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As Garfield laid dying . . .

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If nothing else, Candace Millard deserves credit for exploring some relatively uncharted American History.  Her newest book, Destiny of the Republic, examines the assassination of James Garfield, turning it into what appears to be an engaging historical potboiler, not much unlike her previous book on Roosevelt's Amazon journey.  The title makes it sound as though she uncovered some far reaching consequences, but I guess we'll have to wait until September to find out.
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  1. avrdsJuly 6, 2011 at 4:11 PM

    I know I'm the only one, but I really enjoyed her other book on the Amazon. In fact I gave it to friends who might not otherwise read history.

    But wasn't she a National Geographic writer, or some kind of science writer? I wonder how she'll do with this one.

    I have also have this one on my list:

    http://www.amazon.com/President-Assassin-McKinley-American-Century/dp/1400067529

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  2. James FergusonJuly 7, 2011 at 12:17 PM

    She was a former writer and editor for NG, and River of Doubt read like an extended NG piece. It looks like she "explores" Garfield's agonizing death from a forensic point of view, which she can probably handle just fine. But, the title implies some far reaching consequences, which is kind of hard to imagine from a president who is little more than a footnote in history.

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  3. MartiJuly 10, 2011 at 6:51 AM

    I'm a little curious about this book, since Garfield's last days were in my home town, Long Branch, but I doubt that there will be a lot in the book about Long Branch

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