Rating: 
Summary: Lacking Objectivity...
Review: To write a bestselling history, a writer must foremost be a storyteller, able to engage a reader for 700 pages. This kind of written history often lacks analysis and objectivity. "John Adams" leaves the reader little to think about. Chapters of Adams life are generally onesided in order to show Adams' good characteristics, that are often times backed up by convenient quotes picked from 20 years down the road. While I admire John Adams as one of our most brillent political founding fathers, I want to stress that this is first and foremost a story, designed to make Adams easy to understand. There is more of a focus on his surroundings, opposed to analysis of Adams himself. On that note, I believe the most interesting thing about Adams is his many inner conflicts...the things that make him more real to us today, as opposed to the Monument that George Washington created for himself. I did not enjoy how this book tried to make Adams out to be the typical hero on a journey, filled with trials the tribulations of a Ulysses. Adams contridicting thought process is just as fasinating as his travels and meetings with the famous names of history. John Adams is a fasinating character, but not in the same way as GW
Rating:
Summary: John Adams . . . Period
Review: David McCullough's particular gift for writing history lies in his ability to get right inside the skin of the person he is writing about. People who knew Harry Truman, for example, claimed that "Truman" caught the man perfectly. The Adams biography is another expression of that extraordinary gift - but it has a big drawback. If you look at the jacket of the Adams biography carefully, you can see that the title of the book is "John Adams." McCullough explains that Adams always signed his name with that period at the end. Trust him to notice all the details. He has done his Adams reading thoroughly. I would venture to guess that he hasn't missed a single letter written by either John or Abigail. But all he writes about is John Adams . . . period. This is a real problem. McCullough got so far into the skin of his hero that he tells his life story entirely through Adams' own eyes. He even fell in love with Adams' wife. This is not all bad. By the time you are done with the book, you can be pretty confident that you see the American Revolution and the development of the American Republic exactly as Adams saw it. But this is supposed to be a biography - not an autobiography - and McCullough's approach means that you don't get any other perspective. Adams had great strengths which were undermined by equally great weaknesses. He could and did pursue his goals with singleminded stubborn intelligence. There is no doubt that he meant to have only the best for the United States and that he would make considerable personal sacrifices to make sure that the his country had the best. The trouble was that he couldn't understand anyone else's point of view. He had his own vision of America - but he had no picture at all of anyone else's and could not accept a difference of opinion. When his viewpoint was the right one for the particular situation, he was spectacularly successful. For example, his personality and political approach were perfect for approaching the Dutch during the Revolution and the financial loans that resulted were as important as any victory in battle or any other alliance in winning the Revolutionary War. It's even fair to say that no-one else could have gotten so far. But . . . when he was wrong he was just as spectacularly wrong and got nowhere. His presidency is a perfect case in point. His personality had none of the qualities necessary for him to be able to balance conflicting interests during his administration - in the way, for example, that Washington did so well. You don't get that from McCullough's biography. If this book is all you read, you can conclude that Adams was unjustly treated and sabotaged - which was certainly his own point of view. I found that unsatisfying. It means that you have to totally discount every other player at the time and shut your eyes to the wealth of complications and complicated personalities involved. That is where this book falls short. On the other hand, if you read it in conjunction with other books about the Revolution, it is very worthwhile indeed. McCullough writes extremely well. You will KNOW John Adams from the inside out. It will enrich your understanding of the other books, even as they fill in the limitations of this one. For a really comprehensive list, you can't do better than McCullough's bibliography (though I did wonder if he actually read some of those books considering his own final product). High points: Elkins, McKitrick: "The Age of Federalism"; Wood, "The Creation of the American Republic" and "The Radicalism of the American Revolution"; Bailyn, "Ideological Origins of the American Revolution"; Morris, "The Peacemakers"; Rakove, "Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the US Constitution."
Rating: 
Summary: History with Humanity
Review: My grasp of US History during the lifetime of John Adams is greatly improved. I'm not a historian, nor have I studied much about the Revolution other than what I learned in High School. So for me, in a 700+ page book, there are bound to be many "ah ha's". And there are! It's much more than a chronicle of John Adams's life. This is a love story that makes me think deeply about relationships, and even a little about religion (but, this isn't dwelled on). Due to the extensive time John lived away from home, he and Abigail were constantly writing letters to each other. I never knew how much correspondence from that time survived! But it did, and both the words in the letters, and McCullough's commentary, paint a picture of a deeply devoted couple. We see the lives of Jefferson (especially), Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, and others through John Adams's eyes. I have to remind myself that this is a single viewpoint; other histories should be consulted before I firm my judgement on those characters! What about the 700 pages? For me, it went very quickly through the first half and then bogged down. I was afraid that there would be too much information in this tome. Perhaps true, but despite the fact that I could not previously have said which President he was, or for how many terms, McCullough managed to grab my attention and bring the period alive as no one has done for me before.
Rating: 
Summary: John Adams: Painless Learning
Review: After reading David McCullough's: Truman, I just had to read John Adams. McCullough's writing techniques and style are great. They tell you the story of the man in an interesting way which teaches you the history of the times as a secondary benefit of getting to know the man. The historical legacy that the Adams family has left us through diaries and letters seems to be second to none. The stories they tell are much different than the history I learned in school. Although he was not popular in his era, this was a decent man who put morality, integrity, education, and family values above all else. Historical and political giants are exposed as incredibly human with all of the weaknesses, vices, and faults of the common man. The Adam's family story, American and world History are intertwined to form an interesting and touching story of the times and sets the stage for things to come. This man's story really touched me and enlightened me. He was a much greater man than I ever knew. His influence and contributions to the formation and structure of our government was significantly greater than what I learned in school. John Adams was an interesting and easy to read book. As a side effect to ups and downs of John Adam's life and other prominent humans of the times, I learned much about American and World History. This was truly painless learning.
