Whistlestop: My Favorite Stories from Presidential Campaign History

From Evangeline: From one of the earliest partisan elections in 1800 to more recent ones in the 1960s to 1990s, John Dickerson tells the often-forgotten primary stories of candidates who ran and lost as well as candidates who did achieve the presidency in the end in a straightforward and humorous style of writing that I absolutely loved. (I remember that he made me laugh by saying “including a certain Time correspondent who decided it was a good idea to grow sideburns that year and who hadn’t gotten off the road long enough to get a haircut”.). In all these years that I’ve seen him on TV I never knew about this awesome sense of humor that he has and this book made me think that I would love to get to know this side of him more. More importantly, these stories reaffirm our need to learn history, and at the same time, seeing parallels between this election and past ones. There have been Donald Trump-like candidates in the past (George Wallace and Barry Goldwater) who were against racial integration and appealed to the race-related fears of some white voters in order to generate an audience for their campaigns, but fortunately they weren’t ever elected. In some respects, one could even argue that Andrew Jackson campaigned to the presidency in a manner similar to Trump---with emotional messages and rowdy parties. Jackson had a hot temper that many feared would make him unsuited to the presidency, and while he may have done some good things in power the one thing he did that sticks to my mind is pushing the Cherokees from their native land in violation of a treaty in order to satisfy the white settlers who would vote for him, leading to the “Trail of Tears”. As un-American as this is, Trump today is preying on similar fears against Muslims, Mexicans, and other minorities, even suggesting outrageously that there should be bans on immigration based on country or faith, or that maybe we could use nuclear weapons (apparently not understanding or caring about the implications of that). The example of Andrew Jackson convinces me more than ever that we cannot allow Trump to be elected. It’s also eye-opening to know what kinds of less-than-honest or less-than-positive tactics candidates would sometimes exploit in order to achieve victory over their opponents, not caring whether it’s actually true or not but simply using them to drag down their opponents in the minds of voters. It’s a piece of campaigning that’s virtually remained unchanged throughout our history, reflecting on the selfish nature of politics that has permeated every culture since the dawn of civilization. Unfortunately, a moral of these past election stories is that politics is often a speaker that amplifies the egos and the greed of those in public office or those seeking public office. Overall, I believe Whistlestop indeed deserves its place (or one even higher) on the New York Times bestseller list! It's funny and easy to understand but also digs deep into the psychology around elections. Would 10/10 recommend.

I enjoyed this collection of stories and anecdotes from the history of American political shenanigans. The authors blends recent and long ago campaigns leaving the reader feeling that things aren't really as bad as they seem given the crazy stories of the past. The author had a key role in the development of these handy little note books ([...]) which is the reason I got interested in the book. This personal interest resulted in correspondence between me and the author regarding the notebooks. He seems genuinely a decent person and has demonstrated a capability to teach history in a clear understandable manner. The stories selected come from multiple places along the political spectrum and are handled with balance and accuracy. My only criticism is the use of the George Wallace story as the concluding episode with it's relatively light-handed treatment of an attempted assassination as one more crazy happening in the campaign.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading John Dickerson's Whistlestop. Since you're reading my comments, there's a good chance that you're a politics geek, and you probably love good books. John's great knowledge of politics (supplemented by notes and memories from his mom Nancy and many others) is reflected in this book, and incorporates a great amount of good humor. John includes stories from our country's first presidential elections right up to the current 2016 contest. John writes with a hint of stream-of-consciousness that makes the book very readable, with occasional journies back and forth in time between elections to help emphasize what's new under the sun and what's been seen before in politics. I learned a lot from the book, and also enjoyed revisiting events that I remember from my lifetime, including people like McGovern, Eagleton, Wallace and Nixon. I purchased the book in good ol' paper hard cover so that friends and other family members can enjoy it.

Dickerson not only picks great stories from American presidential campaign history but has picked this selection purposely(from what I gather having listened to the Whistlestop podcast) to illuminate current events. Reading these stories both gave me hope about the current situation with Trump and gave me additional worries. Anyway, as a political nerd and history nerd, I loved the book.

In an era of audacious Tweets, 24-hour news coverage, and polarizing politicking, it is easy to think that the 2016 presidential campaign was one of a kind. But John Dickerson’s Whistlestop, a collection of presidential campaign stories, proves that every election is unique in its own time. The book spanning, two centuries of American politics, takes the reader on a historical rollercoaster through the horse race that is the presidential campaign. John Dickerson is the perfect guide throughout the journey. He curates a collection with tales of recent past, my favorite being “The Dean Scream,” to the lesser known, like 1880’s election of William Henry Harrison with “The Birth of the Umbrage.” You can tell that Dickerson has a passion for this historical niche. His fast paced style keeps the pages turning. His writing style is unpretentious; never once does he mock or belittle the shortcomings of the candidates. It does seem, however, the book was rushed through the editing process to monopolize on the fervor of the most recent election. Don’t be dismayed though, I’m sure the minor errors will be remedied when the second edition is rereleased with a 2016 addition. The question is, what story will Dickerson choose to add?

Highly informative read, with regular injections of John Dickerson humour, a perfect follow-up to his Whistlestop podcasts.

Many, many great stories - you don't have to be American t enjoy them - just human!

Lacks depth and discernment . Reasonable attempt to juxtapose current election cycle to the historical record .