| Adams, Henry | The Last American Aristocrat: The Brilliant Life and Improbable Education of Henry Adams by David S. Brown | 2020 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Henry Adams and the Making of America by Garry Wills | 2005 | |
| Adams, John | John Adams: A Life by John Ferling | 1992 | REVIEW (4¾ stars) |
| | John Adams by David McCullough | 2001 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | | | |
| Adams, John Quincy | John Quincy Adams: Militant Spirit by James Traub | 2016 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, A Private Life by Paul Nagel | 1997 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Borna Gojo | Borno Gojo: The Ace of Croatian Tennis (Masters of the Game) by Karen Lee | 2016 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Adams, Sam | Samuel Adams: A Life by Ira Stoll | 2008 | |
| | Samuel Adams: Father of the American Revolution by Mark Puls | 2006 | |
| Kari Lake | Karie Lake: The Journey From Media to Polictics by Antonia Fraser | 2001 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Armstrong, Louis | Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong by Terry Teachout | 2009 | |
| Arnold, Benedict | Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor by Willard Sterne Randall | 1990 | |
| Arthur, Chester | Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur by Thomas Reeves | 1975 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Augustine | Augustine of Hippo: A Biography by Peter Brown | 1967 | |
| Augustus | Augustus: First Emperor of Rome by Adrian Goldsworthy | 2014 | |
| Bach | Bach: Music in the Castle of Heaven by John Gardiner | 2013 | Third-party reviews |
| | Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician by Christoph Wolff | 2000 | |
| Baker, James A. | The Man Who Ran Washington: The Life and Times of James A. Baker III by Peter Baker | 2020 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Beecher, Henry Ward | The Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher by Debby Applegate | 2006 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Beethoven | Beethoven: The Music and the Life by Lewis Lockwood | 2002 | |
| | Beethoven: Anguish and Triumph by Jan Swafford | 2014 | |
| Bell, Alexander Graham | Reluctant Genius: Alexander Graham Bell and the Passion for Invention by Charlotte Gray | 2006 | |
| Bolívar, Simón | Bolívar: American Liberator by Marie Arana | 2013 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Boone, Daniel | Daniel Boone: The Life and Legend of an American Pioneer by John Faragher | 1992 | |
| Brandeis, Louis | Louis D. Brandeis: A Life by Melvin Urofsky | 2009 | |
| Brown, John | Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War by Tony Horwitz | 2011 | |
| Brunelleschi | Brunelleschi’s Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture by Ross King | 2000 | |
| Bryan, Wm Jennings | A Godly Hero: The Life of William Jennings Bryan by Michael Kazin | 2006 | |
| Buchanan, James | President James Buchanan: A Biography by Philip Klein | 1962 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Buffett, Warren | The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life by Alice Schroeder | 2008 | |
| | Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist by Roger Lowenstein | 1995 | |
| Burr, Aaron | Burr: A Novel by Gore Vidal | 1973 | |
| Bush, George H.W. | Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush by Jon Meacham | 2015 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Bush, George W | Bush by Jean Edward Smith | 2016 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| | Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House by Peter Baker | 2013 | |
| Caesar, Julius | Caesar: Life of a Collosus by Adrian Goldsworthy | 2006 | |
| Calhoun, John | John C. Calhoun: A Biography by Irving Bartlett | 1994 | |
| | John C. Calhoun: American Portrait by Margaret Coit | 1950 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Carnegie, Andrew | Andrew Carnegie by David Nasaw | 2006 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Andrew Carnegie by Joseph Frazier Wall | 1970 | |
| Carter, Jimmy | His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life by Jonathan Alter | 2020 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | The Unfinished Presidency: Jimmy Carter’s Quest for Global Peace by Douglas Brinkley | 1998 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | President Carter: The White House Years by Stuart Eizenstat | 2018 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Cartier family | The Cartiers: The Untold Story of the Family Behind the Jewelry Empire by Francesca Cartier Brickell | 2019 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Carver, George Washington | George Washington Carver: A Life by Christina Vella | 2015 | |
| Catherine the Great | Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert Massie | 2011 | |
| Chaplin, Charlie | Chaplin: His Life and Art by David Robinson | 1985 | |
