This is the first volume of what promises to be the best biography of Eisenhower. Mr. Ambrose is both gracious and succinct. He emphasizes Eisenhower's zest for action, his calm in emergencies, his excellent judgment, and his extraordinary political skill. Eisenhower pretended, even to himself, that he was not seeking the presidency. But nothing other than what he did in 1951-52 would have been more effective in securing that end. The author is an experienced military historian and one of the editors of the Eisenhower papers.