Amazon.com: Customer reviews: To Rescue the Republic: Ulysses S. Grant, the Fragile Union, and the Crisis of 1876

Top positive review

Extremely Well Written

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 16, 2023

Though filled with historical facts and dates, the writing style is comfortable and easy to follow. The author seems very fair in his objective assessment of General/President Grant.
I highly recommend this book if the reader would like a true understanding of how important a man US Grant was to our country. He was the right leader at the time and his example could provide guidance for those in power during current times.

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Adam

Would have rated higher if not for subtle never-Trumpism and new wokist grammar

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 17, 2021

The book opens with an absurd comparison between the Jan 6 "violent insurrection" and the dilemma the nation faced in the late nineteenth century. Nothing is said of real violence and chaos that transpired during 2020 by BLM and Antifa activist, but never-Trumper Baier hypes 1/6 as a crisis point in American history to manufacture a parallel. He further doesn't seem to comprehend the differences between the political parties and pretends the chasm in ideology is something we've seen before and can be overcome by our shared American ideology.

The other irritating woke propaganda inherent in this book is the new grammar wokism, spelling "white" lowercase and "Black" uppercase, subtly giving prestige and preference to a class based on skin color.

Once one gets through the initial tripe, it is a good read, but could have been a five-star book had it not been for the political nonsense.

194 people found this helpful

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From the United States

PSOinAvon

Interesting biography about a little-known and much maligned President at a crucial time in America

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 9, 2022

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It's an interesting, well written biography about a little-known and much maligned President at a crucial time in the American Republic. I enjoyed it and learned a great deal from it. I'd recommend it.
The one downside is that the author's modern-day political bias comes through in a few places, especially near the end. This otherwise excellent historical record should stick to the history being relayed. Whenever any author lets his/her political bias show through - no matter which way it leans - it tends not only to detract from the historical record but also to cast some doubt on the author's objectivity.

One person found this helpful

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SACamp

Gift

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 14, 2022

Verified Purchase

Gave as a gift. He said he really enjoyed.

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EvanMoore1105

A Surprisingly Good Read

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 13, 2021

Verified Purchase

I’ll be totally honest, a book written by a Fox News host is not usually something I would even pick up, let alone read. I stick mostly to works by Chernow, Ellis, Goodwin, Mccullough and more established historians when it comes to presidential biographies. But, I happened to catch an interview with Bret Baier promoting the book and the fact that he decided to start with the Jan 6 insurrection at the Capitol and tie that back to the 1876 election crisis really piqued my interest. I’m endlessly fascinated by historical parallels and figured this would be an interesting read. Luckily, I was right.

If you’re looking for a more detailed and well-researched biography about Grant’s life, skip this and go right to Chernow’s massive biography which came out in 2017. This book rushes through Grant’s early life and military service to get into the meat and potatoes of its main topic - Grant’s role in reconstruction and his handling of the 1876 election crisis. The author also draws some of his own conclusions, which might turn off some readers, but the thesis is quite interesting. Baier sets out to rehab Grant’s imagine, explain and defend his legacy, and examine his ultimate decision to support the grand bargain in the 1876 election, thus basically ending reconstruction.

There are endless parallels to be made to modern times (especially the 2020 election) and Baier makes a lot them. The book is also extremely fast-paced, consistently interesting, and a very easy and enjoyable read.

Like I said, books written by Fox News hosts (or really any partisan news commentators) are rarely anything that I would normally touch. This, however was an insightful, interesting, and quick read that I would recommend to anybody already familiar with the Civil War, Grant’s presidency, and the election of 1876.

186 people found this helpful

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John G

Very Informative

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 25, 2022

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Interesting, but a little wordy.

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Tea Party Patriot

Enjoyable and informative.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 17, 2022

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My only criticism is the inaccurate two page summary of the battle of Gettysburg. Lee's army moved South to get the Gettysburg. Meade's army had to move North. The book got this backwards. It also implied that Pickett's division fought on July 2nd and July 3rd when in actuality Pickett's famous charge happened only on July 3rd.

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Pug Dad

Grant an underrated president.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 19, 2022

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This is a light, interesting read. Focuses on US Grant and his involvement in saving the US from itself during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Often maligned for corruption while his was president, this book sheds new light on his contributions to perpetuate reconstruction and intervene in the deadlocked 1876 presidential election.

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Susan

Fall in love with General Grant

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 12, 2022

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Fall in love with a great guy General Grant with truly great intend but maybe some naive trust in his friends. All in all the world would be a better place if we were all a little more like Grant.

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Amazon Customer

Good read, disagree with conclusion

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 30, 2022

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Good, quick read of an historical figure. I disagree with the capitalization of ‘blacks’ throughout the book. And I disagree in part with Bret’s conclusion in the final chapter. Too many years have gone by to continue to blame today’s racial issues on slavery.

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Tim

Great Book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 27, 2022

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This was my first Brett Baier read, it won’t be my last

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J. F. Morrow

good lesson in history

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 18, 2022

Verified Purchase

I have read several history involving Grant, but this is by far the easiest read. In addition the information regarding the 1876 election was enlightening. I highly recommend the reading of this book.

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