James Garfield was a canal boy who grew up to become President of the United States. Unfortunately, he was assassinated before he could accomplish much. Is that all there is to say about him? Not if we take the time to read his diary and correspondence. Albert Savignano, Jr. has done that for us and has constructed a seamless narrative that tells Garfield's story from his ancestry until shortly after his 27th birthday, revealing that young Garfield was much more than a mere canal boy.