List of autobiographies by presidents of the United States

Ulysses S. Grant, working on his memoirs in 1885. His Personal Memoirs is considered by historians to be among the best by a U.S. President.

Many presidents of the United States have written autobiographies about their presidencies and/or (some periods of) their life before their time in office. Some 19th-century U.S. presidents who wrote autobiographies are James Buchanan and Ulysses S. Grant, though Grant's autobiography is about his time as General during the U.S. Civil War and not about his presidency. Some of the more recent U.S. presidential autobiographies, such as Bill Clinton's, George W. Bush's, and Barack Obama's (written and published before he was elected president) sold well enough to earn them millions of dollars.[1][2]

Autobiographies covering the period of their presidency

Note: Only publication information for the first edition is given.
TitlePresidentPublisherDateISBN
The Autobiography of Martin Van BurenMartin Van BurenU.S. Government Printing Office1920
Posthumously compiled and edited from Van Buren's manuscript materials by John C. Fitzpatrick.
Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of RebellionJames BuchananD. Appleton and Company1866
Theodore Roosevelt: An AutobiographyTheodore RooseveltMacmillan1913
The Autobiography of Calvin CoolidgeCalvin CoolidgeCosmopolitan Book Corporation1929
Previously published serially in the periodical Cosmopolitan.
The Memoirs of Herbert HooverHerbert HooverMacmillan1951
Published in three volumes: Volume 1: Years of Adventure 1874-1920; Volume 2: The Cabinet and the Presidency 1920-1933; Volume 3: The Great Depression 1929-1941.
Memoirs: Year of DecisionsHarry S. TrumanDoubleday1955
Memoirs: Years of Trial and HopeHarry S. TrumanDoubleday1956
The Autobiography of Harry S TrumanHarry S. TrumanColorado Associated University Press1980 ISBN 978-0-870-81090-9
Posthumously compiled and edited from Truman's manuscript materials by historian [[Robert Ferrell]].
At Ease: Stories I Tell to FriendsDwight D. EisenhowerDoubleday1969 ISBN 978-0-915-99204-1
The Vantage Point: Perspectives of the Presidency 1963-1969Lyndon B. JohnsonHolt, Rinehart and Winston1971 ISBN 978-0-030-84492-8
RN - The Memoirs of Richard NixonRichard NixonGrosset & Dunlap1978 ISBN 978-0-448-14374-3
In the Arena: A Memoir of Victory, Defeat, and RenewalRichard NixonSimon & Schuster1990 ISBN 978-0-671-70096-6
A Time to HealGerald FordHarper & Row1979 ISBN 978-0-060-11297-4
Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a PresidentJimmy CarterBantam Books1982 ISBN 978-0-553-05023-3
A Full Life: Reflections at 90Jimmy CarterSimon & Schuster2015 ISBN 978-1-501-11563-9
An American LifeRonald ReaganSimon & Schuster1990 ISBN 978-1-451-62839-5
A World TransformedGeorge H. W. BushKnopf Publishing Group1998 ISBN 978-0-679-43248-7
My LifeBill ClintonKnopf Publishing Group2004 ISBN 978-0-375-41457-2
Decision PointsGeorge W. BushCrown Publishers2010 ISBN 978-0-307-59061-9

Autobiographies not covering the period of their presidency

TitlePresidentPublisherDateISBN
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. GrantUlysses S. GrantCharles L. Webster & Company1885–86
The Rough RidersTheodore RooseveltCharles Scribner's Sons1899
Mr. CitizenHarry S. TrumanIndependence Press1960 ISBN 978-0830900954
Crusade in EuropeDwight D. EisenhowerDoubleday1948 ISBN 978-0-8018-5668-6
Six CrisesRichard NixonDoubleday1962 ISBN 978-0-385-00125-0
Where's the Rest of Me?Ronald ReaganDuell, Sloan and Pearce1965 ISBN 978-0-918294-16-6
Why Not the Best?: The First Fifty YearsJimmy CarterBroadman Press1975 ISBN 978-0-8054-5582-3
Turning Point: A Candidate, a State, and a Nation Come of AgeJimmy CarterThree Rivers Press1993 ISBN 978-0-8129-2299-8
An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural BoyhoodJimmy CarterSimon & Schuster2001 ISBN 978-0-7432-1199-4
Looking Forward George H. W. BushDoubleday1987 ISBN 978-0-385-14181-9
A Charge to KeepGeorge W. BushWilliam Morrow & Company1999 ISBN 978-0-688-17441-5
Dreams from My FatherBarack ObamaTimes Books1995 ISBN 978-1-4000-8277-3
The Audacity of HopeBarack ObamaCrown/Three Rivers Press2006 ISBN 978-0-307-23769-9
Trump: The Art of the Deal Donald TrumpRandom House1987 ISBN 978-0-446-35325-0
Trump: Surviving at the TopDonald TrumpRandom House1990 ISBN 978-0-394-57597-1
Trump: The Art of the Comeback Donald TrumpTimes Books1997 ISBN 978-0812929645

Published diaries and papers

TitlePresidentEditorPublisherDateISBN
The Eisenhower DiariesDwight D. EisenhowerRobert FerrellW W Norton & Co Inc1976 ISBN 978-0-393-33180-6
Prelude to Leadership: The European Diary of John F. Kennedy: Summer 1945John F. KennedyRegnery Publishing1995 ISBN 978-0-89526-459-6
The Letters of John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyMartin W. SandlerBloomsbury Press2013 ISBN 978-1-60819-271-7
Richard Nixon: Speeches, Writings, DocumentsRichard NixonRick PerlsteinPrinceton University Press2010 ISBN 978-1-4008-3568-3
White House DiaryJimmy CarterFarrar, Straus and Giroux2010 ISBN 978-0-374-28099-4
The Reagan DiariesRonald ReaganDouglas BrinkleyHarper Collins2007 ISBN 978-0-06-087600-5
All the BestGeorge H. W. BushScribner1999 ISBN 978-0-684-83958-5

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Americas | Clintons' earnings exceed $100m". BBC News. 2008-04-05. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  2. ↑ Simon Mann, Washington. "'Man of Steel' barely rates a mention in Bush memoirs". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2013-04-08.

Further reading

  • Trex, Ethan (September 9, 2010), "A Brief History of Presidential Memoirs", mental floss
  • Robinson, Joshua (November 8, 2010), "A Brief History of the Presidential Memoir", The Daily Beast
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