| Chase, Salmon | Salmon P. Chase: Lincoln’s Vital Rival by Walter Stahr | 2022 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Churchill, Winston | Churchill: Walking With Destiny by Andrew Roberts | 2018 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Churchill by Roy Jenkins | 2001 | |
| | Churchill: A Life by Martin Gilbert | 1991 | |
| | The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory 1874-1932 (Vol 1) by William Manchester | 1983 | |
| | The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Alone 1932-1940 (Vol 2) by William Manchester | 1988 | |
| | The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Defender of the Realm 1940-1965 (Vol 3) by William Manchester and Paul Reid | 2011 | |
| | Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship by Jon Meacham | 2003 | |
| | Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill by Candice Millard | 2016 | |
| Clay, Henry | Henry Clay: The Essential American by David Heidler | 2010 | |
| | Henry Clay: A Statesman for the Union by Robert Remini | 1991 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Cleveland, Grover | Grover Cleveland: A Study in Character by Alyn Brodsky | 2000 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | A Man of Iron: The Turbulent Life of Grover Cleveland by Troy Senik | 2022 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Clinton, Bill | First in His Class: A Biography of Bill Clinton by David Maraniss | 1995 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | The Survivor: Bill Clinton in the White House by John Harris | 2005 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Cobb, Ty | Ty Cobb: A Terrible Beauty by Charles Leerhsen | 2015 | Third-party reviews |
| Columbus, Christopher | Admiral of the Ocean Sea: A Life of Christopher Columbus by Samuel Eliot Morison | 1942 | |
| Cook, James | Captain James Cook: A Biography by Richard Hough | 1994 | |
| | The Life of Captain James Cook by J.C. Beaglehole | 1992 | |
| Coolidge, Calvin | Coolidge: An American Enigma by Robert Sobel | 1998 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President by Donald McCoy | 1967 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Copernicus | The Book Nobody Read: Chasing the Revolutions of Nicolaus Copernicus by Owen Gingerich | 2004 | |
| Cortes, Hernan | Hernan Cortes: Conqueror of Mexico by Salvador de Madariaga | 1942 | |
| | Conquistador: Hernan Cortes, King Montezuma, and the Last Stand of the Aztecs by Buddy Levy | 2008 | |
| Crazy Horse | The Journey of Crazy Horse: A Lakota History by Joseph M. Marshall III | 2004 | |
| | Crazy Horse: A Lakota Life by Kinglsey Bray | 2006 | |
| Crockett, David | David Crockett: The Lion of the West by Michael Wallis | 2011 | |
| Curie, Madame | Madame Curie: A Biography by Eve Curie | 1936 | |
| Custer, George | Crazy Horse and Custer: The Parallel Lives of Two American Warriors by Stephen Ambrose | 1975 | |
| | Custer’s Trials: A Life on the Frontier of a New America by T. J. Stiles | 2015 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| da Gama, Vasco | The Last Crusade: The Epic Voyages of Vasco da Gama by Nigel Cliff | 2011 | |
| da Vinci, Leonardo | Leonardo and the Last Supper by Ross King | 2012 | |
| | Leonardo da Vinci: Flights of the Mind by Charles Nicholl | 2004 | |
| | Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson | 2017 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Darwin, Charles | Darwin: The Life of a Tormented Evolutionist by Adrian Desmond | 1991 | |
| | Charles Darwin: A Biography, Voyaging (Vol 1) by Janet Browne | 1995 | |
| | Charles Darwin: A Biography, The Power of Place (Vol 2) by Janet Browne | 2002 | |
| Davis, Jefferson | Jefferson Davis, American by William Cooper | 2000 | |
| | Jefferson Davis: The Man and His Hour by William Davis | 1991 | |
| | Jefferson Davis: American Patriot 1808-1861 (Vol 1) by Hudson Strode | 1955 | |
| | Jefferson Davis: Confederate President (Vol 2) by Hudson Strode | 1959 | |
| | Jefferson Davis: Tragic Hero (Vol 3) by Hudson Strode | 1964 | |
| De Gaulle, Charles | The General: Charles De Gaulle and the France He Saved by Jonathan Fenby | 2012 | |
| de Soto, Hernando | Hernando de Soto: A Savage Question in the Americas by David Duncan | 1996 | |
| Dickens, Charles | Charles Dickens: A Life by Claire Tomalin | 2011 | |
| | Charles Dickens by Michael Slater | 2007 | |
| | Charles Dickens: His Tragedy and Triumph by Edgar Johnson | 1952 | |
| Disney, Walt | The Animated Man: A Life of Walt Disney by Michael Barrier | 2007 | |
| | Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination by Neal Gabler | 2006 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Walt Disney: An American Original by Bob Thomas | 1976 | |
| Disraeli | Disraeli by Robert Blake | 1966 | |
| Douglass, Frederick | Frederick Douglass by William McFeely | 1990 | |
| | Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom by David Blight | 2018 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Drake, Francis | Sir Francis Drake by John Sugden | 1991 | |
