First published 2014
Franklin Delano Roosevelt sits in the Oval Office as reports flood in about Hitler's treatment of European Jews. The president faces an impossible choice between his desire to help and the political realities that constrain him. Domestic priorities demand his attention while advisers warn against an anti-Semitic backlash from the American public. Roosevelt sometimes acts decisively to rescue Jews, defying pressure from his own staff and constituents. Other times he defers to political calculations, keeping America's borders closed to refugees and avoiding military strikes on concentration camps. Even Jewish Americans who petition him cannot agree on the best course of action. The president struggles to balance his moral convictions against the harsh realities of leading a nation through economic depression and global war. His efforts exceed those of any other world leader, yet they fall short of what history would later demand.
Genres: biography, history, 20th-century, political-science, jewish, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-drama, political-thriller
Setting: Oval Office
Period: Great Depression, World War II
464 pages · Paperback · Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press