read a few books on FDR along with WWII and would like to participate.
I'm interested and agree to the terms and conditions.
I am interested and agree to terms and conditions.
I am interested in reading, discussing, and reviewing this book. I agree to the terms and conditions. As a lover of history, especially WWII, this looks like an exciting read.
I'm interested in reading this book, and I agree to all the terms and conditions stipulated above.I've also read Persico's Franklin & Lucy; it was one of the best books I read in 2011.
Joseph E. Persico
I am very interested. Love history of all kinds.
Sounds like a fascinating read. Would love to read, talk about, review.
Hello I would be very interested in reading this book. I agree to the terms and conditions to receive an advance copy of this book. Thanks.
I am interested and I agree to the posted terms and conditions. Thanks.
I am interested, and I agree to the terms and conditions.
I am a new to this group and interested in reading this book. I agree to the terms and conditions.
Mod
Nothing elaborate is needed but I think folks should say hello and why history or this group or whatever under the sun pops in your head that you would like to share.
Here is the link to the introduction thread:
To the latest page (there are 93 pages) - feel free to read through the previous introductions.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/9...
Also, when you introduce yourself an assisting moderator will greet you and we will also provide for you links to the group's orientation which should be read before the group discussion, links to the rules and guidelines which should be read so that you get off to a "smooth" start and links to the Mechanics of the Board thread which will give you "extremely detailed" steps in how we do citations here.
These are all very helpful and necessary.
Here is an example of the citation for the book you are requesting. There are three parts: book cover, author's photo (when available), and author's link. It is easy to learn after practicing it a couple of times and takes two seconds:
by
Joseph E. PersicoIf you are simply mentioning an author; only the last two parts are necessary:
Joseph E. PersicoWhen we are discussing one book and author in a formal discussion like we will be having about Persico's book, there is no need to additionally cite the book and the author over and over again. The entire thread is about the one book; but if you mention another book by the discussed author; then you have to follow the formal citation rules and cite the book cover, the author's photo (when available) and always the author's link.
None of the above is difficult in the least and the goodreads software is then able to cross populate our group site and also the general goodreads site. There are also many other reasons that we do citations.
But I just want to spell out some of the things we are looking for. Has the person posted before and do we think that the person will actively participate. We are just trying to put together an harmonious group (you do not have to agree with each other or the book) but we want respectful and civil folks who can actively discuss, debate and participate in good humor and intent.
So that is my two cents. I am still reaching out to all of you who have posted to make sure that I get your address in place if you are selected so we can hit the ground running.
All best to all of you and I just want you to know that we are honored and excited to have you here.
Bentley
I'm interested and would be happy to write a review, post comments, and discuss the book in accordance with the rules. Joseph Persico's past work has been solid and well written.
Mod
Quite right, my apoligies for not introducing myself first.
Mod
I am interested in receiving the book and will participate in the discussions. I also agree to the terms and conditions, thank you! And I just sent you a friend request, Bentley so I could PM you my name and address. :o)
Mod
I'm interested as well and would be happy to participate. I'll send you my address via PM. Thanks a bunch for getting this set up.
Mod
How do I send you my address, Bentley?
The History Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Roosevelt's Centurions: FDR & the Commanders He Led to Victory in World War II (other topics)Defining Americans: The Presidency and National Identity (other topics)
Enemies: A History of the FBI (other topics)
December 1941: 31 Days That Changed America and Saved the World (other topics)
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Jean Edward Smith (other topics)Craig Shirley (other topics)
Joseph E. Persico (other topics)
Tim Weiner (other topics)
Robert K. Massie (other topics)
More...
One of our relationships with Random House has allowed us to offer our group members who reside in the United States free advance copies of the following book:
Roosevelt's Centurions: FDR and the Commanders He Led to Victory in World War II by Joseph E. Persico
We will have a special spotlighted discussion of this book beginning very soon after May 29, 2012 when the book is available to all. The book has not been released yet so this is a fabulous opportunity.
We are arranging a live chat with the author and I will keep you posted on that as time goes by. Joseph Persico will be here to discuss his book much as Sally Bedell Smitn responded to questions about her book. We will be setting up a thread called Q&A with Joseph.
So for those of you who are interested in not only acquiring this book at no charge alongwith free shipping paid for by Random House, please post here when I open this thread and let me know of your interest. Also, send me via PM your name and mailing address so that I can place you on the list so that you can get your advance copy. I will release the list of the lucky recipients who are committed to reading and discussing this fine book with us and the author and doing a review of the book itself.
We are only being allowed 25 copies and they are only going to be available to History Book Club members from the United States who will also commit to reading the book, discussing it with us.and the author as well as writing a review. If you do not plan on doing the above, let somebody else get a chance of a free copy of this great book.
This is a great opportunity so we hope you take advantage of this and let me know of your interest.
Also send me a PM or post here if you are unable to reach me for any reason and I will contact you and tell you my History Book Club email address.
All Best,
Bentley
Note: This time we will be receiving the actual copies of the book and not ARCs
Author: Joseph E. Persico
Joseph E. Persico
Website of Author:
http://josephpersico.com/