| Dumas, Alex | The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo by Tom Reiss | 2012 | |
| Earp, Wyatt | Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend by Casey Tefertiller | 1997 | |
| Edison, Thomas | Edison: A Biography by Matthew Josephson | 1959 | |
| Einstein, Albert | Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson | 2007 | Third-party reviews |
| Eisenhower, Dwight | Eisenhower In War and Peace by Jean Edward Smith | 2012 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Eisenhower: A Solider’s Life by Carlo D’Este | 2002 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Elizabeth I, Queen | The Life of Elizabeth I by Alison Weir | 1996 | |
| Emerson, Ralph | Emerson: The Mind on Fire by Robert Richardson | 1995 | |
| Euler | Leonhard Euler: Mathematical Genius in the Enlightenment by Ronald Calinger | 2015 | |
| Faraday, Michael | The Electric Life of Michael Faraday by Alan Hirshfeld | 2006 | |
| Feynman, Richard | Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman by James Gleick | 1992 | |
| Fillmore, Millard | Millard Fillmore: Biography of a President by Robert Rayback | 1959 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Fitzgerald, F. Scott | Some Sort of Epic Grandeur: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald by Matthew Bruccoli | 1981 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Ford, Gerald | Gerald Ford: An Honorable Life by James Cannon | 2013 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Ford, Henry | The People’s Tycoon: Henry Ford and the American Century by Steven Watts | 2005 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Franklin, Benjamin | Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson | 2003 | Third-party reviews |
| | Benjamin Franklin by Carl Van Doren | 1938 | |
| | The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin by HW Brands | 2000 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin by Gordon Wood | 2004 | |
| Friedman, Milton | Milton Friedman: The Last Conservative by Jennifer Burns | 2023 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Galileo | Galileo by John Heilbron | 2010 | |
| Gandhi | Gandhi Before India (Vol 1) by Ramachandra Guha | 2013 | |
| Garfield, James | Garfield: A Biography by Allan Peskin | 1978 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard | 2011 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Gehrig, Lou | Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig by Jonathan Eig | 2005 | |
| Genet, Jean | Genet: A Biography by Edmund White | 1993 | |
| Geronimo | Geronimo by Robert Utley | 2012 | |
| Goebbels, Joseph | Goebbels: A Biography by Peter Longerich | 2010 | |
| Goldwyn, Samuel | Goldwyn: A Biography by A. Scott Berg | 1989 | |
| Gould, Jay | The Life and Legend of Jay Gould by Maury Klein | 1986 | |
| Grant, Cary | Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise by Scott Eyman | 2020 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Grant, Ulysses | Grant by Jean Edward Smith | 2001 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses S. Grant In War and Peace by H.W. Brands | 2012 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Grant: A Biography by William McFeely | 1981 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Captain Sam Grant (Vol 1) by Lloyd Lewis | 1950 | |
| | Grant Moves South (Vol 2) by Bruce Catton | 1960 | |
| | Grant Takes Command (Vol 3) by Bruce Catton | 1969 | |
| | American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant by Ronald White | 2016 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Grant by Ron Chernow | 2017 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Greenspan, Alan | The Man Who Knew: The Life and Times of Alan Greenspan by Sebastian Mallaby | 2016 | |
| Guevara, Che | Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life by Jon Lee Anderson | 1997 | |
| Halsey, William | Bull Halsey by E.B. Potter | 1985 | |
| Hamilton, Alexander | Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow | 2004 | REVIEW (5 stars) |
| | Alexander Hamilton: A Life by Willard Sterne Randall | 2003 | |
| Harrison, Benjamin | Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Warrior (Vol 1) by Harry J. Sievers | 1952 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Statesman (Vol 2) by Harry J. Sievers | 1959 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier President (Vol 3) by Harry J. Sievers | 1968 | REVIEW (3¼ stars) |
| Hawking, Stephen | Stephen Hawking: A Biography by Kristine Larsen | 2005 | |
| Hay, John | All the Great Prizes: The Life of John Hay by John Taliaferro | 2013 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Hayes, Rutherford | Rutherford B. Hayes: Warrior and President by Ari Hoogenboom | 1995 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Hearst, William Randolph | The Chief: The Life of William Randolph Hearst by David Nasaw | 2000 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Hemingway, Ernest | Hemingway by Kenneth S. Lynn | 1987 | |
