I picked up this book at the recommendation of a good friend mainly due to his excitement over the man Theodore Roosevelt. Before reading this I knew very little about Roosevelt other than he was a previous president of the United States of America, the Teddy bear was named after him and that he was on Mount Rushmore. What little I knew about TR (Theodore Roosevelt) made reading this very exciting due to all of the mind blowing tasks, accomplishments and life he lived before he even became president. This book is focused only on the part of TR’s life pre-presidency.
Morris starts the book out going in-depth about TR’s family life and upbringing as a small child in New York City. His father was a successful business man and was able to provide a very nice life for the Roosevelt’s. Early in TR’s life he was a very sickly boy and suffered from debilitating asthma and breathing issues. By the age of 12 Theodore was already a very smart and bright young man with intense interests, especially the study of animals and nature. Senior Roosevelt challenged his son to make his body as strong as his mind and to start an exercise regimen to help combat his asthma. This is a lesson young Roosevelt took very seriously with a strict weight lifting and exercise routine. His devout workouts greatly improved his asthma and transformed his life. The physical accomplishments of Theodore Roosevelt equal in comparison to his intellectual accomplishments when all said and done (and that is saying a lot)!
As a small child TR gained an enormous respect for animals, their anatomy and their habitat. Young Theodore would collect mainly birds but really any animal he could get his hands on. Theodore would dissect and preserve animals to learn more about them. As TR grew older this respect for wildlife attracted him to the Western frontier where he became a cowboy and invested in cattle. He had many crazy adventures out west (I don’t want to spoil these because they are badass) and his respect for the beautiful terrain would blossom into what we now know as the National Park System when he later would become president.
Morris also goes in-depth about how Roosevelt got his start in politics at Harvard and follows along TR’s journey until the moment he learns that he would become President of the United States. It is very interesting reading about politics in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. The way presidential candidates are nominated by parties is one example of how procedures were in the past but are drastically different now. It is funny reading about some of the political arguments and struggle for power people had over 100 years ago. Many of the arguments then are the same as they are present day.
While TR was a politician and this book does discuss politics, there is so much more to the man Theodore Roosevelt. If you remember the Dos Equus beer commercials with the “Most Interesting Man In The World”, Teddy Roosevelt was the real life version of that. Do not stray away from this book if politics are not your thing. This is more about a man full of life and energy and adventures he embarks on.
At first glance this is an intimidating book. It is very long and detail oriented but I promise it goes quick and is very informative. I enjoyed the entire book cover to cover. TR is the most interesting man I have ever read about and honestly I couldn’t have drawn up a dude that cool if I tried.
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt was written my Edmund Morris and it is the first part of a three book trilogy (Theodore Rex and Colonel Roosevelt are the other two books) on the life of TR. There are many books on Roosevelt’s life and accomplishments but this trilogy is excellent and a 100% home run. These are must reads if you are a fan of history, the Wild West, politics, adventures, war or anything in between. There are not many books I would consider reading a second time but this one is on my list.
Debonair Gentlemen 
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