Ascent to Power: How Truman Emerged from Roosevelt’s Shadow and Remade the World

David L. Roll. Dutton, $32 (544p) ISBN 978-0-593-18644-2

Historian Roll (George Marshall) offers a perceptive examination of Harry Truman’s first presidential term. Tracking Truman’s evolution from accidental president into confident leader, Roll contends that this period comprised the country’s “most consequential and productive events since the Civil War.” When Roosevelt died 82 days into his fourth term, first-term vice president Truman found himself “utterly unprepared” as Roosevelt had “made no effort to bring him up to speed.” He threw himself into “a days-long crash course in foreign affairs” in order to carry on negotiations with the Allies regarding the handling of postwar Germany and come to a decision on America’s use of nuclear weapons against Japan. Domestic issues also arose, including the need for a “reconversion plan” for returning troops. A disastrous 1946 midterm election for the Democrats was what finally “liberat[ed] Truman from the long shadow cast by FDR,” according to Roll, as it led Truman to take proactive stances on the Soviet Union’s expansionist efforts abroad and civil rights at home. Truman adopted “a level of engagement in the world beyond anything that FDR had envisioned” with the Marshall Plan to reconstruct Europe and the harsh anti-Soviet Truman Doctrine, while his Committee on Civil Rights set a firm foundation for future progress. Exceptionally thorough, Roll’s blow-by-blow makes for an insightful portrayal of high-stakes diplomacy and politicking. The results will enthrall midcentury history buffs. Agent: John Wright, John Wright Literary Assoc.