Fotografía de autor

Gary May (1) (1944–)

Autor de John Tyler

Para otros autores llamados Gary May, ver la página de desambiguación.

4 Obras 229 Miembros 7 Reseñas

Obras de Gary May

Etiquetado

Conocimiento común

Nombre canónico
May, Gary
Fecha de nacimiento
1944-12-24
Género
male
Nacionalidad
USA
Lugar de nacimiento
Los Angeles, California, USA
Lugares de residencia
Newark, Delaware, USA
Educación
University of California, Los Angeles
Ocupaciones
Professor (University of Delaware)
Relaciones
Jerome, Stuart (uncle)

Miembros

Reseñas

John Tyler has long suffered from bad press. Derided as “His Accidency” by contemporaries who considered him unworthy of the office he inherited, he has long been marginalized as one of our less successful presidents. Yet such treatment minimizes his considerable legacy. As the first vice president who succeeded to the presidency because of the death of the incumbent, he established a precedent for legitimacy that has been followed by all seven of his successors who followed his path to the White House. As president, he settled major outstanding differences with Great Britain and championed – and in the waning days of his administration, gained – the annexation of Texas. Such achievements suggest that his contribution to both the presidency and to American history have been seriously underappreciated.

Gary May’s book goes far towards rectifying this. His short biography provides a nice overview of Tyler’s life and political career. Born into the Virginia plantation aristocracy, Tyler benefitted from the wealth and connections it provided. He followed his father into politics, and served as governor and senator for his state before resigning on a point of principle. Yet May makes clear that his selection as vice president was made more for the lack of better alternatives than for his individual qualifications. With Harrison’s abrupt death after only a month in the White House, Tyler spent nearly a full term as president, pursuing his own ambitious agenda despite his political isolation. Abandoned by the Whigs and spurned by the Democrats, Tyler found himself a man without a party, and was forced to abandon his hopes for another term as president.

Insightful and readable, May’s book is one of the more successful entries in “The American Presidents” series. With its focus on their White House tenure, series is not always a good fit with its subjects. Yet with Tyler it is ideal, giving the author the ability to illuminate an often overshadowed presidency. Though the period is outside of May academic specialization, none of this is apparent from his command of both the historical details and the literature on the period. All of this makes May’s book a superb starting point for anyone interested in an introduction to the life and career of America’s tenth president, one far more worthy of attention than it has traditionally received.
… (más)
1 vota
Denunciada
MacDad | 4 reseñas más. | Mar 27, 2020 |
This was a good short biography of a president who consistently places very low when historians rate presidents, essentially a 'historical dwarf'. On the positive side, his relatively unchallenged ascent to the presidency upon Harrison's death helped pave the way for future VPs to have smooth takeovers. He had some good foreign policy successes with Great Britain and China. He also stood up to Henry Clay and didn't let Clay try to run the government, thereby weakening the presidency. On the negative side - Texas and, after his presidency, his vote to approve the succession of Virginia. His push to preserve and extend a slave-holding America with the annexation of Texas accelerated the US on the path to the civil war.

One thing that I was totally clueless about and was a bit eye-opening was Tyler's pursuit and eventual marriage to Julia Gardiner, 30 years his junior. It was evidently a happy marriage and produced seven children, giving Tyler 15 children in total - wow!
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½
 
Denunciada
LisaMorr | 4 reseñas más. | Mar 25, 2020 |
An almost unbearably painful read, not only for the heinous murder of a bright and motivated woman, but for all the disgusting acts and language of the KKK.
½
 
Denunciada
froxgirl | Mar 25, 2019 |
It must be said that this volume in this series violates the publisher's prime directive of no short biographies and cut to the chase of a single significance of each administration. This is a short biography, and it's a small masterpiece of the form. The author ought to be the curator of the Museum of Striking Facts; he offers up, inter alia, the election of the Vice President by the Senate in 1836, the oddment that Tyler was born in the second year of the Washington administration whilst his last child didn't die until the Truman administration, and something called the Congressional Burying Ground. Although the book seems to be a little heavy on backstory, the relationships, often hostile, which Tyler formed as a congressman surely shaped his failed tenure; the "man without a party" predictably ended up being disliked and mistrusted by both. The author is a genial, effective stylist and this is an enjoyable, informative read throughout.… (más)
 
Denunciada
Big_Bang_Gorilla | 4 reseñas más. | Sep 24, 2016 |

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Obras
4
Miembros
229
Popularidad
#98,340
Valoración
½ 3.6
Reseñas
7
ISBNs
25

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