"Heroes are often defined as ordinary characters who are thrust into extraordinary circumstances, and through courage and a dash of luck, cement their place in history. Chosen as FDR's fourth-term vice president for his well-praised work ethic, good judgment, and lack of enemies, Harry S. Truman--a midwesterner who had no college degree and had never had the money to buy his own home--was the prototypical ordinary man. Until, that is, he found himself quickly in over his head after FDR's death. The first four months of Truman's administration saw the founding of the United Nations, the fall of Berlin, victory at Okinawa, firebombings in Tokyo, the first atomic explosion, the Nazi surrender, the liberation of concentration camps, the mass starvation of Europe, the Potsdam Conference, the controversial decision to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the surrender of imperial Japan, and finally, the end of World War II and the rise of the Cold War. No other president had ever faced so much in so short a time. Tightly focused, meticulously researched, and rendered with vivid detail and narrative verse, The Accidental President takes readers into the situation room with Truman during this tumultuous, history making 120 days when the stakes were high and the challenges even higher. The result is narrative history of the highest order and a compelling look at a presidency with great relevance to our times."--Jacket. In Truman's first four months in office, this unlikely president had to take on Germany, Japan, Stalin, and the atomic bomb, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Chosen as FDR's fourth term Vice President for his work ethic, good judgment, and lack of enemies, Truman was thrust in over his head after FDR's sudden death. Baime escorts readers into the situation room with Truman during this tumultuous, history-making 120 days, when the stakes were high and the challenge even higher.

Introduction -- April 12, 1945 -- The political education of Harry S. Truman -- April-May 1945 -- June-July 1945 -- Little Boy, Fat Man, and Potsdam -- Epilogue.