Yes, it was relatively common in the 19th century for Presidential authors to author or write themselves horribly misleading biographies that were short and designed for mass print. John C. Calhoun for instance wrote(or likely wrote anyway) The Life and Speeches of John C. Calhoun shortly before the election of 1844. In it he completely fails to include most of his speeches from 1811-1826 (aside from his maiden speech) when he was a prominent nationalist, and several important speeches during the 1830's where he attacks Jackson. The answer as to why he neglected to mention them are obvious, supporting a National Bank, protective tariffs, internal improvements, and attacking Andrew Jackson are great ways to not win the Democrat nomination. He also comes across as rather pompous, describing himself as the greatest statesmen of his age. Of course even in the 1840's people noticed the fact that half of his political career appeared to be missing, and his opponents criticized him heavily for it. As a bonus a 1844 review of the work, a rather fawning review I might add, can be found here. Notice how the author bends over backwards not to insult James Madison, both Whigs and Democrats fought to claim the legacy of the three Virginian presidents and it was key to explain why Madison's support of the bank in 1816 was not applicable to the war fought under Jackson.

My favorite line from the review

He here showed, in his reorganiza­tion and administration of the War Department, during the seven years of his secretariship, those remarkable administrative powers, unequalled by any executive oflicer we have ever had, and never surpassed by any one in modern times, unless perhaps by Napoleon. As much as we admire Mr. Calhoun, as a clear, profound, and original thinker, as the able and manly parliament­ary orator, as the philosophical politician, we are far more impressed by his consummate ability as an admin­istrative officer. He has remarkable powers of combi­nation ; sees, at once, precisely what is requisite to be done ; and is unerring in the selection of his means and agents. We have no other statesman that can challenge comparison with him. He knows how to accomplish his ends, to establish a rigid accountability in every depart­ment, and to render it all but impossible for his agents to prove unfaithful or dishonest. Not a single defalca­tion took place in his department during the time he was at its head, and of the millions of dollars that passed through the hands of his subordinates, not a cent was lost to the government. One is tempted to ask the (< sage of Lindenwold," whether he can say as much of the four years that it was his good fortune to be at the head of the Federal administration ?"