A Complicated Man: The Life of Bill Clinton as Told by Those Who Know Him
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Though Bill Clinton has been out of office since 2001, public fascination with him continues unabated. Many books about Clinton have been published in recent years, but shockingly, no single-volume biography covers the full scope of Clinton’s life from the cradle to the present day, not even Clinton’s own account, My Life. More troubling still, books on Clinton have tended to be highly polarized, casting the former president in an overly positive or negative light.In this, the first complete oral history of Clinton’s life, historian Michael Takiff presents the first truly balanced book on one of our nation’s most controversial and fascinating presidents. Through more than 150 chronologically arranged interviews with key figures including Bob Dole, James Carville, and Tom Brokaw, among many others, A Complicated Man goes far beyond the well-worn party-line territory to capture the larger-than-life essence of Clinton the man. With the tremendous attention given to the Lewinsky scandal, it is easy to overlook the president’s humble upbringing, as well as his many achievements at home and abroad: the longest economic boom in American history, a balanced budget, successful intervention in the Balkans, and a series of landmark, if controversial, free-trade agreements. Through the candid recollections of Takiff’s many subjects, A Complicated Man leaves no area unexplored, revealing the most complete and unexpected portrait of our forty-second president published to date. Library Journal Former President Clinton has become an admired elder statesman of the Democratic Party. Takiff's (Brave Men, Gentle Heroes: American Fathers and Sons in World War II and Vietnam) excellent oral history, which includes 171 interviews with people who worked with Clinton and admired or hated him, helps reveal the many sides of this controversial leader. All aspects of Clinton's life and political career—from his challenging childhood, terms as Arkansas governor, turbulent presidency, and the sex scandals that nearly drove him from office to his postpresidential humanitarian efforts in Africa and Haiti—receive evenhanded treatment. Although most of the interviews contain more favorable than negative views, remarks abound like former Republican House Majority Leader Dick Armey's that Clinton "was the most successful adolescent I've ever known." VERDICT This lively first-person draft of history will grab and keep the attention of readers fascinated or infuriated by Clinton, especially those who enjoyed Taylor Branch's The Clinton Tapes.—Karl Helicher, Upper Merion Township Lib., King of Prussia, PA