| Henry VIII | The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir | 1992 | |
| | The King and His Court by Alison Weir | 2001 | |
| Henry, Patrick | Patrick Henry: Champion of Liberty by Jon Kukla | 2017 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Hershey, Milton | Hershey: Milton S. Hershey’s Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire, and Utopian Dreams by Michael D’Antonio | 2006 | |
| Hitler, Adolf | Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography by John Toland | 1976 | |
| | Hitler by Joachim Fest | 1974 | |
| | Hitler: A Biography (abridgement) by Ian Kershaw | 2008 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Hitler: 1889-1936 Hubris (Vol 1) by Ian Kershaw | 1998 | |
| | Hitler: 1936-1945 Nemesis (Vol 2) by Ian Kershaw | 2000 | |
| | Hitler: A Study in Tyranny by Alan Bullock | 1962 | |
| | Hitler: Ascent, 1889-1939 (Vol 1) by Volker Ullrich | 2016 | |
| Hoover, Herbert | Hoover: An Extraordinary Life in Extraordinary Times by Kenneth Whyte | 2017 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Herbert Hoover in the White House: The Ordeal of the Presidency by Charles Rappleye | 2016 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Hoover, J Edgar | J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets by Curt Gentry | 1991 | |
| | G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century by Beverly Gage | 2022 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Hopkins, Harry | Harry Hopkins: A Biography by Henry Hitch Adams | 1977 | |
| | The Hopkins Touch: Harry Hopkins and the Forging of the Alliance to Defeat Hitler by David Roll | 2013 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| House, Colonel | Colonel House: A Biography of Woodrow Wilson’s Silent Partner by Charles Neu | 2014 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Houston, Sam | The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston by Marquis James | 1929 | |
| | Sam Houston by James Haley | 2002 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Howe, Louis | FDR’s Shadow: Louis Howe, the Force That Shaped Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt by Julie Fenster | 2009 | |
| Hughes, Howard | Howard Hughes: The Untold Story by Peter Harry Brown | 1996 | |
| Isabella, Queen | Isabella: The Warrior Queen by Kirstin Downey | 2014 | |
| Jackson, Andrew | The Life of Andrew Jackson by Marquis James | 1934 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Andrew Jackson (3 volume series) by Robert Remini | 1977-84 | REVIEWS |
| | American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House by Jon Meacham | 2008 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Jackson, Stonewall | Stonewall Jackson by James Robertson | 1997 | |
| | Rebel Yell : The Violence, Passion, and Redemption of Stonewall Jackson by S.C. Gwynne | 2014 | |
| James, Jesse | Jesse James: Last Rebel of the Civil War by T. J. Stiles | 2002 | |
| Jay, John | John Jay: Founding Father by Walter Stahr | 2005 | |
| Jefferson, Thomas | Jefferson and His Time (6 volume series) by Dumas Malone | 1948-77 | REVIEWS |
| | Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham | 2012 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Jobs, Steve | Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson | 2011 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Johnson, Andrew | Impeached: The Trial of Andrew Johnson and the Fight for Lincoln’s Legacy by David Stewart | 2009 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Johnson, Jack | Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson by Geoffrey Ward | 2004 | |
| Johnson, Lyndon | The Years of Lyndon Johnson (5 volume series) by Robert Caro | 1982- | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times 1908-1960 (Vol 1) by Robert Dallek | 1991 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times 1961-1973 (Vol 2) by Robert Dallek | 1998 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Jordan, Michael | Michael Jordan: The Life by Roland Lazenby | 2014 | |
| Keller, Helen | Helen Keller: A Life by Dorothy Hermann | 1998 | |
| Kennedy, Jacqueline | America’s Queen: The Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis by Sarah Bradford | 2000 | |
| | Jackie: Public, Private, Secret by J. Randy Taraborrelli | 2023 | REVIEW
(3¾ stars) |
| Kennedy, John | An Unfinished Life: JFK 1917-1963 by Robert Dallek | 2003 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | The Fitzgeralds and the Kennedys by Doris Kearns Goodwin | 1987 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | A Thousand Days: JFK in the White House by Arthur Schlesinger Jr. | 1965 | REVIEW (3 stars) |
| Kennedy, Joseph P | The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy by David Nasaw | 2012 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Kennedy, Robert | Robert Kennedy and His Times by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. | 1978 | |
| | Robert Kennedy: His Life by Evan Thomas | 2000 | |