Rating:
Summary: engrossing from page one
Review: From the very first page, this book draws you in. And doesn't slow down at all - as I thought it might. I'm now looking forward to reading the complete letters of John and Abigail Adams after I finish this one.
Rating:
Summary: A Rich, Full Life
Review: David McCullough has succeeded yet again in providing an insightful and thoroughly engrossing biography of an American President (also recommended: McCullough's 'Truman'). 'John Adams' recollects the life & times of our 2nd President, and what times he lived through! This is as much an inside chronicle of the American Revolution as it is one man's life. Adams, and his wife Abigail, positively come alive through the pages of letters and history. We are granted insight into the "real" men who were living during that time, including Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. There is a particularly humorous incident involving Adams' and Franklins' overnight stay at an inn. Little things like that help you remember that the people who fought for our nation's independence, and helped to shape and mold it into a functional governing body, were quite *real* human beings, not merely legends spoken of in history books. This tome gave me greater respect for the men who lived then, and especially for the title player, John Adams. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: "Character Really Does Matter!"
Review: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson are deftly blocked from center stage, as David McCullough weaves the tale of our "forgotten" founding father. From the perspective of the twenty-first century, John Adams arrives carrying little of the baggage that encumbers his more celebrated contemporaries. Ben Franklin, has been exposed as an untrustworthy political ally....prone to moments of placing the dagger between the shoulder blades of his friends. George Washington emerges unscathed, but Thomas Jefferson does not. Jefferson is portrayed as a vain, self-centered dandy, who was disposed toward ruinous fits of binge spending. McCullough also leaves one with the impression that Jefferson's supposed acumen for science was more or less superficial. And worse, his utter failure to raise any meaningful objection to the institution of slavery, is repeatedly contrasted with John Adams' lifelong public opposition to indentured servitude. One of the more striking features of this biography is the lavish attention paid to John Adams' wife, Abigail. Far from being the typical subservient eighteenth century bride, Abigail's artful letters reveal intelligence, confidence, and a profound understanding of contemporary political realities. Essays, editorials, and personal correspondence appear frequently and comprise the primary source documentation of this work. The net effect is to lend an archival and scholarly flavor to McCullough's work, but it also interrupts the flow of events for the reader. If you are expecting a stylistic encore with the author's other epic biography, "Truman", you may be disappointed. It must be said, that it is John Adams was not a particularly vivacious individual. His pensive and introspective demeanor cannot translate into an unending repetition of amusing antecdotes. However, his intellectual vigor, resilience of character, and incorruptability continuously bring satisfaction to the reader. Adams was an honest, courageous, and forthright helmsman. A rare specimen then, rarer still today, John Adams deserves the spotlight that David McCullough has set upon him.
Rating: 
Summary: For such a large book, awfully shallow --
Review: John Adams was a highly intellectual, intelligent, ferociously honest man who helped spawn a Revolution. This much is true, and the story is well told by McCullough. He also carried on one of the most interesting spousal correspondences in history, and this is also well handled by McCullough. What McCullough seems to have forgotten is that Adams turned out to be an extraordinary dangerous man, a real foe of democracy. His greatest legacy as President -- the Alien and Sedition Acts -- were the model for the McCarthy era, and for demogogues hiding behind flags well into our present day. It is shocking that McCullough gives Adams legacy as President such short shrift. What did McCullough actually think about this singular contribution to American life? After reading through all the verbiage contained herein, you still won't know. What this tells me is that the biographer -- for all the words and all the footnotes (but which leave out the Adams papers published in the last two decades entirely!) -- doesn't know himself. Which means the book is shallow -- half-baked, not ready for prime time. I imagine his editors were screaming for it.
Rating:
Summary: But I like Jefferson
Review: This book is well researched, but very biased toward Adams. It also zings Jefferson on many key concepts. Sometime we grow overly ddpenednt on documents...I suggest history lovers get a copy of Agori's Defenders of the Holy Grail and read about "documents" whose discovery changes our basic beliefs...but it is historical FICTION...McCullogh does well with Adams. Not summer reading but worth the time.
Rating:
Summary: Not His Best Work
Review: McCullough is a wonderful historian, but this work does not compare with "Truman" or "Mornings on Horseback." The book might have been titled "The Letters of John and Abigail Adams," so frequently does McCullough quote from them. Indeed, the correspondence between John and Abigail generally overwhelms all other aspects of the narrative. The historical events in which Adams played such a large part are too often hidden from view, as if seen through a gauze curtain. Then, too, in his justifiable admiration of Adams, McCullough seems to think it necessary to denigrate Thomas Jefferson, notwithstanding that Jefferson and Adams were partners in the revolution and ended their lives (on the same day, in fact) as extremely close personal friends. Too much of the criticism of Jefferson seems forced and out of context. I am glad McCullough has written about Adams, because McCullough's reputation assures that another generation of Americans will learn about Adams and his times. I am disappointed, however, that "John Adams" does not live up the reputation established by McCullough in other works.
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