Founding Brothers

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Founding Brothers ~ The Next Book On The Stack

I picked up my copy of Joseph Ellis' Pulitzer Prize winning Founding Brothers over a year ago, while celebrating my fiftieth birthday. A couple of dear friends treated me to a weekend in Washington D.C. for my birthday and on the night of my birthday we ate at a really cool bookstore/restaurant in the Dupont section of town. After dinner, I picked up a handful of books, paid for them and left.

A few months later I was looking at that stack of books and decided to move Founding Brothers to the top. But I have read several other books since, including Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (for the umpteenth time) and Shelby Foote's massive work, The Civil War: A Narrative. Now it is time for the Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation.

Can you talk me out of reading this book? Or will you cheer me on while I read it?

Founding Brothers

For as long as I can remember, I have been reading about American history. That's not to say that there were periods in my life that I didn't read American history, because there were, but I have always returned home. Home is never littered with time lines or sterile, textbook accounts of history. I have to have some meat in my reading; some insight and depth. I really need to know the nuts and bolts of the men and women who shaped our history.

Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation promises to deliver the type of history reading I enjoy. The back cover tells of the author's attempt to explore how a small group of men who were at once laden with great gifts of forward thinking, and at the same time deeply flawed men, overcame gargantuan odds to set the course of our nation.

Ellis puts the seven men, Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, and James Madison to work in six episodes of history, as characters in a great stage play. Ellis believes these six episodes to be the most crucial, of all episodes, in our young county's experiment:

* Hamilton and Burr's deadly duel
* Washington's timeless Farewell Address
* Adam's presidency and his partnership with his wife, Abigail
* The dinner party that sealed the deal where the nation's capital would be located
* Franklin's attempt to force Congress to confront the slavery issue, and Madison' run at blocking him
* The legendary correspondence between Adams and Jefferson

All of this in a book that is under three hundred pages in length. The book DID win a Pulitzer Prize, so a lot of people thought it was a good read. I wonder if I will think the same way.

Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation

Amazon Price: $6.98 (as of 05/31/2012)Buy Now

In retrospect, it seems as if the American Revolution was inevitable. But was it? In Founding Brothers, Joseph J. Ellis reveals that many of those truths we hold to be self-evident were actually fiercely contested in the early days of the republic.

“Vivid and unforgettable...an enduring achievement ~ The Boston Globe”

You Decide. Is Founding Brothers Going to Be worth The Read?

Okay, I have written all I know about the book without reading it. I have a fickle mind at times and often need a nudge in one direction or another, so this is my plea for help.

Have you read the book and can give a good review? Will it be worth my time or should I sell in during one of the great American traditions, the Garage Sale?

If you haven't read it, what do you think? Would you want to? Would you borrow it from when I'm done? Or would you laugh at me and call me a fool for wasting my time?

Help me out here.

Push me....

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Go for It! It was, or sounds like a great read.

Hannah says:

I read it and it told me so much about the REAL lives of the founding brothers and their struggles. Its not hard to read and is very short. Some may tell you dont read it but thats just because they are lazy. READ IT. i promise you wont regret it.

stargazer00 says:

It looks good to me. Can't wait to hear what you think of it.

luvmyludwig says:

sounds great to me and sounds like a wonderful gift for my husband, the history buff.

BevsPaper says:

Well it sounds like a good read to me. Go for it!

24websurf says:

I can't wait to get your review on this book! As a person who loves history this sounds like a great read!

Dude, you'll waste your time if you read it. Just sayin'.

becka says:

DO not read this book!!!
i had to read it for school and it was just awful.

mysticmama says:

Not my cup of tea...but if you like to read History, then go for it...I prefer fast paced adventure to read...and like to watch the History Channel for history...though I do admit I have read some excellent History biographies like Malcolm X & Sacajawea :-)

 

Have You Read Founding Brothers? How About Rating It?

If you have already read the book, how about giving it a rating to give me some kind of an idea what I mat be in store for?
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Plucked From The Book At Random

Once again, Jefferson seemed to be uniquely equipped to become the beneficiary of romanticized versions of history...

Joseph J. Ellis's Bio Page

founding brothersThis is the bio page at Mount Holyoke, for Joseph J. Ellis. His specialization is the American revolution, most notably the players that generated the Great Experiment that thrives over 200 years later. His writing is very casual and flows unbelievably well, as he explains the backgrounds and personalities of those who propel America on it's way to the major force that it is today.