| | Robert Kennedy: The Making of a Liberal Icon by Larry Tye | 2016 | |
| Kennedy, Ted | Catching the Wind: Edward Kennedy and the Liberal Hour ( (Vol 1) and Against the Wind: Edward Kennedy and the Rise of Conservatism (1976-2009) (Vol 2) by Neal Gabler | 2020/2 | |
| | Ted Kennedy: A Life by John A. Farrell | 2022 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Last Lion: The Fall and Rise of Ted Kennedy by Peter Canellos | 2009 | |
| Khrushchev | Khrushchev: The Man and His Era by William Taubman | 2003 | |
| Kidd, Captain | The Pirate Hunter: The True Story of Captain Kidd by Richard Zacks | 2002 | |
| King Jr., Martin Luther | King: A Life by Jonathan Eig | 2023 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | Let the Trumpet Sound: A Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. by Stephen Oates | 1982 | |
| | America in the King Years (3 volume series) by Taylor Branch | 1988-
2006 | |
| | King: A Biography by David Levering Lewis | 1970 | |
| | Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference by David Garrow | 1986 | |
| Kissinger, Henry | Kissinger: A Biography by Walter Isaacson | 1992 | |
| | Kissinger: The Idealist, 1923-1968 (Volume One) by Niall Ferguson | 2015 | |
| Lafayette | The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered by Laura Auricchio | 2014 | |
| | Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution by Mike Duncan | 2021 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Lafayette by Harlow Unger | 2002 | |
| Lee, Robert E | The Man Who Would Not Be Washington: Robert E. Lee’s Civil War by Jonathan Horn | 2015 | |
| | Clouds of Glory: The Life and Legend of Robert E Lee by Michael Korda | 2014 | |
| | Lee (abridgement of Douglas Southall Freeman’s 4-volume series) by Richard Harwell | 1997 | |
| Lewis, Meriwether | Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West by Stephen Ambrose | 1997 | |
| | The Character of Meriwether Lewis: Explorer in the Wilderness by Clay Jenkinson | 2011 | |
| Lincoln, Abraham | Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin | 2005 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | Lincoln by David Herbert Donald | 1995 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | A. Lincoln: A Biography by Ronald C. White Jr. | 2009 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Abraham Lincoln: A Life (2 vols) by Michael Burlingame | 2008 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Abraham Lincoln: A Biography by Benjamin Thomas | 1952 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Lincoln, Robert Todd | Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T. Lincoln by Jason Emerson | 2012 | |
| Lindbergh, Charles | Lindbergh by A. Scott Berg | 1998 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Lippmann, Walter | Walter Lippmann and the American Century by Ronald Steel | 1980 | |
| Lodge, Henry Cabot | Henry Cabot Lodge: A Biography by John A. Garraty | 1953 | |
| Long, Huey | Huey Long by T. Harry Williams | 1969 | |
| Longstreet, James | General James Longstreet: The Confederacy’s Most Controversial Soldier by Jeffry Wert | 1993 | |
| Luther, Martin | Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther by Roland Bainton | 1950 | |
| MacArthur, Douglas | American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964 by William Manchester | 1978 | |
| | The Years of MacArthur (3-volume series) by D. Clayton James | 1970-85 | |
| | Douglas MacArthur: American Warrior by Arthur Herman | 2016 | |
| Madison, James | James Madison by Richard Brookhiser | 2011 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | James Madison: America’s First Politician by Jay Cost | 2021 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | James Madison: A Biography by Ralph Ketcham | 1971 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Magellan, Ferdinand | Over the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe by Laurence Bergreen | 2004 | |
| Malcolm X | Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable | 2011 | |
| | The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X by Les & Tamara Payne | 2020 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Mantle, Mickey | The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood by Jane Leavy | 2010 | |
| Marshall, George | George Marshall: Defender of the Republic by David Roll | 2019 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | George C. Marshall (4-volume series) by Forrest Pogue | 1963-87 | |
| | General of the Army: George C. Marshall, Soldier and Statesman by Ed Cray | 1990 | |
| Marshall, John | John Marshall: Definer of a Nation by Jean Edward Smith | 1996 | |
| | Without Precedent: Chief Justice John Marshall and His Times by Joel Richard Paul | 2018 | Third-party reviews |
| Marshall, Thurgood | Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary by Juan Williams | 1998 | |
| Maxwell, James | The Man Who Changed Everything: The Life of James Clerk Maxwell by Basil Mahon | 2003 | |
