Destiny of the Republic chronicles the extraordinary life and tragic assassination of President James A. Garfield. Millard illuminates Garfield not as a footnote in presidential history, but as a gifted scholar, war hero, and reluctant politician whose leadership promised a new era of national unity. The narrative then turns gripping and heartbreaking as a deranged office seeker shoots Garfield, and the medical establishment’s refusal to embrace emerging scientific breakthroughs becomes the actual cause of his demise.
Millard weaves together political intrigue, the rise of germ theory, and the rivalry between inventors like Alexander Graham Bell to reveal how Garfield’s death transformed American medicine. Both deeply researched and vividly told, the book is a story of innovation, ego, and the profound consequences of progress ignored. It is a compelling read for anyone interested in leadership, science, or the human dramas that shape history.
"[President Garfield] was this huge innovator when it came to farming techniques and some of the things that, at the time, were extremely important. And he was friends with all these inventors, the Edisons of the world and all that kind of stuff.”