Rating: 
Summary: A solid perspective on a much-misunderstood man
Review: "First in His Class" is the best in a huge pile of books on the forty-second president of the United States. I appreciated Maraniss's ability to keep himself politically neutral throughout the book and he did an excellent job in recreating President Clinton's life through interviews with his wide networks of family, friends, and enemies. Of course, after reading Maraniss's book the reader has to confront the question: Who is Bill Clinton? And, to put it frankly, is he a good man or a bad man? The conclusion I reached is that while Clinton is not a great man in a personal (Lincoln, King) or historical (Napoleon, Lenin) sense, he is far from a figure who should be maligned. In fact, even in the height of the Lewinsky scandal, he remains a man worthy of admiration. Bill Clinton was determined even as a young man to take residence in the Oval office and he accomplished that against often impossible odds. Putting aside his incredible ambition for the moment, he is a person with a quiet and undeniable honor as well. His strong feelings concerning civil rights and Vietnam in the 1960s can not be explained by political shrewdness but only through deep moral concern. In conclusion, Maraniss' book is a must-read for the political junkie. Your opinion of the president will be more comprehensive even if it is not much-changed.
Rating:
Summary: A solid perspective on a much-misunderstood man
Review: "First in His Class" is the best in a huge pile of books on the forty-second president of the United States. I appreciated Maraniss's ability to keep himself politically neutral throughout the book and he did an excellent job in recreating President Clinton's life through interviews with his wide networks of family, friends, and enemies. Of course, after reading Maraniss's book the reader has to confront the question: Who is Bill Clinton? And, to put it frankly, is he a good man or a bad man? The conclusion I reached is that while Clinton is not a great man in a personal (Lincoln, King) or historical (Napoleon, Lenin) sense, he is far from a figure who should be maligned. In fact, even in the height of the Lewinsky scandal, he remains a man worthy of admiration. Bill Clinton was determined even as a young man to take residence in the Oval office and he accomplished that against often impossible odds. Putting aside his incredible ambition for the moment, he is a person with a quiet and undeniable honor as well. His strong feelings concerning civil rights and Vietnam in the 1960s can not be explained by political shrewdness but only through deep moral concern. In conclusion, Maraniss' book is a must-read for the political junkie. Your opinion of the president will be more comprehensive even if it is not much-changed.
Rating:
Summary: A complete picture of an enigmatic man
Review: A wonderful, interesting and objective biography about one of the most intriguing presidents in the 20th century. Well researched, well written, very compelling. A must read for Clinton fans
Rating:
Summary: Above and beyond, before the scandal . . .
Review: Above and beyond the demonization and canonization . . . before the scandals, successes and defeats . . . lay the strong personality possessed by a Falstaffian hunger for the love, acceptance, and power the celebrity of politics can provide.Journalist Maraniss' possesses an uncanny ability to avoid all the hyberbole that has surrounded Clinton and cut to the facts and create a vibrant portrait of not just a man driven to succeed at all costs, but also of a generation seeking to find its place in history. Maraniss' central thesis: that Clinton is the first representative of the Baby Boom Generation (and everything that statement implies) to enter the White House, forms a compelling historical tapestry on which to weave his narrative. I've always valued in a biographical author, the ability to place the subject in the bigger picture and historical frame of reference and Maraniss proves most successful in this sense. He takes a great deal of time building the proper context in which to place the Clintons. Their collective rise to power is no accident. Neither is, in reading the book, their collective fall from Grace and relative political invincibility. They knew exactly how to tap into (and exploit) the collective unconsciousness of their generation. First in His Class, also benefits from a most prudential editing. It really is tight in its narrative and commentary. Maraniss wastes very little in developing and defending his thesis. It is so refreshing to see an author remain so focused. Even his digressions develop his central vision. This gets my vote as the best Clinton book thus far.
Rating:
Summary: Fair minded, respectfully strips the presidential mystiqe
Review: David Maraniss captured between the covers of this biography the complex personality of a man and the times he grew up in. We may not agree with how Bill Clinton avoided the draft, but when it's put into the context of the "60s" we find that he didn't really do anything worse then millions of others. He just wanted to complete his education. How he handled the "draft question" is another story. His personnal life is discused frankly without muckraking. It shows what it takes to become "presidential" in our sociaty today. If this is good or bad is left up to the reader. I enjoyed this book and now have a respect and understanding of the subject both as a person and President.
Rating:
Summary: Maraniss is a wonderful writer and very evenhanded.
Review: David Maraniss doesn't have an axe to grind and that's what makes reading this book so rewarding. The reader can draw his own conclusions about the highs and lows of Bill Clinton's character. Maraniss's work is meticulouly researched but never plodding. He masterfully evokes time and place (Old Oxford, free-wheeling student-power Yale). Maraniss stays true to his themes from beginning to end. A great story teller! It played like a mini-series in my mind.
Rating:
Summary: The gold standard of Clinton biographies
Review: David Maraniss has done of superb job of detailing, in an objective fashion, the strengths and weaknesses that make up President Clinton's complex character. The extensive documentation of literally hundreds of interviews with friends and colleages adds credibility to this first rate biography. Maraniss wisely concentrates on Clinton's life until the time he announces for president thereby avoiding the premature evaluation of a presidency still in progress. One of the most touching segments of the book concerns the trauma that Clinton and his fellow Oxford classmates suffered in their response to the draft and the war in Vietman. As someone who was a child during this time, I never realized what an ugly albatross these bright young men carried with them. Overall, I would highly recommend this book for anyone who wants an insightful and balanced biography of our first baby-boomer president.
Rating: 
Summary: Difficult to put down. Difficult to form an opinion of him.
Review: David Maraniss has written a gripping account of Bill Clinton's rise to power. It is a testament to the quality of his work that there is no feeling of partisanship. The picture that emerges is one of a thoroughly determined, charming and intelligent individual. Maraniss examines also what kept him motivated and more precisely, who. Detailed accounts of his mother and stepfather, of Hillary and his peers are invaluable to help us understand this highly complex character. What I found most interesting about the book was the extreme emotions that I felt about Clinton. At first, one can only feel admiration and respect for the southern boy who made his way to Georgetown, Oxford and Yale Law with the brightest in the country. However, power corrupts and as Clinton starts his political ascension, he becomes less and less of a sympathetic character. I couldn't give this book five stars for a variety of reasons. While accounts of education and early life are undoubtedly useful guides, Maraniss should have focused more on Clinton's political career. It only starts roughly three quarters into the book... Finally, the book ends with Clinton announcing his candidacy for president in 1991. Surely, we could have gotten a glimpse of the toughest campaign of his life. Nonetheless, brilliant book which you should buy to understand the man who has presided over such prosperity and created such controversy.
Rating:
Summary: Great read, I highly recommend it.
Review: Fair and balanced look at Bill Clinton. Maraniss is an excellent writer, making this an easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating history of the early line of President Clinton.
Review: First in His Class contains a fascinating look into the early life of President Clinton. Such things as having to learn how to inhale (see Oxford section), compaigning for the Rev. Joe Duffey for the U.S. Senate in New Haven in 1970, studying with Robert Reich and Strobe Talbott in Oxford, partying for three days after he was drafted into the U.S. Army while in Oxford in June, 1969, pulling every string he could grab in order to successfully get out of the draft in July, 1969, running for Congress and losing in 1974 (despite Watergate). This is a truly great book
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