John Adams by David McCullough Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of John Adams
Book Review: John Adams
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm not sure I'm qualified to review this book, especially where I'm only not even half-way thru it. It has, however, been a revelation for me due to my ignorance of US history. I find of very real interest the fact that he was born and lived in my state of Massachusetts, and that he has created the laws of the commonwealth, in addition to his other great accomplishments. I can appreciate the massive amount of research that Mr. McCullough must have done in order to write this book. It is very well done in my estimation. However, I find myself comparing this to "Team of Leaders" which I read fairly recently and which I found absolutely fantastic, so that will tell you where I'm coming from. It was like reading a novel. I think "John Adams" has a touch of the text book in it.
Book Review: Outstanding Biography
Summary: 5 Stars
I had heard about this book on NPR when they did an interview with the author. It sounded fantastic but I normally do not read biographies so I didn't bother with it. THEN I got my Kindle and remembered the NPR interview and thought WHY NOT? reading it on my Kindle is not going to break my hands (It's 762 pages long)! I quickly downloaded it and dove in.
What a surprise. This book is well-researched and correlated to present a side of the formation of our nation/government and several well-known historical characters that I previously never knew. Adam's own letters and those written to him by others, including his beloved with Abigal, show real-time action and opinions as things happened. I saw a side of Jefferson I never knew existed and the characterization of Benjamin Franklin makes one wonder how either of them would get on in politics today.
The one thing I learned was the more things change, the more they stay the same, and the struggles of our fledgling nation in that time and space do not seem so different than the things we face today. The names have changed and time has marched on, but people will be people and nothing makes that more clear than this amazing biography. I strongly suspect that were John Adams alive today he'd be in the thick of things in Congress sticking to his morals and fighting for the rights of the PEOPLE versus the rights of the government to interfer.
(Did I mention that I love my Kindle?)
Book Review: McCullough wants to take you there ... and he does.
Summary: 5 Stars
Wonderful picture of the times and the man. McCullough gives us a fascinating picture of a great man with public and private flaws (the Alien and Sedition Acts were wrong, and his relationship with his second son Charles could have been repaired if he was more compassionate). He also shows us the tumultuous times in which he lived and the people in his orbit (you rock, Abigail). Although I agree with reviewers that note that McCullough does become too fond not only of John but most of the Adams family, I think as a whole the biography works well. I'll never again underestimate how truly perilous the founding of our country was.Book Review: History-lite (tastes good, less filling)
Summary: 3 Stars
David McCullough is to history what John Grisham is to literature: he's lite fare, easily digestable but not particulary nourishing. To me, the book seemed like a watered-down and streamlined portrayal of an important historical figure. It's reasonable well-written and moves along at a good clip; it just seems superficial. I guess that's o.k. if your target audience is people who don't normally read history. If you fall into that category, the JA is probably the book for you. Personally, however, I usually like to read "serious" works of history. History-lite just doesn't seem worth my time....
Not terrible but not recommended.
Book Review: Brilliant biography
Summary: 5 Stars
There are many more erudite descriptions of John Adams. I decided to write a review because it is my favorite non-fiction book and I felt that the HBO series took the wind out of Adams' sails in so many ways. The HBO miniseries, which I long awaited, bored me to tears. There was none of the excitement in the series that I read in the book. Paul Giamatti's Adams could not speak above a whisper and did not convey, at least to me, the spirit of John Adams, which I read in 2001 and still remember vividly. John Adams had such an interesting and varied life, that to distill it as it was done in the HBO series leaves the viewer questioning how this complex man was anything more than a bombastic autocrat.
David McCullough's use of primary sites and his use of the many letters written to his wife Abigail makes this book one of the most memorable and romantic of all the founding fathers. He clearly writes about his personal life - his treatment of his children, the favoritism of John Quincy, his life-long love affair with his wife and their juxtaposition with his duty to his fledgling country as well as his interest in his own epitaph. He brings to life a human who was so multi-faceted and brings most of those facets to life.
I am not an historian, so I realize there are many things missing knowledge of John Adams. However, that which was included was readable, interesting and kept me turning those many pages with ease.