Reading rank 213
The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy
, subject: Joseph P. Kennedy, 2012
Joseph P. Kennedy’s life, told at length, as a case of how one person pursues a life’s work and comes to achieve it.
76
Coverage Score
5
Scored evidence
About the book
Nasaw drew on previously unpublished material from archives on three continents and on interviews with Kennedy family members and friends. The New York Times named the biography one of its ten best books of the year.
Why read it
Best if You want a long, detailed biography of Joseph P. Kennedy and are interested in how one person pursues and achieves a life’s work.
Key themes
- Pursuing a life’s work
- A long account rather than a sketch
Evidence and original sources
Sources: official Founders episodes — #4, #145, #298
David states that most of the episode comes from The Patriarch and uses it as the primary source text.
- The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy — David connects Kennedy's biography to the podcast's recurring theme of studying how people pursue and achieve their life's work.
- William Randolph Hearst — Host references The Patriarch, his earlier David Nasaw biography of Joseph P. Kennedy, covered on Founders No. 4.
- I had lunch with Sam Zell — David says his Joseph P. Kennedy coverage was Founders episode four.