• Herbert Hoover

  • A Life
  • By: Glen Jeansonne
  • Narrated by: Mark Deakins
  • Length: 16 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (251 ratings)

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Herbert Hoover  By  cover art

Herbert Hoover

By: Glen Jeansonne
Narrated by: Mark Deakins
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Publisher's summary

“At last, a biography of Herbert Hoover that captures the man in full.... [Jeansonne] has splendidly illuminated the arc of one of the most extraordinary lives of the twentieth century.” (David M. Kennedy, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Freedom from Fear)

Prize-winning historian Glen Jeansonne delves into the life of our most misunderstood president, offering up a surprising new portrait of Herbert Hoover - dismissing previous assumptions and revealing a political Progressive in the mold of Theodore Roosevelt and the most resourceful American since Benjamin Franklin.

Orphaned at an early age and raised with strict Quaker values, Hoover earned his way through Stanford University. His hardworking ethic drove him to a successful career as an engineer and multinational businessman. After the Great War, he led a humanitarian effort that fed millions of Europeans left destitute, arguably saving more lives than any man in history. As commerce secretary under President Coolidge, Hoover helped modernize and galvanize American industry and orchestrated the rehabilitation of the Mississippi Valley after the Great Flood of 1927.

As president, Herbert Hoover became the first chief executive to harness federal power to combat a crippling global recession. Though Hoover is often remembered as a "do-nothing" president, Jeansonne convincingly portrays a steadfast leader who challenged Congress on an array of legislation that laid the groundwork for the New Deal. In addition Hoover reformed America's prisons, improved worker safety, and fought for better health and welfare for children. Unfairly attacked by Franklin D. Roosevelt and blamed for the Depression, Hoover was swept out of office in a landslide. Yet as FDR's government grew into a bureaucratic behemoth, Hoover became the moral voice of the GOP and a champion of Republican principles - a legacy reignited by Ronald Reagan and that still endures today.

A compelling and rich examination of his character, accomplishments, and failings, this is the magnificent biography of Herbert Hoover we have long waited for.

©2016 Glen Jeansonne (P)2016 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Herbert Hoover is usually ranked near the bottom of American presidents. Glen Jeansonne’s biography of the man who was chief executive from 1929 to 1933 is a cri de coeur over what the author sees as a grievous injustice. True, Hoover did preside over the worst economic catastrophe in our nation’s history. But in Herbert Hoover: A Life, he is a fascinating and accomplished individual - the ‘most versatile American since Benjamin Franklin’ - and an idealistic, dynamic president who deserves a better reputation.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“Jeansonne portrays a president more centrist than extreme, a leader who might have succeeded in a second term.... Strong - well-written and well-researched.” (Amity Shlaes, Wall Street Journal)

“Historian Glen Jeansonne’s fine biography, the first to treat [Herbert Hoover’s] entire life…has given us an exhaustively researched, balanced, and thorough treatment of an American life very much worth knowing about.” (The American Spectator)

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Thought provoking

After working in the Palo Alto area around Stanford University, I thought I knew about Hoover. There are more buildings named for Herbert Hoover in the area than any place else. This is Hoover country. But After reading Jeansonne’s new book on Hoover, I realized I knew very little about this most interesting man.

Professor Jeansonne dismisses previous assumptions about Hoover and reveals a political progressive in the mold of his fellow Republican, Theodore Roosevelt. I acquired some great trivia information from the book. Did you know that Herbert Hoover saved more lives than any man in history? In WWI and WWII, he was responsible for feeding and providing medical care to all the refugees from the Wars. He saved 1.3 million Russians from starvation in spite of the actions of Stalin. It was Hoover that had the first telephone placed on the President’s desk in the oval office. Hoover made a fortune as an engineer and businessman. He was a gifted administrator, organizer and a brilliant logistics expert.
Hoover was labeled the “Do-nothing” President but Jeansonne proves that wrong. Hoover had a dysfunctional and divided congress but Hoover did manage to get some legislation through that laid the groundwork for the “New Deal”. In Hoover’s first eight months in office he reformed the prisons, improved worker’s safety and fought for health and welfare for children. He also had reduced the federal government to its smallest size in years and was reducing the military.

The book is well written, meticulously researched and an insightful evaluation of a misunderstood and forgotten president. I felt the author repeated himself too often, which I found annoying. The author attempts to correct the distorted image of Herbert Hoover. Jeansonne provides an impressive and provocative evaluation of Hoover. In my opinion, Jeansonne attempts to balance his evaluation of Hoover. He points out his failures as well as his achievements. It is apparent that the author is attempting to correct an image, but I do not feel he crossed the line into a hagiographic biography. The book is fairly long at about seventeen hours.

Jeansonne is a Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin.
Mark Deakins does an excellent job narrating the book. Deakins is an actor and multi-award winning audiobook narrator.

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23 people found this helpful

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Very good with a couple reservations

This was an excellent biography. However there were times it was repetitious, and while he tried to be fair, author's political bias occasionally became distracting especially in any parts dealing with FDR and The New Deal.

