Designing Victory tracks Madison from his native Cleveland and several points further south in his extraordinary journey to a first-class education in domestic and international institutions. One prize at the end of Madison's struggles was an opportunity to collaborate with and learn from virtually every one of the twentieth century's most storied architects, including Le Corbusier, Philip Johnson, Walter Gropius, and I.M. Pei. Among Madison's signature design achievements are the U.S. Embassy in Dakar, Senegal, the Engineering & Nuclear Facility at Tuskegee Institute, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.Designing Victory also recounts Madison's adventures in love and war-he's a Buffalo Soldier and a Purple Heart medal awardee-and explores his rise to become a cultural and civic leader in Cleveland. Designing Victory tells the tale of a talented, courageous man who learned early on how to win the long game and become one of the most celebrated living architects by refusing to listen to those who told him that a black architect would starve.

Presents an investigation into the intellectual, psychological, and personal life of the least known Founding Father, shedding light on this leader who pushed the American state to achieve its potential no matter the obstacle.