The Moralist

Woodrow Wilson and the World He Made

By: Patricia O'Toole

Narrated by: Fred Sanders

Acclaimed author Patricia O’Toole’s “superb” (The New York Times) account of Woodrow Wilson, one of the most high-minded, consequential, and controversial US presidents. A “gripping” (USA TODAY) biography, The Moralist is “an essential contribution to presidential history” (Booklist, starred review).

“In graceful prose and deep scholarship, Patricia O’Toole casts new light on the presidency of Woodrow Wilson” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis). The Moralist shows how Wilson was a progressive who enjoyed unprecedented success in leveling the economic playing field, but he was behind the times on racial equality and women’s suffrage. As a Southern boy during the Civil War, he knew the ravages of war, and as president he refused to lead the country into World War I until he was convinced that Germany posed a direct threat to the United States. Once committed, he was an admirable commander-in-chief, yet he also presided over the harshest suppression of political dissent in American history.

After the war Wilson became the world’s most ardent champion of liberal internationalism—a democratic new world order committed to peace, collective security, and free trade. With Wilson’s leadership, the governments at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 founded the League of Nations, a federation of the world’s democracies. The creation of the League, Wilson’s last great triumph, was quickly followed by two crushing blows: a paralyzing stroke and the rejection of the treaty that would have allowed the United States to join the League. Ultimately, Wilson’s liberal internationalism was revived by Franklin D. Roosevelt and it has shaped American foreign relations—for better and worse—ever since.

A cautionary tale about the perils of moral vanity and American overreach in foreign affairs, The Moralist “does full justice to Wilson’s complexities” (The Wall Street Journal).

Fine Addition to Large & Growing Wilson Bookshelf

This is a very good, intellectually and morally stimulating, and beautifully written book. It provides a vivid & powerful presentation of the events that rocked America and the world a century ago and the complex, very human man at the center of them. Not a comprehensive or definitive biography, the book moves quickly through Wilson's early life to focus on his presidency in general and World War I in particular. It presents familiar historical and political issues in fresh and provocative ways. The pacing is excellent, the characters and scenes are well-drawn, and the issues are fairly presented. A balanced treatment of Wilson, good & bad. It is a fine addition to the large and growing Wilson bookshelf, although the epilogue is rather thin. I enjoyed The Moralist thoroughly ... except for the whisper-voiced reader. He uses very little inflection. Some may like his flat, quiet style, however, and the writing is good enough to carry the narration regardless.

Great book, wonderfully presented

Never knew all the intricacies of Wilson. He was a brilliant thinker, but not a practical leader. However he did see the truth.

Highly Recommended!

This is an excellent and BALANCED treatment of Wilson. The negatives are honestly described and discussed, as well as the accomplishments (I.e. the Federal Reserve, the Clayton Act, etc.). The focus, of the second half of the book is, of course, on the Great War, Versailles, and the defeat of the treaty in the Senate ( which, the author makes clear, was almost totally Wilson’s fault). Finally, the epilogue ties it all together and shows how the issues of Wilson’s age are still the key issues we face today. This is an outstanding biography.

Idealism meets real politik

An encompassing study of the man and his times. This is a fine grained history of Wilson and his world. The epilogue carries the book to its logical end. Recommended

Important history

Very detailed account of the politics of the day. Tedious at times, I was hoping for more info on Wilson’s handling of the Spanish Flu epidemic