Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: The concept of analyzing the era through an in depth look at a select few moments is ingenious. Witty and not in the least bit dry, this is a great book.
Rating: 
Summary: Suffocating
Review: While filled with interesting details, and factual opinions, Founding Brothers was a difficult read. Keep a Dictionary by you for this book! While descriptive (what some may call "big" words) are always a good idea, when strung together in a sentence that turns out to be the entire paragraph, and with little use of punctuation, they can be very hard to understand! Ellis definitely does not get an "A" for composition, but as far as content, he did a lot of research, and a good job overall. I definitely recommend it to U.S. history buffs who just can't get enough about the founders of this country. On the other hand, if you're looking for an interesting read, but don't want to have to read every sentence 20 times before you understand, I suggest trying a different book. It got 2 stars because of the difficulty encountered in reading.
Rating:
Summary: An extraordinary work of scholarship
Review: What is the United States of America, and what is the vision that should guide it? Is it the birthplace of a new kind of society, one freed from the aristocratic tyranny of the past in which the right to govern comes solely from the consent of the governed, as the idealist Thomas Jefferson decreed? Or must the liberties it promises its citizens be safeguarded by a strong central government, as the realist John Adams insisted? That was the controversy that nearly swamped the fragile young nation in the 1790s, and--as Joseph Ellis demonstrates in "Founding Brothers"--that controversy has never really been resolved. That lack of resolution has been for both good and ill: it has made our nation a dynamic, ever-evolving entity, but it also led to the Civil War and the continuing divisions caused by racism, America's original sin. The national leaders of the 1780s and 1790s were constrained to steer the ship of state between the Scylla of dissolution and the Charybdis of slavery. By taking slavery completely off of Congress's agenda, they were able to preserve the Union, only to have the question flare into conflagration for future generations--as they well knew would happen. Whether Americans today should thank or blame them is very much a matter of personal conviction. But by taking us back to the time of Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Madison, Hamilton and Burr, Joseph Ellis paints a convincing and often moving portrait of why these men acted as they did. These were brilliant, ambitious, contentious men, sometimes friends but more often bitter enemies, with cogent but often diametrically opposed ideas of what America should be and how it should be governed. From the tension between those men came the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the framework for a nation that still guides us today. In exhilarating and pertinent detail, Ellis shows us how these disparate personalities--each in his own way indispensable, except perhaps for Burr--shaped the nation for better or for worse. It shows how Washington, the honest broker and instinctive seeker of balance, held the nation together by sheer force of personality, and afterwards how the elegant, calm but sometimes woolly-headed Jefferson was able to gain ascendancy over the pragmatic but easily ruffled Adams. In the last chapter, it boils down to Jefferson and Adams, the intellectual yin and yang of the Revolution, whose friendship could not be destroyed even by the most savage political infighting. Ellis details elegantly the arguments they advanced in the sustained correspondence of their last years, their debate between states' rights and central government, between individual liberty and human nature still unresolved. The story of that correspondence leaves us in awe of the genius of both men, and in sorrow that their failure to resolve their differences reflected the nation's angrier, bloodier disagreements in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: Struggle to remain a nation...
Review: This particular book was quite short in comparison to the vast amount that could be articulated from this period of time in Americas infancy by someone as familiarized with it as Ellis. However packed into this book, quite nicely and precisely, are 6 seperate stories relating to the Revolutionary Era and the immediate time proceeding it. Each recollection contains a great deal of information in relation to the founding brothers, all the while taking you to the time and place being described and discussed. You feel sensitized to it, or maybe thats just patriotism. I like the opening chapter that depicts the fatal duel between Hamilton and Burr, where Burr, in other ways, basically suffers the same death as Hamilton. It was a great way to grasp the readers attention and establish their interest in and anticipation of the book itself, I mean who doesnt love reading about an old fashioned deul, especially between these two extremely notable and at the time, prestigious individuals? The most engaging portion of the book I thought came during the last two chapters, between the friendship and rivalry of Adams and Jefferson because it was in quite good detail for a rather short book and also provided an intimate look at their mindsets and perceptions. The author exposes the attributes pretty well of the founding brothers, both the good and the bad, though Benjamin Franklin is somewhat overlooked, I assume because he died so soon after the culmination of the struggle for independence, which by no means diminishes his role in its acquisition. He was considered the founding grandfather. One might feel Jefferson is somewhat demonized every now and then, but if Ellis is accurate in depicting Jeffersons mindset and perspectives at the time, then the criticisms, though not delivered blatantly, are well deserved. I also acquired a deep found respect for Adams overall commitment to honesty and morality. He was portrayed more so after his presidency as maybe a little unstable mentally, obsessed with his place in history and at constant odds competitively with Jefferson, whom he rekindled his friendship with many years after a silence between them. Two of the most significant things I came to understand from this book was the role of slavery in both the formation and continuation of this new nation, that was very compelling and Im certain that there is much in this chapter called "The Silence" that the ordinary person really had no idea about. And although every founding father owned slaves in modest numbers, each one of them also opposed slavery and considered it abhorrent to society and in direct conflict with the purpose and significance of the Revolution itself. Suppressing nearly all discussion and compromises pertaining to slavery, as deplorable as it was, is one of the substantial reasons why the country grew and remained unified up until the civil war. The civil war was possibly bound to occur but had it occurred much earlier in our history, our worlds and what we know of them might be an entirely different place, implying that the union very well may have lost the fight to sustain a society based on freedom and self