Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Profiles in Leadership by Walter Isaacson - Available

Profiles in Leadership

Historians on the Elusive Quality of Greatness

by Walter Isaacson
Nicholas Hormann
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available
The best historians in the land consider examples of great leadership, well known and surprising, from Washington to Willkie and more.
What made FDR a more successful leader during the Depression crisis than Hoover? Why was Eisenhower more effective as supreme commander during World War II than he was as president? Why was Grant one of the best presidents of his day, if not in all of American history? What drove Bobby Kennedy into the scrum of electoral politics? Who was Pauli Murray and why was she one of the most decisive figures in the movement for civil rights?
Find the surprising and revelatory answers to these questions and more in this collection of new essays by great historians, including Sean Wilentz, Alan Brinkley, Annette Gordon-Reed, Jean Strouse, Robert Dallek, Frances FitzGerald, and others. Entertaining and insightful individually, taken together the essays represent a valuable set of reflections on the enduring ingredients of leadership.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    October 19, 2010

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780307912947
      • File size: 343102 KB
      • Duration: 11:54:47

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Editor Walter Isaacson has chosen 13 essays about leadership written by 13 American historians. The 13 lives--some military, some religious, and some political--promote models to emulate. Since the nature of what makes a good leader varies from one thinker to another, listeners can expect an eclectic presentation. Narrator Nicholas Hormann uses a soft voice that varies little until he imitates Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce. At that point, in a hesitant and broken speech, he surrenders his tribe to the U.S. Government in 1877. Hearing all the pieces of writing in the same voice gives the impression of an unintended unity. Two or more narrators would have better distinguished among the multiple biographers. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 6, 2010
      In a thought-provoking book designed to reconsider the attributes of American leadership, Issacson (Einstein and His Universe), former managing editor of Time and now president of the Aspen Institute, has assembled a group of distinguished historians to address some seminal figures in terms of their vision, principles, flexibility, and pragmatism. Many of the contributors have first-rate résumés in scholarship, letters, and research, including Frances Fitzgerald, Sean Wilentz, Jean Strouse, and Robert Dallek. Quality writing, incisive analysis, and valuable revelations accompany each essay, whether it's Kevin Baker's take on the unpredictable baseball manager John Joseph McGraw, Evan Thomas's emotional deconstruction of Robert F. Kennedy, or Annette Gordon-Reed's perceptive measure of W.E.B. Du Bois. Three standout essays concern the moral and strategic strengths and weaknesses of Gen. George Washington; Joseph, chief of the Nez Perce Indians; and presidents Hoover and FDR. At a time when leadership is lacking, this memorable book culls examples from our past to reveal what makes a person stand above the rest. It's unfortunate that just one of the subjects—civil rights activist Pauli Murray—is a woman. 13 illus.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Loading