His series on Theodore Roosevelt, started as work when he was a graduate student, is an absolute masterpiece. The three volume work was interrupted by his biography on Ronald Reagan, which I haven't read, but in which he included unusual writing techniques including the acknowledge inclusion of fiction in order to illustrate events which actually happened, a technique which lead the work to be condemned and which I suspect was done to address the problem that Ronald Reagan's early years simply weren't that interesting.
Morris was born in Kenya and had a clipped upper class English accent. His early career was not in history or writing and The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, his first book, was not issued until he was 40 years old. His last well known work, Colonel Roosevelt, and the second volume of his history of Roosevelt, Theodore Rex, were delayed by his twelve year effort researching Reagan, an effort that lead him to the conclusion that Reagan was almost impossible to understand.
Morris wrote only seven books, with his final work on Edison being published after his death. He'll always be remembered for his three volume set on Theodore Roosevelt.
No comments:
Post a Comment