PRESIDENTS OF WAR

Provocative and illuminating, Presidents of War is a definitive work of history and an invaluable guide to leadership and decision-making in times of crisis.

Ever since America's founding, after a nearly decade-long struggle with Great Britain, the nation has found itself almost continuously at war. Throughout history, at the forefront of every struggle--large or small, foreign or domestic, celebrated or forgotten--has been the president, who as commander-in-chief of the armed forces has to make the impossible choice of when to hazard American lives.

Michael Beschloss is a lauded historian and one of the keenest observers of the White House. In Presidents of War, he offers an authoritative portrait of major wartime presidents in action, from the War of 1812 to the Vietnam War. Whether examining Lincoln's controversial military leadership, Wilson's idealistic and authoritarian approach to World War I, or LBJ sinking into the quagmire of Vietnam, Beschloss employs deep research and unsurpassed storytelling to bring these presidents to life in moments of public oratory and private doubt. He also charts their relationships with the public, which has consigned them to fame or infamy, and with Congress, which has continually struggled to define and redefine the president's wartime powers.

Beschloss is insightful and even-handed in analyzing the historical successes and failings of wartime presidents, and the conclusions he draws from his subjects concerning preparation, communication, goal-setting, and decision-making have broad applications for those in managerial and executive positions.

Michael Beschloss is the author of many bestselling books, most recently Jacqueline Kennedy, The Conquerors, and Presidential Courage. He is the NBC News Presidential Historian and a board member of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.