num_pages: 576
description: From the acclaimed author of Citizens of London comes the definitive account of the debate over American intervention in World War IIa bitter sometimes violent clash of personalities and ideas that divided the nation and ultimately determined the fate of the free world. At the center of this controversy stood the two most famous men in America: President Franklin D. Roosevelt who championed the interventionist cause and aviator Charles Lindbergh who as unofficial leader and spokesman for Americas isolationists emerged as the presidents most formidable adversary. Their contest of wills personified the divisions within the country at large and Lynne Olson makes masterly use of their dramatic personal stories to create a poignant and riveting narrative. While FDR buffeted by political pressures on all sides struggled to marshal public support for aid to Winston Churchills Britain Lindbergh saw his heroic reputation besmirchedand his marriage thrown into turmoilby allegations that he was a Nazi sympathizer. Spanning the years 1939 to 1941 Those Angry Days vividly re-creates the rancorous internal squabbles that gripped the United States in the period leading up to Pearl Harbor. After Germany vanquished most of Europe America found itself torn between its traditional isolationism and the urgent need to come to the aid of Britain the only country still battling Hitler. The conflict over intervention was as FDR noted a dirty fight rife with chicanery and intrigue and Those Angry Days recounts every bruising detail. In Washington a group of high-ranking military officers including the Air Force chief of staff worked to sabotage FDRs pro-British policies. Roosevelt meanwhile authorized FBI wiretaps of Lindbergh and other opponents of intervention. At the same time a covert British operation approved by the president spied on antiwar groups dug up dirt on congressional isolationists and planted propaganda in U.S. newspapers. Among the notable figures involved in the struggle were future U.S. presidents John F. Kennedy and Gerald Ford Peace Corps director Sargent Shriver and authors Gore Vidal and Kurt Vonnegut. The stakes could not have been higher. The combatants were larger than life. With the immediacy of a great novel Those Angry Days brilliantly recalls a time fraught with danger when the future of democracy and Americas role in the world hung in the balance. Praise for Lynne Olsons Citizens of London Engaging and original rich in anecdote and analysis this is a terrific work of history.Jon Meacham Citizens of London is a great read about the small band of Americans and their courageous role in helping Britain through the darkest days of early World War II. I thought I knew a lot about this dangerous period but Lynne Olson has taught me so much more.Tom Brokaw
language: English
title: Those Angry Days: Roosevelt, Lindbergh, and America's Fight Over World War II, 1939-1941
publisher: Random House