James Tobin (2)

Franklin D. Roosevelt was 39 years old when he was stricken with infantile paralysis (polio). Just one day he couldn’t stand up anymore and the hope for a fast recovery faded fast when he just got worse and the doctor had no clue to what had stricken him and, in the end, misdiagnosed him. Precious time was wasted before another doctor recognized what ailed him and by then it was too late for Roosevelt to be able to walk again properly. He would have to rely on other people to support himself to stand, or a cane, leg braces or a wheelchair for the rest of his life.



Still, he became, in the end, the president of the United States.



I find Franklin D. Roosevelt's life fascinating and this book was a very interesting and well-written account of his life just before he was stricken with infantile paralysis, his period of illness and his struggle to walk again and reclaim his life and career again. I found the best part of the book was 2/3 of the book that focused on Roosevelt and how infantile paralysis struck him and how his life was forever changed because of it. The ending of the book was not bad; it was just a bit too much about politics for me. Besides learning more about Roosevelt was it interesting to learn more about infantile paralysis what a devastating illness it was.… (meer)

I finished James Tobin's Ernie Pyle's War: America's Eyewitness to World War II.

A short book under 300 pages that includes an appendice of some of his work both before and during the war.

This was a great dip into the life of Ernie Pyle, a man I knew only through reputation. It provides a compact whole life history and goes into his family, marriage and career before the war and if course his work most notable in the ETO with his unfortunately short stint in the Pacific Theater.

Both a simple and complex man at the same time who was limited by his past yet yearned for greatness. His reporting throughout his career focused on the common man and soldier, reporting on their daily experience.

Always a loyal following, slow to fame who blossomed into greatness during the war.

A great read.… (meer)