Reviews
" Riveting… The Patriarch is a book hard to put down …As his son indelibly put it some months before his father was struck down: 'Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your county.' One wonders what was going through the mind of the patriarch, sitting a few feet away listening to that soaring sentiment as a fourth-generation Kennedy became president of the United States. After coming to know him over the course of this brilliant, compelling book, the reader might suspect that he was thinking he had done more than enough for his country. But the gods would demand even more." Christopher Buckley, The New York Times Book Review "David Nasaw's The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy is the sort of biography that begs to be called 'magisterial.' " Boston Globe "Mr. Nasaw has the rare ability to see the big picture and frame the detail with careful scholarship -- all the while making room for elements that do not fit -- which in Joe Kennedy's case is quite a lot…. Mr. Nasaw's is a literate and searching exposition of the patriarch's life that offers the reader compelling answers to questions about JPK…. If The Patriarch doesn't scoop up some serious accolades for the writing of American history, the fix is in. " Pittsburgh Post Gazette "[A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (18881969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates." - Kirkus (starred review) "A major contribution to Kennedy history." - Booklist (starred review) "Nasaw captures the full humanity of his subject... This is truly a 'definitive' biography. " - History Book Club, One of The New York Times Book Review 's 10 Best Books of 2012 A New York Times and Washington Post Notable Book of 2012 A Booklist Editor's Choice of 2012 One of Newsday 's 12 Best Books of the Year " Riveting… The Patriarch is a book hard to put down …As his son indelibly put it some months before his father was struck down: 'Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your county.' One wonders what was going through the mind of the patriarch, sitting a few feet away listening to that soaring sentiment as a fourth-generation Kennedy became president of the United States. After coming to know him over the course of this brilliant, compelling book, the reader might suspect that he was thinking he had done more than enough for his country. But the gods would demand even more." -Christopher Buckley, The New York Times Book Review " Panoramic. Never before has Joseph P. Kennedy's conduct been documented in such damning detail, and never before has the veredict on his character been rendered so persuasively ." - Wall Street Journal " A spellbinding book ." - Slate "David Nasaw's The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy is the sort of biography that begs to be called 'magisterial.' " - Boston Globe "Nasaw was approached to write this biography by Kennedy's children Jean Kennedy Smith and the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, who offered unfettered access to previously unseen papers. The choice was brilliant. Having written admired biographies of Andrew Carnegie and William Randolph Hearst, Nasaw understands how titans of business operate. In this outstanding biography, he captures the reality of one of America's most complicated and controversial figures ." - USA Today "Mr. Nasaw has the rare ability to see the big picture and frame the detail with careful scholarship -- all the while making room for elements that do not fit -- which in Joe Kennedy's case is quite a lot…. Mr. Nasaw's is a literate and searching exposition of the patriarch's life that offers the reader compelling answers to questions about JPK…. If The Patriarch doesn't scoop up some serious accolades for the writing of American history, the fix is in. " - Pittsburgh Post Gazette "[A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (18881969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates." - Kirkus (starred review) "A major contribution to Kennedy history." - Booklist (starred review) "Nasaw captures the full humanity of his subject... This is truly a 'definitive' biography. " - History Book Club, One of The New York Times Book Review 's 10 Best Books of 2012 A New York Times and Washington Post Notable Book of 2012 A Booklist Editor's Choice of 2012 One of Newsday 's 12 Best Books of the Year " Riveting... The Patriarch is a book hard to put down ...As his son indelibly put it some months before his father was struck down: 'Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your county.' One wonders what was going through the mind of the patriarch, sitting a few feet away listening to that soaring sentiment as a fourth-generation Kennedy became president of the United States. After coming to know him over the course of this brilliant, compelling book, the reader might suspect that he was thinking he had done more than enough for his country. But the gods would demand even more." --Christopher Buckley, The New York Times Book Review " Panoramic. Never before has Joseph P. Kennedy's conduct been documented in such damning detail, and never before has the veredict on his character been rendered so persuasively ." -- Wall Street Journal " A spellbinding book ." -- Slate "David Nasaw's The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy is the sort of biography that begs to be called 'magisterial.' " -- Boston Globe "Nasaw was approached to write this biography by Kennedy's children Jean Kennedy Smith and the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, who offered unfettered access to previously unseen papers. The choice was brilliant. Having written admired biographies of Andrew Carnegie and William Randolph Hearst, Nasaw understands how titans of business operate. In this outstanding biography, he