It would have been mildly interesting - the detailed biography of a president I didn't know much about - except that Alger had to rearrange the details to make it his standard story. So the poor boy with no one in the world except his mother and elder brother...suddenly, several chapters later, had an uncle and cousin (and presumably an aunt) living down the road. They weren't rich, but neither was Garfield on his own with no one to lend a hand. So interesting - but I can't trust Alger's descriptions of anything, including the global mourning for Garfield. If it's true, he was something amazing at the time and it's surprising how much he's been forgotten - or perhaps not all that surprising, with his very short (cut short) tenure as President. I'm not quite interested enough to seek out a better biography, but I'll grab one if I come across it. ( )

Interesting read about the boyhood of a president I knew very little about. Very white-washed but still learned a few things. ( )