| McCarthy, Joseph | A Conspiracy So Immense: The World of Joe McCarthy by David Oshinsky | 1983 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| McKinley, William | William McKinley and His America by H. Wayne Morgan | 1963 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Mellon, Andrew | Mellon: An American Life by David Cannadine | 2006 | |
| Melville, Herman | Melville: A Biography by Laurie Robertson-Lorant | 1996 | |
| Michelangelo | Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King | 2003 | |
| | Michelangelo: A Life in Six Masterpieces by Miles J. Unger | 2014 | |
| | Michelangelo: His Epic Life by Martin Gayford | 2013 | |
| | The Agony and the Ecstacy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo by Irving Stone | 1958 | |
| Mondavi, Robert | The House of Mondavi: The Rise and Fall of an American Wine Dynasty by Julia Siler | 2007 | |
| Monroe, James | James Monroe: The Quest for National Identity by Harry Ammon | 1971 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | The Last Founding Father: James Monroe by Harlow Unger | 2009 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | James Monroe: A Life by Tim McGrath | 2020 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Montgomery, Bernard | Monty: The Making of a General 1887-1942 (Vol 1) by Nigel Hamilton | 1991 | |
| | Master of the Battlefield: Monty’s War Years 1942-1944 (Vol 2) by Nigel Hamilton | 1984 | |
| | Monty: The Field-Marshal 1944-1976 (Vol 3) by Nigel Hamilton | 1986 | |
| Morgan, JP | Morgan: American Financier by Jean Strouse | 1999 | REVIEW (3 stars) |
| | The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance by Ron Chernow | 1990 | |
| Morgenthau Family | Morgenthau: Power, Privilege, and the Rise of an American Dynasty by Andrew Meier | 2022 | REVIEW (4¾ stars) |
| Morris, Robert | Robert Morris: Financier of the American Revolution by Charles Rappleye | 2010 | |
| Moses, Robert | The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert Caro | 1974 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Mozart | Mozart: A Life by Maynard Solomon | 1995 | REVIEW (2½ stars) |
| Musk, Elon | Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson | 2023 | REVIEW (3 stars) |
| Napoleon | Napoleon: A Life by Andrew Roberts | 2014 | |
| | Napoleon by Vincent Cronin | 1971 | |
| | Napoleon: Soldier of Destiny (Vol 1) by Michael Broers | 2014 | |
| | Napoleon: The Spirit of the Age (Vol 2) by Michael Broers | 2018 | |
| Nash, John F. | A Beautiful Mind: A Biography of John Forbes Nash, Jr. by Sylvia Nasar | 1998 | |
| Newton, Isaac | Isaac Newton by James Gleick | 2003 | |
| Nicolay, John | Lincoln’s Boys: John Hay, John Nicolay, and the War for Lincoln’s Image by Joshua Zeitz | 2013 | |
| Nicholas II | Nicholas and Alexandra: The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty by Robert Massie | 1967 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Nimitz, Chester | Nimitz by E.B. Potter | 1976 | |
| | The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King – The Five Star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea by Walter Borneman | 2012 | |
| Nixon, Richard | Richard Milhous Nixon: The Rise of An American Politician by Roger Morris | 1990 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Nixon: The Education of a Politician 1913-1962 (Vol 1) by Stephen Ambrose | 1987 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Nixon: The Triumph of a Politician 1962-1972 (Vol 2) by Stephen Ambrose | 1989 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Nixon: Ruin & Recovery 1973-1990 (Vol 3) by Stephen Ambrose | 1991 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Richard Nixon: The Life by John Farrell | 2017 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | President Nixon: Alone in the White House by Richard Reeves | 2001 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| O’Connor, Sandra Day | First: Sandra Day O’Connor by Evan Thomas | 2019 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| O’Neill, Tip | Tip O’Neill and the Democratic Century: A Biography by John Farrell | 2001 | REVIEW
(3¾ stars) |
| Obama, Barack | Barack Obama: The Story by David Maraniss | 2012 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Oppenheimer, Robert | American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird | 2005 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | Robert Oppenheimer: A Life Inside the Center by Ray Monk | 2012 | |
| Paine, Thomas | Tom Paine: A Political Life by John Keane | 1995 | |
| Parks, Rosa | The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks by Jeanne Theoharis | 2013 | |
| Patton | Patton: A Genius for War by Carlo D’Este | 1995 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Patton: The Man Behind the Legend, 1885-1945 by Martin Blumenson | 1985 | |
| Perkins, Frances | The Woman Behind the New Deal: The Life and Legacy of Frances Perkins by Kirstin Downey | 2010 | |
| Pershing, John | Black Jack: The Life and Times of John J. Pershing (2 vols) by Frank Vandiver | 1977 | |
