A Thought for Presidents Day

Books Written By US Presidents

There have been over 150 books written by Presidents of the United States either before, during or after their terms in office. Only one such book was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and that is Profiles in Courage , written by John F. Kennedy. Kennedy wrote this book while he was a junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. He examines the lives of eight of his predecessors in Congress that took courageous stands against the politics of the day, whether it be the Civil War or the Impeachment of President Andrew Johnson. Interestedly enough, the first senator  that Kennedy wrote about was John Quincy Adams, who was his predecessor as a Senator from Massachusetts.
Profiles in Courage went on to become a best seller and has been re-issued several times.
 A 26 week television series based on the book was produced in 1965. Kennedy wrote several other books including Why England Slept and A Nation of Immigrants, but Profiles is the best known.