As far as a main goal of this presidential biography is concerned - to pick Millard Fillmore out of obscurity - I believe author is quite successful. At least, he convinced me. I was striked by quite a few qualities of that forgotten president, not the least a personal integrity. Having said that, the book is full of very insignificant details and the writing is often quite awkward. ( )

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Just the look of it appeared daunting but it was one of the more engaging presidential biographies that I have read. The author is able to illuminate Mill-Fill's life and tell a compelling narrative. It is clear that Mill-Fill was not just another "forgettable" president as most historians claim, but that he held much sway in the decade leading up to the Civil War. He was not quite an abolitionist but not pro-slavery; he walked the fine line of a strict constructionist of the Constitution at a difficult time. While he certainly was not a fan of slavery, he believed there was nothing in the Constitution prohibiting it and relied heavily on the belief that if the right was not expressly given to the Federal government than it belonged to the states. I learned a great deal about the political maneuvering that was going on in Congress during this time and the role, however hamstrung he was, that Mill-Fill played. It is clear that he played a large part in the passage of the Compromise of 1850. Although he was vilified by many for signing the Fugitive Slave Act into law, he saw that as the best he could do to prevent a Civil War; the preservation of the Union was his greatest goal throughout his presidency and if one looks at his presidency through that role, it is clear he accomplished it. I have never really been interested in the history of the Civil War, but this book did more to pique my interest in it than anything I have read up to this point. Additionally, the book is very well noted and researched. Nothing gets me more excited than a well-noted book. I would highly recommend this book. ( )

Robert Scarry's Millard Fillmore tries to convince the reader that Fillmore was a more interesting and more significant US President than commonly thought. Unfortunately, he just doesn't quite do it on either count. Fillmore was unable to affect the major problem facing the day - the ever increasing split between North and South - and also wasn't able to lead in other issues. Yes, his representative open up trade with Japan and he made some progress in projects such as rail expansion and a potential canal across Central America. But Scarry is hard pressed to find significant contributions to talk about, especially as he tries to balance these with Fillmore's involvement in the Know Nothing party and the worse aspects of the Compromise of 1850, like the Fugitive Slave Act. Bottom line, even with a very strong advocate writing the book, Millard Fillmore comes across as a functional, but uninspired, leader of the US. He wasn't a disaster for the country, but he doesn't merit much admiration either.

Part of the problem here might be the book itself. Scarry had access to a large number of letters and documents from the Buffalo Historical Society and other archives that hadn't been studied before. I had hopes that a clearer picture of the man might come through. Unfortunately, Scarry's approach was to give a blow-by-blow retelling of the documents. So the book became this happened, then Fillmore did this, then so-and-so did that...It's really not what I was looking for. There's very little analysis here to try to get under the surface of events.

Recommendation: Scarry's Millard Fillmore is a functional, if dry, introduction to the events of FIllmore's life, but for actual understanding, look elsewhere. ( )