On His Own Terms

Starred review from October 1, 2014
Presidential library director and C-SPAN in-house historian Smith (The Colonel: The Life and Legend of Robert R. McCormick, 1997, etc.) delivers a monumental biography of the charismatic vice president and four-term governor of New York.Grandson and namesake of the two most hated men in Progressive-era America, Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (1908-1979) was determined "to succeed despite his name" and to "polish the Rockefeller legacy like fine silver" through public service and the socially responsible use of the immense wealth and influence at his disposal. Rockefeller was the last of the titans of progressive Republicanism. "He had long believed that his country, like his family, must justify its riches through good works and the sharing of wealth," writes Smith. He worked comfortably in appointed positions in Republican and Democratic administrations but ultimately "hungered for the legitimacy uniquely bestowed by the ballot box." As governor of New York, Rockefeller advanced measures combating discrimination in various forms and engaged in a building boom, much of it financed through constitutionally dodgy bonding schemes. In national politics, however, Rockefeller ultimately proved too liberal for the Republicans, the pillar of the "eastern establishment" at a time when the party was becoming more stridently conservative. In person, Rockefeller was a force of nature-optimistic, impatient, hard-charging and strikingly virile, engaging in sex with subordinates in a way that would never be hidden or tolerated today. Ironically, his presidential hopes were scotched by his very public divorce and remarriage, along with a considerable measure of tactical ineptitude. Rockefeller's enormously full life as a diplomat, bureaucrat, politician, businessman, and avid collector and proponent of modern art justifies the prodigious scale of this intensively researched work, presented in sturdy, confident prose with the occasional well-placed barb. The author maintains a dignified objectivity throughout, recounting events with penetrating perceptivity but refraining from intrusive editorial comment or analysis. An overdue comprehensive biography of a giant of mid-20th-century American politics.

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Starred review from October 15, 2014
A nightmare for political handlers, the man who claimed a Democratic heart with a Republican head poses no small challenge for a biographer. But after a decade of exhaustive research, Smith delivers a compelling portrait of a man who defied the simplifying ideologies of his age. Born to privilege but schooled as a social progressive by his philanthropist parents, Nelson Rockefeller traveled an improbable trajectory, serving as both a Roosevelt New Dealer and an Eisenhower Cold Warrior, repeatedly demonstrating exceptional leadership and unflagging energy. In-depth research illuminates Rockefeller's exceptional record as a governor of New York, expanding welfare benefits, protecting the environment, and subsidizing the arts, only to alienate the state's liberals with his forceful handling of the Attica Prison riots. But Rockefeller's maverick impulses emerge most clearly in Smith's account of why the governor clashed with Barry Goldwater over the future of the GOP. Readers see how Rockefeller's liberal sympathies repeatedly doomed his presidential aspirations as conservative intraparty foes frustrated his hopes, refusing even to recognize his loyal service as Gerald Ford's vice president. And though Smith focuses on Rockefeller's public service, he does delve into the tangled marital and family life behind that service. Complete and balanced, a biography of exceptional substance.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

June 15, 2014

Pulitzer Prize finalist Smith spent 12 years on this biography of Nelson Rockefeller, drawing on thousands of documents and over 100 interviews to paint a portrait of the one-time New York governor and U.S. vice president who led a storied life on the side. Cast as an account of the sort of moderate Republican hardly seen today.

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from November 1, 2014

Smith, past director of several presidential libraries and in-house historian for C-SPAN, has written a piece of first-rate scholarship on one of the most complex public figures of the 20th century, Nelson Rockefeller (1908-79). If you thought you knew "Rocky" (a name he disliked greatly), think again. At the hands of this acclaimed presidential scholar, we see a towering public figure in all his ambition, glory, and disappointment. In many respects, Rockefeller's story is America's story. Granted, he was born into one of the most consequential and controversial financial and social dynasties in the history of the United States. But, whether suffering from dyslexia or not realizing his insatiable political thirst for the presidency, Rockefeller's life narrative echoes America's quest for greatness and the dangers of hubris. Simply put, Smith makes his subject live, from the cradle to his final days. Rockefeller was a private person who loved the limelight and was as colorful as he was conflicted. As Smith so ably documents, he loved both the combat of the political arena and the solitude of the art gallery. VERDICT This insightful work proves that a masterly, monumental biography can still captivate our attention, and thus belongs on the shelves of libraries serving patrons who are interested in American political history. [See Prepub Alert, 6/2/14.]--Stephen Kent Shaw, Northwest Nazarene Coll., Nampa, ID

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2014

Smith, past director of several presidential libraries and in-house historian for C-SPAN, has written a piece of first-rate scholarship on one of the most complex public figures of the 20th century, Nelson Rockefeller (1908-79). If you thought you knew "Rocky" (a name he disliked greatly), think again. At the hands of this acclaimed presidential scholar, we see a towering public figure in all his ambition, glory, and disappointment. In many respects, Rockefeller's story is America's story. Granted, he was born into one of the most consequential and controversial financial and social dynasties in the history of the United States. But, whether suffering from dyslexia or not realizing his insatiable political thirst for the presidency, Rockefeller's life narrative echoes America's quest for greatness and the dangers of hubris. Simply put, Smith makes his subject live, from the cradle to his final days. Rockefeller was a private person who loved the limelight and was as colorful as he was conflicted. As Smith so ably documents, he loved both the combat of the political arena and the solitude of the art gallery. VERDICT This insightful work proves that a masterly, monumental biography can still captivate our attention, and thus belongs on the shelves of libraries serving patrons who are interested in American political history. [See Prepub Alert, 6/2/14.]--Stephen Kent Shaw, Northwest Nazarene Coll., Nampa, ID

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.