Book Review-Grant's Final Victory

Flood, Charles Bracelen. Grant's Final Victory: Ulysses S. Grant's Heroic Last Year. Da Capo Press, Cambridge, MA. 320 pages, b/w photos, notes, bibliography. ISBN 9780306820281, $27.50.*

There are certain people in the world who seem to achieve success no matter what obstacle is thrown in their way. Ulysses S. Grant is an example of this type person. Charles Bracelen Flood has chosen to focus on the final turbulent year of Grant's life. In doing so he paints a picture of Grant who despite many set backs in his last year of life rises above the occasion to yet again leave his mark on the world.

In the early 1880's Grant seemingly had the world in his hands. He was the victor of the Civil War, having defeated the great Robert E. Lee. He was the former president of the United States. He and his wife Julia moved to a nearly $100,000 townhouse in New York City after having returned from a yearlong tour of the world where he was met with adulation. He was a partner in the seemingly successful financial firm of Grant & Ward.

This partnership would be the financial undoing of Grant and many others as the 40% dividends that were being paid were lies. Grant had been caught in what now is called a Ponzi scheme. Author Flood does an admirable job of explaining what happened and the resulting fall out. Faced with financial ruin many offers came to Grant in his time of need. Attempts were made in Congress to restore  Grant's rank of General (forfeited when he became President) that would allow him to receive pension benefits. Individuals from across the country sent donations to the Grant family, many of these coming from soldiers he had led in battle just a few years prior. Perhaps most important was Century Magazine and their offer to publish first hand war articles from Grant.

Unknown to Grant however was that his biggest challenge was yet to come. Cancer. Grant had been a cigar smoker for years and after finally going to the doctor for a pain in his throat was diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the tongue. This diagnosis coupled with the Grant family financial situation set in motion the last great challenge of Grant's life.

Grant writing his memoirs.
Photo: Library of Congress

Here, author Charles Flood does an excellent job of describing the struggles of Grant's last year. Eventually Grant decides he must write his memoirs in order to take care of his debts and to provide income for Julia. He finally decides on a company owned by Mark Twain to publish his work. The rest of the book traces the painful journey of Grant's last months. With the help of others he wrote on average 750 words a day despite his worsening condition that forced a move to the private cottage of Joseph Drexel at Saratoga Springs, NY. In the face of his declining health he completed his work just three days before passing away on July 23, 1885.

In my view Flood leaves it to the reader to decide what is Grant's REAL final victory. Was it finishing his memoirs before cancer was able to take his life? Perhaps it was being able to repay his obligations and also leave income for his wife and family? His memoirs eventually brought the Grant family over $600,000. Could it have been the respect and admiration shown to the General from soldiers and civilians from both sides of the "late unpleasantness"? Possibly it is just the story of triumph over adversity? I highly suggest reading this book and make your own determination.

This is a book that will appeal to a wide range of readers. Those interested in the Civil War and it's participants will no doubt find this of interest. Those with an interest in Presidential history should take a look as well. For readers who like an uplifting story with a positive message this is a book for you. For book clubs there is much to discuss and Grant's Final Victory would make an ideal read.

*Information here is taken from other sources. A complimentary advance reading copy was provided by Da Capo Press. My copy did not include completed page information.

Da Capo Press Release--Genius of Place

I received the following press release from author Justin Martin and Da Capo Press about the release of Martin's new book Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted (A Merloyd Lawrence Book). The book has received several positive reviews on Amazon and through traditional news outlets already.



Da Capo Press

 “Olmsted had a big life, but also a tough one. He faced more—much more—than his share of tragedy, even by nineteenth-century standards. He contended with the untimely deaths of children, close relations, and dear friends. He suffered various physical ailments, such as the ravages of a near-fatal carriage accident. And he endured assorted forms of psychological torment: insomnia, anxiety, hysterical blindness, and depression…Olmsted spent his final days in an asylum; in a great irony, it was one for which he had earlier designed the grounds. But first he accomplished more than most people could in three lifetimes. As a park maker, environmentalist, and abolitionist, Olmsted helped shape modern America. This is his extraordinary story.”—from the Introduction: Why Olmsted Matters

Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted
By Justin Martin

Most people have heard of Central Park and Prospect Park in New York, Stanford University in California, the Back Bay Fens and Franklin Park in Boston, and the Capitol Grounds in Washington, D.C.—but few can identify Frederick Law Olmsted as the man behind some of America’s most iconic public spaces.

Of those who do know Olmsted, even fewer know him as anything other than a landscape architect. In Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted, Justin Martin explores Olmsted’s roots as a reformer. As a journalist, Olmsted championed the abolitionist cause to Northern and British audiences in the 1850s and 60s, exposing the evils of slavery; as an environmentalist, he created public spaces that preserved the already-existing endangered natural world. Olmsted’s conservation efforts are still felt today in places like Niagara Falls and Yosemite.

Genius of Place also delves into Olmsted’s personal life. Despite previous portrayals of Olmsted as a devoted family man with a tranquil home life, Martin exposes the tensions of Olmsted’s marriage and familial relationships, as well as Olmsted’s struggle with illness and personal tragedy, to paint a comprehensive picture of one of the most influential people of the nineteenth century. 

Justin Martin, author of highly praised biographies of Alan Greenspan and Ralph Nader, was married in Central Park and lives in Forest Hills Gardens—an enclave of New York City designed by Olmsted’s son.

 June 1, 2011 Hardcover $30.00 462 Pages Biography ISBN: 978-0-306-81881-3

Events: Politics & Prose (D.C.) 7/6; Barbara’s Bookstore (Chicago) 7/14; Harvard Bookstore (Cambridge) 7/21

 “The remarkable story of America’s first, and still foremost, landscape architect…Martin helps explain the driven, artistic temperament that informed the famed landscapes. He persuasively casts Olmsted as essentially a social reformer whose passion for meaningful work found its most complete expression in the creation of public spaces intended for the enjoyment of all. A revealing look at a still-under appreciated giant whose work touches posterity more intimately and more delightfully than many of his distinguished Civil War-era "contemporaries."—Kirkus Reviews