“Everyone who was fortunate enough to know Terry holds him in the highest regard, not only for his views and actions in the political arena, but also for his determination to uphold and strengthen the goodness of human kind. He was a man of tremendous honor, courage and strength. This tribute to Terry’s integrity, innovation, and moral upstanding exemplifies the impact that he had, and will forever continue to have, on our society.”—The Honorable James B. Hunt, Jr., Governor of North Carolina
“Terry Sanford could be aptly described as North Carolina’s Renaissance governor. The links between our families span three generations and were marked by a shared vision for a better North Carolina. As his first biographers show, Terry’s contributions to the state were substantial and vital and his legacy is enduring.”—The Honorable Robert W. Scott, Governor of North Carolina (1969–1973)
“Terry Sanford was a creative and visionary leader who knew how to hammer dreams into results. Covington and Ellis brilliantly explain this remarkable man’s ambition in Terry Sanford: Politics, Progress, and Outrageous Ambition.ˆ”—Charlie Rose
“Terry Sanford was the visionary, compassionate leader of our generation. He defined public service as the high calling of life and sought with all his might and succeeded in elevating the human spirit and sense of hope of thousands of disadvantaged fellow citizens. He will be remembered as our exemplary apostle of education and the constructive builder of a vibrant, progressive North Carolina. He gave his very best. He made a difference.”—William Friday, President Emeritus of the University of North Carolina
“What truly distinguished Terry Sanford . . . was not just the number of posts he held, rather it was the unquenchable spirit that he brought to every one of them. In his soul he believed that people could shape their own futures, that men and women weren’t just flotsam and jetsam floating on the tides of history but rather could choose their own destiny.”—David Gergen, from the foreword
“This eagerly awaited biography is a tribute to Terry Sanford’s life of great purpose and shows the unique and courageous ways in which he dreamed fantastic dreams for North Carolina and made them come true.”—Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans
“Terry Sanford is a valuable addition to the literature of Southern politics. Sanford was too important a figure to be ignored for so long by serious biographers. This book . . . fills that literary gap nicely. The result is a double treat for the reader: a compelling tale of a remarkable individual and a valuable history of the North Carolina political scene in the 20th century.”
-- Durham Herald-Sun
“[This] book is a trip to town. In other words, it’s a good read, something special. Terry Sanford . . . is like three books in one. Want to know who the ‘Branch-head boys’ were? This book is a political history of North Carolina in the second half of the 20th century, and it will tell you about Scott’s rural support network, which also supported Sanford. Want an inside picture of how North Carolina emerged from the civil rights struggles of the 1950s and 1960s with a reputation for moderation and workable approaches? This book chronicles the period and the subject matter and Sanford’s pivotal role in it. Want to get to know Terry Sanford—paratrooper, small-town lawyer, FBI agent, legislator, governor, U.S. senator and Duke University president? This is the only place to go, and consider yourself fortunate to be able to do so.”
-- News & Record
“[This] is far more than a biography of Sanford: it is an insightful analysis of North Carolina politics for a good part of the 20th century. The authors know the state well . . . they tell [the story] with a sure feel for the material and with narrative skill.”
-- Independent Weekly
“The most comprehensive work now available on this major Southern political leader.”
-- Library Journal
“The most important . . . legacy of Terry Sanford’s exalted life. . . , besides education, was his quality of leadership: a mystical combination of intelligence, judgement, determination, and, certainly, warmth and charm that inspired a generation of brilliant North Carolinians to public service. It takes a special person to do that.”
-- Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“The sheer breadth of Sanford’s career is stunning—political strategist in the 1950s, cutting-edge governor in the 1960s, dynamic university president in the 1970s, U.S. senator in the 1980s, and elder statesman in the 1990s. Yet the authors, both veteran North Carolina writers and former newspaper reporters, rise to the challenge. They thoroughly chart Sanford’s career while skillfully putting it into the context of times that span the Great Depression, World War II, the Red Scare, the civil rights movement, the war on poverty, the Vietnam War, campus unrest, and the rise of Republicanism. One of the book’s rewards is the thumbnail sketches of such Tar Heel politicos as Clyde Hooey, Sam B. Ervin, Jesse Helms, and Bert Bennett.”
-- News & Observer