The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt is a towering work that provides an intriguing and well written description of Theodore Roosevelt's life up until his ascending to the Presidency.

The book starts, appropriately, with an account of 'Teedy's' childhood, recounting his unusual taste for taxidermy and natural sciences and portraying him as an unusual young man of generally poor health. As he matures, he builds himself up both mentally and physically. Trips to Maine for hunting led to relationships with backwoodsman, while trips out west led to a venture in ranching, while smattered with work as an assemblyman in the New York state senate.

Roosevelt's painful loss of his first wife provides a tragic counterpoint to his energetic endeavors, but upon re-entering public life he becomes the Civil Service Commissioner, Police Commissioner for New York City, Assistant Secretary to the Navy, Governor of the state of New York, Vice-President of the United States...and President. A meteroic rise, indeed; and somewhere in there he found time to fight with the Rough Riders in Cuba.

So much is covered in this work, and so well described as Theodore's activities that one feels to be right alongside with him in his adventures.