Roosevelt: superhero

If there ever was a real life, flesh-and-blood superhero, this has to have been Theodore Roosevelt. Here's why think so:

• Turned himself from a weakling to a muscular powerhouse
• Beat asthma
• Saved a tramp from the streets in Ireland
• Served as acting Sherriff
• Captured "Redhead" Finnegan
• Sired a sizable brood
• While serving under the Harrison administration he opposed the postmaster general and his creatures on public service reform
• Cleaned the New York city's police, made night rounds in person, and enforced dry Sundays
• Sundered the police connections with the underground
• Was fearless when opposing machine politicians
• Made ready the navy as acting navy chief for war
• Was the first to officially propose the use of "flying machines" in naval operations
• Commanded, in effect, one of the toughest, if not the toughest, regiments: the Roughriders
• Survived the jungles of Cuba
• Dodged bullets while leading the charge in San Juan Hill
• Thought about swimming with sharks
• Could, and actually did, knife a live puma
• By the time he had reached the presidency, he had already read 20,000 books
• His collected works meanwhile covered tens of volumes
• Faced JP Morgan and his radioactive nose and lived to tell the tale
• Could address a quarter of a million in one day without the aid of electronic equipment
• Could shake 52 hands a minute for three hours straight
• Survived a trolley smashing into his carriage with him inside with just minor injuries
• Asked not to be anesthetized for a tumor surgery on his shin
• Gave birth to the Teddy bear… well, of sorts
• Brokered peace between Russia and Japan
• He had his own call signal: glasses and teeth
• Could wolf down, in quantity, almost anything
• Went for a year-long African Safari
• Most amazing of all, survived being shot point blank, by stopping the bullet with his ribs. He went on to deliver a speech for over 45 minutes, bleeding, before allowing to be taken to a hospital
• Barely survived the exploration of the River of Doubt in the Amazon jungle.
• While there, swam in piranha waters. The rest of the neighborhood fauna didn't stop him from reading at night
• Was also a renowned naturalist

Theodore Rex

De-lighted

Bio writer Edmund Morris has a top-notch trilogy on Theodore Roosevelt: The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Rex and Colonel Roosevelt. I've read all three on audiobook format and wanted to say that the centerpiece, Theodore Rex, which comprises Teddy's years in the White House is ironically the driest of the trio and wanted to give a warning. Unlike the other two, in which the charm of Roosevelt shines, this one emphasizes the political agenda to a higher degree which swamps the anecdotal. Up to a point, that's fine if that's the reader's interest or has to know the finer points of the policies followed during TR's tenure. But to me these felt like too much. Also, in the case of the unabridged audiobook version, the reader is a different person. The reader for the first and third books, Mark Deakins, is so good that you feel as if Teddy himself was speaking, specially when he imitates his quirks. In conclusion, T-Rex feels so different as to appear written by another author and that's no good. Go for the abridged edition.

Update 4/18/15: I'll backpedal a bit here. I'm rereading Theodore Rex and, if taken by itself, it is an enjoyable experience after all. The first sections in which Mr Morris, sets President Roosevelt's agenda is well-woven with the final trip of William McKinley and that the newly sworn-in to Washington covering the personal, political, international, domestic, economic and that of conservation in an attractive way. This echoes the profile of the big T at the start of the first book. The rest of the book is first-rate on the day-to-day proceedings and events and once it gets rolling has its own charm if taken on its own. Once more, the interweaving is to be noted for its seemingly effortlessness and the periodic appearances of the Roosevelt children always brings a smile. Even if its breaks the continuity, if you are planning of tackling the trio, start with this one first   Had to be fair.