it is not a biography of him. His view of the role of government in the lives of its citizens and his relationship with Churchill and Stalin set the stage for the next 50 years of American domestic and foreign policy. Regardless how the reader feels about FDR (and I am not a big fan), one cannot discount his lasting influence. As a one volume history of the period it is outstanding. A very long read, but well worth the effort. (less) A very comprehensive look at the 16 years in the history of the US. One thing positive about this book is the perspective it gives you and maybe some optimism for my country. A lot of both good and bad happened in this time period. The pattern of growing inequity of wealth will eventually be reversed. I had heard about the brilliance of this work from several sources. I started reading a kindle copy, got 6% in to it. While I did find the subject fascinating and the situations leading up to the great depression eerily similar to recent economic events, the dry narrative and over abundance of statistics made this a tough read. Not in terms of cognition- the author had a clear tone and, though some passages required analytical thinking, didn't write over the reader's head. As I was reading, I fe ...more I had heard about the brilliance of this work from several sources. I started reading a kindle copy, got 6% in to it.