Destiny of the Republic

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard

What a great book. Candice Millard told the tale of James Garfield’s assassination in such an engrossing and fast-paced manner that I often had to remind myself this was a work of nonfiction. She did not make up quotes; she did not fill space with conjecture. Every word of quoted text was from a written record. And when she did not have facts, she used the words of the people who were there. Millard’s attention to detail is evident throughout the book. She is not a lazy researcher.

I read one review of Destiny of the Republic that compares it favorably to Devil in the White City. It might actually be better than Erik Larson’s masterpiece. This was just…superb.

Examinations of major events tend to fall into one of two categories: trying to cover everything or focusing on just one or two aspects. The attempts to cover everything usually fail. Destiny of the Republic was so impressive to me because Millard covered so many aspects of the event and did so very successfully. She was able to place Garfield, his assassin, and those who played supporting roles into time and place. She showed us how they all fit. From the very beginning, where she place Joseph Lister and Alexander Graham Bell just a few hundred feet from Garfield at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Chicago, she gave us the medical, technological, political, historical, and religious background we needed to know how all the players in this story converged at a critical place in world history.

I could write 5,000 words about this book, but they would do it no justice. Just go read it. If you enjoy history, politics, technology, madmen, or just a good old-fashioned murder story, I’m fairly certain you will love Destiny of the Republic.

A+