Includes bibliographical references (p. [443]-509).

A look at the parents of the American presidents, full of facts and anecdotes as well as psychological profiles based on Wead's findings. He analyzes the types of families into which our presidents were born, and sheds a fascinating light on how their destinies were shaped during childhood. Using papers and letters, as well as private conversations and interviews with six presidents and first ladies, Wead focuses on the early life of George Washington; John Adams, John Quincy Adams, and the making of our nation's first political empire; the humble beginnings of our greatest president, Abraham Lincoln; the privileged upbringing of Franklin Delano Roosevelt; the ambitious rise of John Fitzgerald Kennedy; and the "quiet dynasty" led by George H.W. Bush and his son, George W. Bush.