rule, and therefore, though unknowingly, it was a blessing that the struggle against slavery was prolonged and even delayed. The founders didnt always know what steps to take next, but very often they knew what steps not to take in correlation with their objectives to witness a successful and lasting republic. African Americans should know, which most citizens do not, that their ancestors together played a very crucial role, because of slavery, in the govt, in the land and in peoples minds. Almost as if their cause or being was the center of attention the more so the dilemma was concealed and brushed under the rug. The formation of this land actually began the struggle to eradicate the slave trade, it simply required time and moral courage to dissimilate the practice from social normalcy and reliance without simultaneously sacrificing the country. The second intriguing point, though there were many others, was how ordinary these people really were, how similar those times were politically and ideologically to ours today. This was an experiment and the founding fathers were making attempts to rewrite the history books, either in failure or through success, of which even they were not and could not be certain of the outcome. History provides a very glossed over and even distorted view of how difficult it was to achieve the great nation we have come to reside in today, it was a relentless struggle and through all the conflict and strife, one must teeter on the brink of believing maybe it was or had to be some sort of destiny because through it all, it could easily have been considered an unfeasible impossibility. Some of the creators of this nation made known that they didnt believe the country could withstand more than 100 years of unity and peace amongst itself. They were vulnerable, they argued, they had different ideas of what direction America was supposed to take, and their politics reminded me much of those we witness today unfortunately. In all reality the battle to maintain the progress of the land was more difficult than winning the freedom to create the land. But through it all they overcame and succeeded, they changed the entire world from then and until forever and the propensity of their impact cannot be adequately emphasized. When it was all said and done it was time for this generation of thinkers, achievers, fighters, dreamers, to pass away and hand down their work to those next in line, immortalizing themselves in the process. They lived to fight for what they perceived was their only purpose, they conquered a pessimistic history that sought to render them irrelevant, and for them their was nothing more noble and prominent than to revitalize and advance immensely the human condition. Freedom is comparable to being inherited and we must subsequently acknowledge and convey the utmost respect and appreciation without fail, to the fathers who established this new precedent in human history.
Rating:
Summary: We'd All Be Scholars
Review: What do you know about American History? If you learned everything you know from school and Walt Disney probably that: Aaron Burr shot Alexander Hamilton (though I think more people know about this from the "Got Milk?" commercials than from school); That there were some issues involving slavery that were handled in 1789, which popped up again in 1865 (and maybe again in 1965, if you're versed in pop culture); that George Washington's Farewell Address set precedents and gave warnings (but do you know what they are and why they were important?); that there were two parties early on (but what did they stand for?). This book has the grace to assume that you know some of the myths that make up the theology of American History and that you've come to it wanting to understand the very human reasons and motivations that powered the Revolutionary Generation. The history we get in school tends to paint these men as saints or angels, and they were not. We also get a sense of civility and honor and agreement where it didn't always exist. You can't walk away from this book without feeling that these men =were= giants, but with all too human frailties that frequently pitted them against each other, each one convinced that they were saving the Republic from the other. (And lest this seem overly melodramatic, there is no question that the outcomes of these events still affect us today, and would have entirely different effects on us had these battles been resolved differently.) This book will allow you to flesh out the cartoon character drawings you may have of the nation's founders, and is written in such a way that if the subject interests you =at all=, you'll be drawn into the stories as surely as you would be with any novel. The Duel between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton is told almost "Memento" style, starting with the event itself, then moving backward in time, to ask why were they there, and then to go even deeper in to why they were there. And what, really, happened? The Dinner covers the Hamilton-Madison compromise that exchanged the assumption of state debts for Washington D.C.'s site on the Potomac. To be honest, I barely knew of this event prior to reading this book (after having four classes in American history from Grade School to College), and on the surface, today, it would seem to be almost trivial. But it wasn't, and Ellis does an excellent job of explaining why and what the forces were for it and against it. Ellis' style is excellent, by the way: When you're reading about Hamilton, you understand Hamilton's view and reasoning, and you can see yourself agreeing with it; but then, when you read about Madison and the danger he felt the Assumption posed, you can find yourself outraged at Hamilton's presumptuousness. Nowhere is this style more telling than in the next essay, on slavery ("The Silence"). In a story that plays out like a Shakesperean tragedy, the forces that were for abolishing slavery trigger events that completely remove slavery from the table and virtually guarantee the explosive events of 70 years later. Now, most of us would agree, in this day and age, that slavery is wrong. And it's easy to look back and shake your head at the "stupid white men" who made the moral and ethical compromises that allowed slavery to persist. And while it's good to look back and see so many voices raised =against= slavery, Ellis gives a good look at the real and practical problems emancipation produced. And on it goes: "The Farewell" is a great picture of George Washington in his final years: I found myself admiring him as a leader with feelings that appearing on the dollar bill never really engendered. The last two chapters are on the relationship between Jefferson and Adams. I am as guilty as anyone of dismissing Adams for Jefferson's heady ideology of individual liberty, but like Washington, I found my esteem of Adams raised, with greater appreciation for what he accomplished, and how he's (perhaps unfairly) been cast in Washington and Jefferson's shadow. Ellis even manages to give the book a happy (though hardly storybook perfect) ending by closing it with the reconciliation between Jefferson and Adams. Let me just say: I read it myself; We now read it aloud as a family and discuss what parts mean. If history in school were this good, we'd all be scholars.