Mount Holyoke Bio Page

Joseph Ellis, a professor of history at Mount Holyoke since 1972, is one of the nation's foremost scholars of American history. He is the author of seven books, including bestsellers American Sphinx, which won the National Book Award (1997); Founding Brothers: the Revolutionary Generation, which received the Pulitzer Prize in history (2000); and His Excellency: George Washington (2004).

More books by Joseph J. Ellis

Vote for your favorites, or add any I missed.

Listed here are some of the Historian's other books.

Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis

Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis

In this landmark work of history, the National Book more...0 points

After the Revolution: Profiles of Early American Culture by Joseph J. Ellis

After the Revolution: Profiles of Early American Culture by Joseph J. Ellis

Through portraits of four figures-Charles Willson more...0 points

His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

To this landmark biography of our first president, more...0 points

Passionate Sage: The Character and Legacy of John Adams by Joseph J. Ellis

Passionate Sage: The Character and Legacy of John Adams by Joseph J. Ellis

A fresh look at this astute, likably quirky statesman, more...0 points

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph J. Ellis

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph J. Ellis

From the prizewinning author of the best-selling Founding more...0 points

You might also like these related books...

Here is a list of some other great books related to the American Revolutionary war.

If you loved Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation, you might also enjoy:

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph J. Ellis

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph J. Ellis

From the prizewinning author of the best-selling Founding more...0 points

His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

To this landmark biography of our first president, more...0 points

American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph J. Ellis

American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph J. Ellis

At different times Thomas Jefferson has been claim more...0 points

John Adams by David McCullough

John Adams by David McCullough

In this powerful, epic biography, David McCullough more...0 points

1776 by David McCullough

1776 by David McCullough

In this masterful book, David McCullough tells the more...0 points

Based on extensive research in both American and British archives, 1776 is a powerful drama written with extraordinary...

0 points

Postscript of utmost importance

DonorsChooseIf you buy any of the books recommended above, this page automatically makes a donation to the incredible nonprofit, Donors Choose, which helps provide classrooms and students in need with resources that our public schools often lack.

The Debate | Traditional Publishing vs eBooks

Digital or Print?

What may be the debate of the year is currently taking place as the stats indicate an overall decline of book sales the last two years.According to the American Association of Publishers (AAP). While adult hardcover books actually increased by over 6% in 2009, eBook sales, which account for 4% of all book sales, have increased awhopping 176%.

Are these figures telling the tale of the tape as the publishing industry struggles to regain their status as a recession proof industry? Are eBooks on their way to eliminating traditional books altogether? Or, is there another story under the front cover that is yet to be told?

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Read History? If Not, What Do You Like To Read?

Everyone likes to read. Tell us your favorite and what appeals to you about what you read.

Thanks!

  • MeltedRachel Aug 10, 2009 @ 6:52 am | delete
    What a great looking lens and good info!
  • luvmyludwig Aug 10, 2009 @ 6:51 am | delete
    great job on this, sounds like a book my husband would really enjoy and me too if the kids will leave me alone to read it.
  • mysticmama Jul 29, 2009 @ 6:51 pm | delete
    You did a great job of making a book I would normally pass up as being dry and boring, look pretty interesting...which is pretty cool considering you haven't even read the book yet :-)
  • JaguarJulie Jul 29, 2009 @ 8:36 am | delete
    This sounds like a good choice for you Alex! For me, I just need to earmark the time to consider reading more than a couple of books -- probably have Squidoo to blame for limited my personal time eh? [PS another topic for a lens -- captcha word = bananapet!]
  • BevsPaper Jul 29, 2009 @ 6:40 am | delete
    Fantastic! I like mystery novels and historical fiction the best, however of late I've gotten into Sci Fi and Fantasy.
  • rms Jul 29, 2009 @ 6:34 am | delete
    Great choice!
  • 0ctavias0fferings Jul 29, 2009 @ 2:16 am | delete
    This is a really good lens - and you're older than I thought :P but I'll still give you 5*
  • 24websurf Jul 28, 2009 @ 7:09 pm | delete
    You have made me curious about this book! I may have get it and read it with you!

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drifter0658

Born in Southwestern Ohio, and will most likely die there. Joining Squidoo in October 2008, I was attempting some Web 2.0 promotion of my e-store. Quickly... more »

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