Leadership in Turbulent Times is a 2018 book by Doris Kearns Goodwin and was published by Simon & Schuster. The book covers the lives and leadership skills of four leaders Goodwin previously studied, including Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon B. Johnson. Divided into three sections, the first section covers the early lives and political rise of the leaders. The second part describes setbacks. The final section studies an executive action for each president that demonstrates leadership. As Goodwin's eighth book, Leadership in Turbulent Times was released in 2018 and received positive reviews for its readability, research, and accessibility, whereas multiple reviewers criticised the book's final section.
Background
Leadership in Turbulent Times is Goodwin's eighth book. She previously published The Bully Pulpit in 2013, which was a biographical book on the relationship of Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. She worked on the book for five years.
Contents
The book opens with an introduction in which Goodwin covers the leadership traits and historical assessments of the four presidents. The book is subsequently divided into three sections. The first section, labeled "Ambition and the Recognition of Leadership", covers the early lives and political rises of the four presidents. The second describes the "dramatic reversals that shattered the private and public lives of all four men". Lastly, the third section covers aspects of their presidencies at the White House, which Goodwin described as when they were "at their formidable best".
In the first section, Goodwin described the early lives of each president and compared Lincoln's experiences of poverty with the upbringing of Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt, who were born to wealthy families and studied at Harvard University. Goodwin also examined the relationships of the future presidents with their parents and their roles in their evolving leadership traits, including Johnson identifying "with his father's political ambitions" in his early life.
Part two covers setbacks to the future presidents, including a depression between Lincoln and Johnson, with the former failing his engagement with Mary Todd and political troubles, whereas Johnson was unsuccessful in his attempted run to the Senate seat. In contrast, Theodore Roosevelt underwent “grand tragedy" after the deaths of his mother and wife, whereas Franklin D. Roosevelt experienced a life-threatening polio case. However, the leaders subsequently recovered from the setbacks and worked in various jobs, such as Theodore Roosevelt's roles as a civil service commissioner, police commissioner, lieutenant colonel, governor, and vice president as well as Lyndon B. Johnson's experiences as a senator and leader of the senate. Goodwin then covers leadership skills the future presidents gained from the setbacks and experiences.
In the final section, Goodwin explains the leadership skills of the presidents demonstrated by various actions, including Lincoln's signing of the Emancipation Proclamation that freed slaves; Theodore Roosevelt's handling of the Coal Strike of 1902 and facilitating an end to the conflicts between nine mine owners and labour workers; Franklin's signing of New Deal projects, including the Civilian Conservation Corps, projects for the Works Progress Administration, and the introduction of businesses through the Securities and Exchange Commission; and Lyndon B. Johnson's signings of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, and Medicare, forming the Great Society. However, Goodwin criticized Johnson's handling of the Vietnam War, including escalation of tensions, "manipulating the budget", and concealing of information from the public.
The book ends with an epilogue covering the post-presidencies and deaths of the four presidents.
Reception
Leadership in Turbulent Times received positive reviews upon its release. The review aggregator Book Marks reported 13 reviews, of which 12 were "positive" or "rave". The reviewer Sara Jorgensen praised its relevancy and prose in a Booklist review. Publisher Weekly awarded a starred review, praising the "inspirational" tone and coverage of criticism on the presidents. Kirkus also awarded a starred review, considering the book to be "intimate" and "knowing", and praised the engagement as well as the "astute psychological portraits". Frank Williams from Civil War Book Review also praised the section describing the presidents' handling of the four crises.