Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Revisiting "The Man He Became": Part One


Cover of the book "The Man He Became" by James Tobin with photo of Franklin Roosevelt
This Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, I’m taking a break from regular blogging, and instead re-run my three-part review of James Tobin’s book, “The Man He Became,” about Franklin D. Roosevelt’s bout with Polio, his rehabilitation, and his return to politics as a disabled man.

Here is a sample, then a link to Part One:

"'The Man He Became' is fascinating and emotionally engaging. I thought I would learn things I didn’t know before. I sensed that I would agree with some of Tobin’s new conclusions. What I didn’t expect was to feel so personally close to Franklin Roosevelt as he went through his bout with Polio. And I didn’t expect to recognize so many of the social habits, irritations, and forces that FDR had to contend with. The way the story is shaping up, it really does seem like FDR was a forerunner of today’s “social model” of disability, whether or not he knew it or Intended to be."

January 25, 2014

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