ALISTAIR COOKE'S LETTERS TO AMERICA The Elections

As part of his survey of American life for British listeners of the BBC, Alistair Cooke observed a series of U.S. elections. Five radio essays—starting with Harry S. Truman's 1948 upset of Thomas Dewey and ending with the Bush-Gore battle in 2000—are included in this collection. While the essays are all well chosen—especially a 1966 anecdote about Lyndon Johnson's taking over of a hotel—the collection is too brief to provide a full view of Cooke's commentary. There's also the occasional odd noise or drop in sound quality listeners would expect with a radio collection. Cooke's brief insights are welcome, but one can also seek out the entire three-volume LETTER FROM AMERICA collection from the BBC. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2010]