The Forty-Three Presidents

About the Book

Harry Truman may have only slightly overstated the matter when he said, “The presidents made the highlights of American history, and when you tell about them, you’ve got it.”

We can, in fact, learn a tremendous amount about the world in which we live by studying the forty-three presidents, including what they said to and about each other.

Nero James Pruitt tackles the task, explaining why we should care that Sen. John Quincy Adams played chess with Secretary of State James Madison in 1803; why future war heroes and presidents Gerald Ford and John F. Kennedy supported the isolationist America First committee in the 1940s; and why diplomats John Adams and Thomas Jefferson could bond in a way that modern diplomats cannot.

He also shares fascinating facts and stories, such as the humorous tale of President James K. Polk hanging a portrait of Andrew Jackson in his office. Polk wrote to his friend, “The contrast between your appearance then and now is very great.”

Gain a deeper appreciation of what makes the United States so special by studying the fascinating connections between The Forty-Three Presidents.

About the Author

Nero James Pruitt lives in Alameda in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and Michigan State University. He works in the field of labor relations and has published articles on labor history and diversity.