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Author is a sycophant

I wanted the headline to read "Got new appreciation of Hoover, but author was sycophant", but I was limited by 50 characters.

I found this to be a fascinating biography of a president that has been so demonized in history. I am an engineer, so I really love that Hoover was a mining engineer and thought like I do in a logical and methodical way. I love that he did so much good in the food relief programs that he ran. That is the opposite of how he is portrayed. Ii was fascinated by how progressive he was in the earlier part of his life which is the opposite of how he is portrayed. He even showed some of that in his presidency, if the author is to be believed, with the programs he put into place to address the Great Depression. However, I am not sure how much of that I can believe because the author is such a huge sycophant of Hoover. He can barely say anything negative about him and spins some of the well documented negative things he has done into non events or good things. He also was much more harsh to Hoover's opponents, like FDR, than any author has ever been. He really shows his extreme partisanship there. Then he takes positive things that previous opponents have said about Hoover out of the context of when they were said much later on and cherry picks one journalist or one article that are favorable to Hoover to bolster the author's AGENDA.I don't know what I should believe as a result.

I gave it 3 stars because of the information on his pre-presidential years, but then the author really went off the deep end. Now, I don't know how much of the pre-presidential information I should believe.

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Worth Your Time

This is an account of a remarkable man. Before reading this book my knowledge of President Hoover was minimal and my viewpoint skewed by what little I knew. Basically I equated Hoover with the Depression. This book will open your eyes to a great man who had he been President earlier or later would likely be considered one of our great Presidents.

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Wildly Overdone

One of the worst books I have ever listened to. The author has wildly exaggerated Hoover's accomplishments to the point that the entire book looses its credibility. I expected a straightforward book about the President. Instead, I got a biased account of him that was cloying and useless.

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Amazing story.

I'm a history teacher and will add the Herbert Hoover story to the lies we have been told by liberal, elitist historians. This book will be one of my favorites of all time. Well written and thoroughly documented.

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Great American, not so great President.

I liked this book quite a bit as it opened my eyes to who Hoover really was. He was a far bigger presence and important figure than the negative view everyone is taught in school. This book was a little more sparse with details while he was in office, or so it seemed to me, but the book wasn't too long so it ended up being OK.

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    3 out of 5 stars

Title of the book should have been “The case for Herbert Hoover’s sainthood”

Tremendously over the top, sycophantic biography. Unwarranted attempt to make the case that Hoover was ahead of his time and on the correct side of every issue, from the Great Depression to the New Deal to race relations to later 20th century politics. A very defensive book. Clearly attempting to defend Hoover against the consensus historical belief that he was responsible for the Great Depression, and didn’t do enough to alleviate the human suffering caused by it.

I would recommend to potential purchasers that they select another more balanced biography of Herbert Hoover.

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Hoover

Creates a good argument that the heat of past partisan politics has almost indelibly warped the historical narrative. This biography is the best criticism I’ve read of the New Deal as, if not a failure, at least very wanting as a response to the Great Depression. I’ve come to expect that all biographers, to some extent, become their subject’s champion and apologist. This biography is no exception and while the extolling of Hoover’s virtues is in plain sight, the apologies for his failings aren’t made directly. They are delivered through omissions and elisions, which I find either a dangerous attempt to obscure hard truths or a sad ignorance of historical perspective.

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Superb biography of a vastly under-rated president

Would you consider the audio edition of Herbert Hoover to be better than the print version?

I have not read the print edition so I really can't compare them. However, the audio edition is superbly done. The reader is one of the best to whom I have listened, and I have listened to a lot of audio books.

What did you like best about this story?

I now have a greater appreciation for Herbert Hoover. He was a brilliant man who served all of humanity without thought of enriching himself. He may be the man most responsible for saving more lives from starving to death than any person in history. Unfortunately, he was president when The Great Depression began. It is interesting to speculate how things would have gone if FDR had been elected in 1928 and Hoover in 1932 or if Hoover had never been president. He would probably gone down in the history books as one of America's greatest humanitarians.

I think the despicable treatment of Hoover by FDR was unconscionable. Between his election in November of 1932 and taking office in March of 1933, FDR did absolutely nothing to help the country by assisting Hoover. FDR wanted the country to suffer as much and as long as possible so that he could 'ride in on a white horse" and rescue the country. Ironically, FDR pursued many of the same policies Hoover used. FDR did not end the Great Depression, WWII helped the nation back to recovery along with other factors.

The Democrats used Hoover and The Great Depression for the next 30-40 years as a reason why the country should never elect another Republican. Harry Truman, among others, realized the greatness of Hoover and treated him with respect.

What about Mark Deakins’s performance did you like?

He read the story beautifully.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

FDR's incredibly nasty treatment of Hoover from FDR's election until FDR died.

Any additional comments?

The book really opened my eyes to what a kind and generous man Herbert Hoover was. He has suffered too long at the hands of the worshipers of FDR, in particular the liberal historians.

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