James Bradley is the son of one of the Marines who raised the flag on Iwo Jima during World War II and his interest in that war and that area of the world is intense. In this examination of U.S. relations with Asia in the early 20th century, Bradley uses a diplomatic mission sent by Theodore Roosevelt as his springboard. In 1905, President Roosevelt sent Secretary of War William Howard Taft on a diplomatic mission that would take him to Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, Korea, and China. Joining Taft on this mission were Alice Roosevelt, the president's 21 year old daughter, Representative Nicholas Longworth, the man she would marry within the year, and a number of Senators and members of the House of Representatives. Following the route of this "imperial cruise" allowed Bradley to discuss the background of the developing U.S. policy toward each of these countries and to build a case that the United States was negatively viewed in most of Asia because of brutal interactions in the past. Bradley also examined the racial attitudes of white Americans and especially Theodore Roosevelt toward non-white peoples. Bradley is highly critical of Roosevelt and other imperialists and described U.S. misdeeds in the Pacific in great detail. Bradley concluded that this imperial cruise and the secret agreements that were negotiated led to policies and attitudes that culminated in World War II 35 years later. A very interesting book for students of history and international politics.

Summary: Aryan Theodore Roosevelt leading the Aryan people of the Aryan United States sent his Aryan daughter Alice and Aryan "War God" Big Bill Taft and to the Orient to meet with Honorary Aryan Japan and other non-Aryan people. Stuff happens, then WWII.

Bradley has a very interesting story to tell here, but he loses a lot of credibility with his incredibly charged language i.e. Aryan (see above). It seems he uses this language to get a rise out of the reader. It seems that pathos guides his writing rather than logos or ethos. It seems there is some really good research in there, and it seems to be a story that I would have found compelling if it weren't for constant references to Aryan this and Teutonic that. Yes, these terms were germane to the story, but Bradley felt the need to constantly bring them up when they weren't needed and seemed only to serve a stealth purpose to equate the United States to Nazi Germany and Roosevelt to Hitler.

Also, Bradley repeated himself a lot. I would like to see this same research treated in a less emotional manner.

Taft, a war god? C'mon.

I can't say I recommend this one. It just became more and more painful as I listened on. However, I did finish it in three days.

Excellent book -- uses the far east trip of (at the time Secretary of War) Taft and Teddy Roosevelt's daughter Alice as a structure to talk about American involvements in Asia in the late 19th & early 20th century. It's not pretty. Amazing use of primary sources to show the specific elements of racism and imperialism at work.

The author got interested in the subject after writing a book about his father's experiences in WWII, and so a large portion is devoted to the Americans' encouragement (development?) of imperial ambitions in Japan, and when push came to shove and the Japanese fought the Russians, how the Americans were quick to go back on whatever they'd said to the Japanese. He also makes the explicit connection -- as the Japanese did -- between the Monroe Doctrine in the Americas and the Japanese's view of their dominance in Asia.

A similarly large section covers the Americans' colonization of the Philippines (and Hawaii as well) -- the same combination of confidence & naiveté that you see again in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq. You'd think we could learn from the disasters of the past, but apparently not.

Highly recommended.

Aside from glaring historical inaccuracies in this book, likely honest mistakes or overlooked by the editor, the sum of this book in one line "America was Nazism before it was cool." Seriously.

I enjoyed James Bradley's other books, but found this one to be a very different read, and not in a good way.

Many years ago, in 1998, I read [b:The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt|40929|The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt|Edmund Morris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1452010007s/40929.jpg|40514].

I greatly enjoyed it at the time and now I've thoroughly enjoyed the dismantling of the hagiographic myths around Theodore Roosevelt.

Why might I trust this book over the previous one? Well, you need to read to the very last page and I don't want to spoil it for you.

Bradley's bias is felt throughout but it is with justification.

I find myself disgusted with the rank ignorance and poor political calculation on display and it makes me feel even more strongly that only people of the strongest character, fiercest moral fiber backed by a strategic, deep intelligence should find themselves in positions of responsibility and power.

I don't know if I quite buy all of the author's claims that this cruise was responsible for all of the ills of the 20th century. But it was really interesting to learn about the foreign policy of the time and to learn some less than savory details about some pretty admired men.

While I appreciate the history in this book, I have read enough of the reviews here to question the accuracy of some of the details. History was never my interest until just recently as I am learning how important it is to know where we have come from so we know where we are going. I loved Flags of Our Fathers and was excited to read this book. I will agree that the book does seem to go all over the place in terms of theme. Bradley jumps from America to Europe to Japan when sharing their history. I know they are related, but Bradley doesn't do a great job of seamlessly relating them. It was an ok book.