"This anthology has something to surprise and delight even the most dedicated history buff. It will teach you something about our presidents' personal lives, their poetic talents, and even their political ambitions."
--Craig Fehrman, author of Author in Chief "Well-written, thoroughly researched, and impeccably organized, Poems by Presidents explores an intriguing and unexpected side to many American presidents: they wrote poetry!"
--Susan Katz, author of The President's Stuck in the Bathtub "This distinctive collection is a pleasure to read and enjoy."
--Fred Kaplan, author of His Masterly Pen: A Biography of Jefferson the Writer This first-ever anthology features poems by eleven presidents who, through good times and bad, turned to poetry to express themselves. Verse that is interwoven with the fabric of presidents' lives reveals their intimate thoughts and emotions. Poems by Presidents is a rewarding resource for poetry lovers and readers interested in presidential biographies and American history. Highlights include George Washington's teenage romantic yearnings, Thomas Jefferson's death-bed adieu, John Quincy Adams's sonnet memorializing his father, Abraham Lincoln's mockery of the Confederacy, Woodrow Wilson's humorous limericks, Warren G. Harding's steamy love poems to his mistress, and Ronald Wilson Reagan's existential reflections. Appendixes explore additional presidents who wrote poetry, misattributions, prose formatted as verse, and fondness for poetry.