A childhood book is much more than just a story—for the presidents, it may represent a turn in the course of history. What the Presidents Read catalogs presidents’ early reading accompanied by commentary from eye-witness reporters, historians, journalists, curators, biographers, literary scholars, U.S. presidents and White House families. Together they offer non-specialists brief, surprising insights. Readers will jump at the chance to compare their own favorite books as they learn how these publications resonated with national myths and leaders in the making.