| | Guerilla Warrior: The Early Life of John J. Pershing (Vol 1) by Donald Smythe | 1973 | |
| | Pershing: General of the Armies (Vol 2) by Donald Smythe | 1986 | |
| Peter the Great | Peter the Great: His Life and World by Robert Massie | 1980 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Pierce, Franklin | Franklin Pierce: New Hampshire’s Favorite Son (Vol 1) by Peter Wallner | 2004 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Franklin Pierce: Martyr for the Union (Vol 2) by Peter Wallner | 2007 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Polk, James | Polk: The Man Who Transformed the Presidency and America by Walter Borneman | 2008 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Pope John Paul II | Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II by George Weigel | 1999 | |
| Presley, Elvis | Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley (Vol 1) by Peter Guralnick | 1994 | |
| | Carleless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley (Vol 2) by Peter Guralnick | 1999 | |
| Putin, Vladimir | The New Tsar: The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin by Steven Lee Myers | 2015 | |
| Queen Victoria | Victoria: The Queen by Julia Baird | 2016 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Raleigh, Sir Walter | Sir Walter Raleigh: The Controversial Hero of the Elizabethian Age by Raleigh Trevelyan | 2002 | |
| Reagan, Nancy | The Triumph of Nancy Reagan by Karen Tumulty | 2021 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Reagan, Ronald | Reagan: The Life by H.W. Brands | 2015 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Reagan: An American Journey by Bob Spitz | 2018 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Reagan: American Icon by Iwan Morgan | 2016 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power (Vol 1) by Lou Cannon | 2003 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime (Vol 2) by Lou Cannon | 1991 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Robinson, Jackie | Jackie Robinson: A Biography by Arnold Rampersad | 1997 | |
| Rockefeller, John D. | Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow | 1998 | REVIEW (4¾ stars) |
| Rockefeller, Nelson | On His Own Terms: A Life of Nelson Rockefeller by Richard Norton Smith | 2014 | |
| Rockwell, Norman | American Mirror: The Life and Art of Norman Rockwell by Deborah Solomon | 2013 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Rogers, Will | Will Rogers: A Biography by Ben Yagoda | 1993 | |
| Rommel, Erwin | Field Marshal: The Life and Death of Erwin Rommel by Daniel Allen Butler | 2015 | |
| Roosevelt, Alice | Alice: Alice Roosevelt Longworth, from White House Princess to Washington Power Broker by Stacy Cordery | 2007 | |
| Roosevelt, Eleanor | Eleanor Roosevelt, Vol 1: 1884-1933 by Blanche Wiesen Cook | 1992 | |
| | Eleanor Roosevelt, Vol 2: The Defining Years, 1933-1938 by Blanche Wiesen Cook | 1999 | |
| | Eleanor Roosevelt, Vol 3: The War Years and After, 1939-1962 by Blanche Wiesen Cook | 2016 | |
| | Eleanor by David Michaelis | 2020 | REVIEW
(4 stars) |
| Roosevelt, Franklin | FDR by Jean Edward Smith | 2007 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of FDR by H. W. Brands | 2008 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt by Doris Kearns Goodwin | 1994 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Before the Trumpet: Young Franklin Roosevelt 1882-1905 (Vol 1) by Geoffrey Ward | 1985 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | A First Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt 1905-1928 (Vol 2) by Geoffrey Ward | 1989 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Roosevelt, Theodore | The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Vol I) by Edmund Morris | 1980 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Theodore Rex (Vol II) by Edmund Morris | 2001 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Colonel Roosevelt (Vol III) by Edmund Morris | 2010 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft and the Golden Age of Journalism by Doris Kearns Goodwin | 2013 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Power and Responsibility: The Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt by William Harbaugh | 1961 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard | 2005 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Rose, Pete | Pete Rose: An American Dilemma by Kostya Kennedy | 2014 | |
| Ruth, Babe | The Big Bam: The Life and Times of Babe Ruth by Leigh Montville | 2006 | |
| Salk, Jonas | Jonas Salk: A Life by Charlotte DeCroes Jacobs | 2015 | |
| Seward, William | Seward: Lincoln’s Indispensable Man by Walter Stahr | 2012 | REVIEW (3½ stars) |
| Shackleton, Ernest | Shackleton: By Endurance We Conquer by Michael Smith | 2014 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Shakespeare | Shakespeare: The Biography by Peter Ackroyd | 2005 | |