captures the reality of one of America's most complicated and controversial figures ." -- USA Today "Mr. Nasaw has the rare ability to see the big picture and frame the detail with careful scholarship -- all the while making room for elements that do not fit -- which in Joe Kennedy's case is quite a lot.... Mr. Nasaw's is a literate and searching exposition of the patriarch's life that offers the reader compelling answers to questions about JPK.... If The Patriarch doesn't scoop up some serious accolades for the writing of American history, the fix is in. " -- Pittsburgh Post Gazette "[A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (1888-1969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates." -- Kirkus (starred review) "A major contribution to Kennedy history." -- Booklist (starred review) "Nasaw captures the full humanity of his subject... This is truly a 'definitive' biography. " -- History Book Club, A highly readable biography of the dynasty and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life ... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates, " [A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life ... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (18881969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates ." - Kirkus (starred review) Praise for Andrew Carnegie : "Never has this story been told so thoroughly or so well as David Nasaw tells it in this massive and monumental biography." -Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post "David Nasaw's fascinating new biography... is a marvelous window into the man and his world... I expect it will be the definitive work on Carnegie for the foreseeable future, and it fully deserves to be." -John Steele Gordon, The New York Times "Beautifully crafted and fun to read." -Louis Galambos, The Wall Street Journal "The definitive Carnegie biography has arrived." - USA Today "Nasaw delivers a vivid history of nineteenth-century capitalism." - Fortune, One of The New York Times Book Review 's 10 Best Books of 2012 A New York Times and Washington Post Notable Book of 2012 A Booklist Editor's Choice of 2012 " Riveting… The Patriarch is a book hard to put down …As his son indelibly put it some months before his father was struck down: 'Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your county.' One wonders what was going through the mind of the patriarch, sitting a few feet away listening to that soaring sentiment as a fourth-generation Kennedy became president of the United States. After coming to know him over the course of this brilliant, compelling book, the reader might suspect that he was thinking he had done more than enough for his country. But the gods would demand even more." -Christopher Buckley, The New York Times Book Review " Panoramic. Never before has Joseph P. Kennedy's conduct been documented in such damning detail, and never before has the veredict on his character been rendered so persuasively ." - Wall Street Journal " A spellbinding book ." - Slate "David Nasaw's The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy is the sort of biography that begs to be called 'magisterial.' " - Boston Globe "Nasaw was approached to write this biography by Kennedy's children Jean Kennedy Smith and the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, who offered unfettered access to previously unseen papers. The choice was brilliant. Having written admired biographies of Andrew Carnegie and William Randolph Hearst, Nasaw understands how titans of business operate. In this outstanding biography, he captures the reality of one of America's most complicated and controversial figures ." - USA Today "Mr. Nasaw has the rare ability to see the big picture and frame the detail with careful scholarship -- all the while making room for elements that do not fit -- which in Joe Kennedy's case is quite a lot…. Mr. Nasaw's is a literate and searching exposition of the patriarch's life that offers the reader compelling answers to questions about JPK…. If The Patriarch doesn't scoop up some serious accolades for the writing of American history, the fix is in. " - Pittsburgh Post Gazette "[A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (18881969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates." - Kirkus (starred review) "A major contribution to Kennedy history." - Booklist (starred review) "Nasaw captures the full humanity of his subject... This is truly a 'definitive' biography. " - History Book Club, " [A] sprawling, highly readable biography of the dynast and larger-than-life figure whose presence still haunts American political life ... Working from his subject's extensive archives, Nasaw ( Andrew Carnegie , 2006, etc.) pieces together a sometimes-sympathetic, sometimes-critical view of Joseph P. Kennedy (18881969), father of John F. Kennedy and most definitely a man of parts... Exhaustive yet accessible, Nasaw's book illuminates ." - Kirkus (starred review) " A major contribution to Kennedy history. " - Booklist (starred review) "Nasaw captures the full humanity of his subject... This is truly a 'definitive' biography ." -History Book Club Praise for Andrew Carnegie : "Never has this story been told so thoroughly or so well as David Nasaw tells it in this massive and monumental biography." -Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post "David Nasaw's fascinating new biography... is a marvelous window into the man and his world... I expect it will be the definitive work on Carnegie for the foreseeable future, and it fully deserves to be." -John Steele Gordon, The New York Times "Beautifully crafted and fun to read." -Louis Galambos, The Wall Street Journal "The definitive Carnegie biography has arrived." - USA Today "Nasaw delivers a vivid history of nineteenth-century capitalism." - Fortune
