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Interesting,
Informative,
Brilliant

4 reviews

The Presidents Club: Inside the World's Most Exclusive Fraternity
by Nancy Gibbs, Michael Duffy

Published: 2013-02-12
Paperback : 656 pages
1 member reading this now
13 clubs reading this now
3 members have read this book
Recommended to book clubs by 4 of 4 members
The New York Times bestselling history of the private relationships among the last thirteen presidents—the partnerships, private deals, rescue missions, and rivalries of those select men who served as commander in chief.

The Presidents Club, established at Dwight Eisenhower’s ...
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Introduction

The New York Times bestselling history of the private relationships among the last thirteen presidents—the partnerships, private deals, rescue missions, and rivalries of those select men who served as commander in chief.

The Presidents Club, established at Dwight Eisenhower’s inauguration by Harry Truman and Herbert Hoover, is a complicated place: its members are bound forever by the experience of the Oval Office and yet are eternal rivals for history’s favor. Among their secrets: How Jack Kennedy tried to blame Ike for the Bay of Pigs. How Ike quietly helped Reagan win his first race in 1966. How Richard Nixon conspired with Lyndon Johnson to get elected and then betrayed him. How Jerry Ford and Jimmy Carter turned a deep enmity into an alliance. The unspoken pact between a father and son named Bush. And the roots of the rivalry between Clinton and Barack Obama.

Time magazine editors and presidential historians Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy offer a new and revealing lens on the American presidency, exploring the club as a hidden instrument of power that has changed the course of history.

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Suggested by Members

We started by talking about the presidents we all "knew" growing up and our impressions of them at that time and after reading this book. Everyone had some good toughts and remembrances.
by Reader17 (see profile) 09/05/14

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Book Club Recommendations

Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
  "Fascinating but it's not for everyone"by Barbara P. (see profile) 09/28/14

We all learned a lot about the past presidents from this book. The authors were very meticulous and detailed, sometimes too much so. It will be a very important resource for historians, but some of our... (read more)

 
  "The President's Club"by Peg T. (see profile) 09/05/14

Fascinating book, well-written and easy to read, although full of history and politics. Eye-opening! Only talks about the presidents since Hoover, so most of us can remember most of them, and therefore... (read more)

 
  "The President's Club"by Anne R. (see profile) 09/05/14

Very interesting background on the relationships of current and former presidents with many stories to keep it real. These men are human with great responsibility - even the ones we didn't like. There... (read more)

 
  "The President's Club"by Charlene D. (see profile) 09/05/14

I feel much more comfortable about our presidents now, knowing they keep that close and advise each other no matter what Party they belong.

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