| Sherman, William | Fierce Patriot: The Tangled Lives of William Tecumseh Sherman by Robert O’Connell | 2014 | |
| | William Tecumseh Sherman: In the Service of My Country: A Life by James McDonough | 2016 | |
| | The Scourge of War: The Life of William Tecumseh Sherman by Brian Holden Reid | 2020 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | Sherman: A Soldier’s Passion for Order by John Marszalek | 1992 | |
| | Sherman: Soldier, Realist, American by B.H. Liddell Hart | 1929 | |
| Sinatra, Frank | Frank Sinatra: The Chairman by James Kaplan | 2015 | |
| Stalin, Josef | Stalin: A Political Biography by Isaac Deutscher | 1949 | |
| | Young Stalin by Simon Montefiore | 2007 | |
| | Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar by Simon Montefiore | 2004 | |
| | Stalin: Paradoxes of Power, 1878-1928 (Vol 1) by Stephen Kotkin | 2014 | |
| Stanton, Edwin | Stanton: Lincon’s War Secretary by Walter Stahr | 2017 | |
| Steinbeck, John | John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography by Jackson Benson | 1990 | |
| Taft, William | The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft and the Golden Age of Journalism by Doris Kearns Goodwin | 2013 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | The Life and Times of William Howard Taft (2 vols) by Henry Pringle | 1939 | REVIEW (3¼ stars) |
| Tecumseh | Tecumseh: A Life by John Sugden | 1997 | |
| | Tecumseh and the Prophet: The Shawnee Brothers Who Defied a Nation by Peter Cozzens | 2020 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| Thatcher, Margaret | Margaret Thatcher, The Grocer’s Daughter (Vol 1) by John Campbell | 2000 | |
| | Margaret Thatcher, Iron Lady (Vol 2) by John Campbell | 2003 | |
| | Margaret Thatcher: From Grantham to the Faulklands: The Authorized Biography (Vol 1) by Charles Moore | 2013 | |
| | Margaret Thatcher: Everything She Wants: The Authorized Biography (Vol 2) by Charles Moore | 2015 | |
| Thoreau | Henry Thoreau: A Life of the Mind by Robert Richardson | 1986 | |
| Thorpe, Jim | Path Lit by Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe by David Maraniss | 2022 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| Tolstoy | Tolstoy by Henri Troyat | 1965 | |
| Truman, Harry | Truman by David McCullough | 1992 | |
| Twain, Mark | Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain by Justin Kaplan | 1966 | |
| | Mark Twain: A Life by Ron Powers | 2005 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Vanderbilt, Cornelius | The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt by T. J. Stiles | 2009 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| Warburg (family) | The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family by Ron Chernow | 1993 | |
| Warren, Earl | Justice For All: Earl Warren and the Nation He Made by Jim Newton | 2006 | |
| Washington, Booker T | Up From History: The Life of Booker T. Washington by Robert Norrell | 2009 | |
| Washington, George | Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow | 2010 | REVIEW (5 stars) |
| | George Washington: The Forge of Experience 1732-1775 (Vol 1) by James Flexner | 1965 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| | George Washington in the American Revolution 1775-1783 (Vol 2) by James Flexner | 1967 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | George Washington and the New Nation 1783-1793 (Vol 3) by James Flexner | 1970 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | George Washington: Anguish and Farewell 1793-1799 (Vol 4) by James Flexner | 1972 | REVIEW (4½ stars) |
| | His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph Ellis | 2005 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Washington [Harwell’s abridgment of 7-vol series] by Douglas Southall Freeman | 1968 | REVIEW (3 stars) |
| Wayne, John | John Wayne: American by Randy Roberts | 1995 | |
| | John Wayne: The Life and Legend by Scott Eyman | 2014 | |
| Webster, Daniel | Daniel Webster: The Man and His Time by Robert Remini | 1997 | |
| | The Great Triumvirate: Webster, Clay, and Calhoun by Merrill Peterson | 1987 | |
| Wilde, Oscar | Oscar Wilde by Richard Ellmann | 1987 | |
| Williams, Ted | Ted Williams: The Biography of an American Hero by Leigh Montville | 2004 | |
| | The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams by Ben Bradlee Jr. | 2013 | |
| Wilson, Woodrow | Wilson by A. Scott Berg | 2013 | REVIEW (4 stars) |
| | Woodrow Wilson: A Biography by August Heckscher | 1991 | REVIEW (4¼ stars) |
| | Woodrow Wilson: A Biography by John Milton Cooper | 2009 | REVIEW (3¾ stars) |
| Woolf, Virginia | Virginia Woolf: A Biography by Quentin Bell | 1971 | |
| Wright (brothers) | The Wright Brothers by David McCullough | 2015 | Third-party reviews |
| Wright, Frank Lloyd | Frank Lloyd Wright: A Biography by Meryle Secrest | 1992 | |
| Deng, Xioping | Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China by Ezra Vogel | 2011 | |
| Zemin, Jiang | The Man Who Changed China: The Life and Legacy of Jiang Zemin by Robert Lawrence Kuhn | 2005 |
