Read Destiny of the Republic and see if you don’t also have a new president on your list of favorites. The book is filled with marvelous historical details in addition to its potent story of greatness snuffed short. Millard doesn’t waste a word in this gripping account it’s a quick read. Most American physicians, including Garfield’s, mocked the importance of sterilizing their instruments or even washing their hands before poking around inside a patient. An integral part of the story is the president’s abysmal medical care. Millard threads the stories of Garfield, an extraordinary scholar, politician, and family man a delusional assassin, fueled by the heated political rhetoric of the time and Alexander Graham Bell, who dropped everything else in order to invent something that could locate the bullet within Garfield that his physicians couldn’t find. Millards second book, Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine & the Murder of a President, won the Edgar Award for Best Fact Crime, the PEN Center. His brief stint in the White House might not seem to have much potential, but Destiny of the Republic is history as good as it gets. He was shot on July 2 and died September 19. He was elected in 1880 all the same and took office in March 1881. Garfield didn’t want to be president he didn’t seek the nomination and didn’t campaign after being nominated against his wishes. Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President
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