Winner of the 1982 National Book Award for Biography, Mornings on Horseback is the brilliant biography of the young Theodore Roosevelt. Hailed as a masterpiece by Newsday, it is the story of a remarkable little boy -- seriously handicapped by recurrent and nearly fatal attacks of asthma -- and his struggle to manhood.

His father -- the first Theodore Roosevelt, "Greatheart," -- is a figure of unbounded energy, enormously attractive and selfless, a god in the eyes of his small, frail namesake. His mother -- Mittie Bulloch Roosevelt -- is a Southerner and celebrated beauty.

Mornings on Horseback spans seventeen years -- from 1869 when little "Teedie" is ten, to 1886 when he returns from the West a "real life cowboy" to pick up the pieces of a shattered life and begin anew, a grown man, whole in body and spirit.

This is a tale about family love and family loyalty...about courtship, childbirth and death, fathers and sons...about gutter politics and the tumultuous Republican Convention of 1884...about grizzly bears, grief and courage, and "blessed" mornings on horseback at Oyster Bay or beneath the limitless skies of the Badlands.

I would read the back of a cereal box if David McCullough wrote it so I'm biased to him as an author.
This book should not be the source material for all things T.R. but does fill in the blanks on an interesting family, and goes a long way to explaining some of the details of the man's future life.
The writing here is very good and the material is interesting enough to keep going, even though you are ostensibly reading about the obscure family background of a famous American. Only a commanding figure could even warrant a book about his deep family tree and the details of the homes they lived in and their neighbors.
Good second tier material once you've read the major bios on TR.

David McCullough makes Teddy Roosevelt a very dull character and this book is very slow. I stopped reading half was through.

I am a big fan of David's but this book is a stinker.

I was really expecting more TR info in this book... a little more than I needed to know about his family and acquaintances and not enough about the man himself.

David McCullough's writing is superb. I have to admit I liked Thedore Roosevelt better as a person in Theodore Rex. His personal correspondence in this book reveals too much about his apparent enjoyment in killing animals for my taste. IMO his image as a conservationist is tarnished by the joy he took in killing. I was especially offended by his shooting the neighbor's dog when riding his horse. If I had lived back then and he shot my dog, I can safely say it would have been the last dog he ever shot and his departure from life would have been made slow and painful...

But that dislike of his joy of killing aside, he and his family were extraordinary. One cannot change history, so I go with the flow to learn more about it and the people in it...

This book is an excellent history material. For those who are studying or are just interested in American history, this a great secondary source that brings Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. to life. The style Mr. David McCullough uses is very easy to understand, and it is also very descriptive in nature which makes readers feel they were present at the scene. The only weakness is that the book limits T.R.'s life to a 19 year period, which happens before his greatest achievements. Basically, the author leaves you wanting more...
Great choice of biography, great author, and accessable price!
F.C, GA