Pulitzer Prize Biography Winner
Grant: A Biography
by William S. McFeely
Summary
William S. McFeely reconsiders Ulysses S. Grant, the Union general who won the Civil War and then served two terms as president. The book weighs Grant's military genius against the scandals and failures of his administration, while paying close attention to his record on race and Reconstruction. McFeely offers a candid, often critical portrait of a man whose reputation has long divided historians.
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Historical Context & Significance
McFeely was a historian of Reconstruction, and his book gave unusual weight to Grant's policies toward formerly enslaved Americans.