ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: THE WASHINGTON POST, CHICAGO TRIBUNE, LOS ANGELES TIMES, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Politician, evangelist, and reformer William Jennings Bryan was the most popular public speaker of his time. In this acclaimed biography—the first major reconsideration of Bryan’s life in forty years–award-winning historian Michael Kazin illuminates his astonishing career and the richly diverse and volatile landscape of religion and politics in which he rose to fame. Kazin vividly re-creates Bryan’s tremendous appeal, showing how he won a passionate following among both rural and urban Americans, who saw in him not only the practical vision of a reform politician but also the righteousness of a pastor. Bryan did more than anyone to transform the Democratic Party from a bulwark of laissez-faire to the citadel of liberalism we identify with Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1896, 1900, and 1908, Bryan was nominated for president, and though he fell short each time, his legacy–a subject of great debate after his death–remains monumental. This nuanced and brilliantly crafted portrait restores Bryan to an esteemed place in American history.

Looks at how William Jennings Bryan's attempts to reach the White House invigorated conservatives across the United States and changed approaches to constitutional law.

"At the time of his death in 1925, William Jennings Bryan was, as Henry Steele Commager wrote, "the most representative American of his time." To understand Bryan is to understand the United States on the cusp of modernity as regionalism declined, national political and economic institutions expanded, and the urban way of life began to eclipse the rural." "Bryan's time, as today, was one of profound transition and tumult in the United States. The late 19th century and early 20th century saw significant changes in economic, social, and political life which were to result in the modern nation we now recognize. At such a time Americans looked for moral leadership and yet there was no consensus about right and wrong in private or public life. In this uncertain era, Bryan stood forth as a political, moral, and economic reformer and sounded his trumpet for the values of the common man and woman as he so uncertainly understood them." "A Christian fundamentalist and a populist, Bryan was a lively mixture of Protestant revivalism and Jacksonian democracy - rural in upbringing, western in sentiment, and often a disappointed outsider to the political establishment. Best known for his fiery monetary policy crusade against the gold standard, Bryan also favored women's suffrage, direct election of U.S. Senators, and government regulation of railroads. He was a populist whose death left the socialist Eugene V. Debbs unmoved and a conservative whose name was anathema to early 20th century plutocrats. At the time of his death, no man in public life had more devoted followers and none had more political enemies than William Jennings Bryan." "As Gerald Leinwand shows, the true Bryan is not the caricature we have substituted for the man - the quixotic presidential candidate or the rural bumpkin who tried to match wits with Clarence Darrow on the matter of whether humans were descended from apes. In this new study of Bryan's life, we find a reformer and politician of compelling power who stood at the center of American political life for thirty years."--BOOK JACKET.

"In giving the public the story of his life, William J. Bryan trusts he may be credited with something more than a desire to acquaint the public with himself. It is his purpose to show that in his own case good fortune has had more to do with such success as he may have achieved than any efforts of his own. His second purpose is to show the goodness of the American people, their patriotism, their moral courage, their high ideals, their willingness to sacrifice for their convictions - the virtues that not only make popular government possible but insure its success." -- goodreads.com

This biography tells the story of William Jennings Bryan, an influential American who was born shortly before the Civil War began and died in the middle of the Roaring Twenties decade. Timelines, figures, 125 photos, and more are presented in a visually appealing manner to help the reader get a glimpse in to the man and his times, while learning about the impact Mr. Bryan made in politics. education, and religion--in the United States and beyond.