Rating: 
Summary: Insight into flawed icons
Review: I read this book or rather listened to it on tape after reading McCullough's "John Adams". I actually bought the book but ended up listening to it. It sounds better than it reads. The writing is meticulous, precise and complex - all of which make it hard to read but a joy to listen to.
To me the book is a nice compact review of some of the central figures and issues of the American Revolution, but after reading the McCullough book, the last half of this was rehash. I thoroughly enjoyed the chapters on Burr/Hamilton and Slavery, as I had never seen these events/issue in quite the light that Ellis sheds.
What the book gives you an overall sense of how different the reality of our nation's founding was to the grand mythology taught in school. It is truly an amazing event in the history of mankind, but you come to realize how unorganized and chaotic it really was in relation to the sanitized textbook version. This book illustrates the utter flawed humanity of the time.
But the revelation for me was how these men were not brothers at all in any sense of the spirit that I could find. In fact they fought over the very meaning of the "Spirit of '76". They all seemed to be rather self-indulgent hypocrites more interested in promoting their own agendas rather than that of the nation. I now see Washington more now as a figurehead than ever and I have lost a great deal of respect for both Franklin and Jefferson. Hypocrisy is the rule of the day: Jefferson and Washington together owning hundreds of slaves; Washington's levy of the whiskey tax; Jefferson and Madison acting the brave patriot but never part of the military and yet both supporting the horror of the French Revolution; the Alien and Sedition acts of Adams. The list goes on and on. In the exposing of these truths is Ellis's strength.
What I found utterly lacking however is a sense of what really drove these men to sign the Declaration of Independence to begin with. If there was any idea of brotherhood, it surely must have been then and yet Ellis never explains it.
Call it the "Founding Flawed Icons".
Rating:
Summary: a great history
Review: Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. Instead of trying to tell a sweeping account of the American Revolution and the early days of our Republic, Joseph Ellis took a different approach. Ellis decided to take a look at six different issues and events of the first decades of the United States. He did meticulous research on each of the issues and connected them to the larger context of American history, but the focus of each chapter was narrow enough so that we won't get lost in trying to figure out where everything fits in. Ellis attempts to take the myths and legends away from these early leaders and put them into a human context and a historical context. He succeeds at this. One thing to note, however, Ellis has a very academic style to his writing. While someone like David McCullough (also a Pulitzer Prize winner) weaves a story that flows and is fairly easy to read and move through, Ellis's academic prose makes for slower reading for comprehension. The first chapter deals with the Hamilton-Burr duel. All I knew about this was from the "Got Milk" commercial several years ago. Ellis details the known facts about what happened and does some detective work to put together as best as possible what truly happened. This was a very interesting chapter to start the book with and set the stage for how Ellis would construct his chapters. He takes conflicting accounts (in this case, from the supporters of Burr and Hamilton) and weaves them together taking all the evidence in account and tries to make the story fit. Other chapters deal with The Friendship of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, George Washington's Farewell Address, the rumor of a dinner which settled where the new Capitol would located, the Silence on the issue of slavery, and the collaborations of the Founders. This is a very interesting period in American History, and a vitally important one. I learned quite a bit about different parts of early American history and this book will serve as a jumping off point to get into other historical works so that I'll have a more expanded background for some of the subjects that will surely come up.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely interesting and not overly academic
Review: This is an excellent introduction for someone who may not know the history of the American revolution. The author does a spectacular job of introducing the characters and bringing them to full life. The founding brothers were a fascinating group of individuals with very differing personalities, which the author captures flawlessly. The book is more a narrative than 'dry history' which only adds to its readability. An extremely entertaining and informative read, and highly recomended!
Rating:
Summary: A well written book
Review: As a history major at OSU, I am quite used to reading some very difficult books. However, Ellis made this book very thorough, interesting, and easy to read. A historian or a common layman will have no problem reading this book, and enjoy it tremendously. I was lucky enough as well to obtain a personalized autographed copy when my father had dinner with Mr. Ellis. Top notch fellow according to my father.
Rating:
Summary: A different perspective
Review: Founding Brothers combines the nostalgic history of the founding fathers with the fresh perspective of realism. With a chronological order, the author describes the history of our great beginnings in three dimensions; traditionally (what we all learned in grade school), retrospectively (encapsulating history from a panoramic view from past to present) and a hint of realism, exposing the founding fathers for what they were...great men (and a woman---Abby Adams). This is a must read for anyone who is interested in early American History; and a should read for all Americans
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