cover image George Marshall: A Biography

George Marshall: A Biography

Debi and Irwin Unger, with Stanley Hirshson. Harper, $35 (560p) ISBN 978-0-06-057719-3

The Ungers (LBJ: A Life) complete a project, conceived by the late Hirshson (General Patton), for a full-scale biography of this great soldier-statesman that is both comprehensively researched and highly readable, but fundamentally misunderstands its subject. WWI gave Marshall practice in managing a large army and dealing with “difficult allies.” In 1939, a combination of talent and influence brought him to the post of chief of staff, placing him at the center of a greater war where his success brought promotion to General of the Army. Marshall’s capacities as a manager fitted perfectly the requirements of a global war waged by a grand alliance of temporary convenience. His fundamental skills involved balancing military, political, and economic tensions at the highest levels in a context of strong personalities. Marshall was less adept at the level of operations, like the timing of D-Day, but it was his ability as a manager that defined his postwar career: a secretary of state whose defining and brokering of the economic reconstruction plan that bears his name was recognized by a Nobel Peace Prize. The authors nevertheless present Marshall as a man whose “austere persona” inspired respect and confidence, and conclude his performance as soldier and statesman was “less than awe-inspiring,” reflecting “sterling character but unremarkable powers.” The authors’ conclusion that Marshall’s reputation was the construction of America’s longing for a military leader above politics and ambition defies the weight of evidence and scholarship, the reasoned judgment of Marshall’s contemporaries, and his role as a decisive and positive factor in 20 crucial years of national policy. [em]Agent: Alex Hoyt, Alexander Hoyt Assoc. (Nov.) [/em]