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Rating: 
Summary: well written
Review: I was required to read this book for a history class in college this semester. I am usually not a big fan of history, it's not my specialty, but this book kept me interested and hooked to the story. It reads rather quickly and is very enjoyable. It is not boring as I find many accounts of history. I do not know what other books are out there about the Margaret Eaton controversy, but I think this one is tops. I definately recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Social History
Review: This book is first a description of a political scandal in the 1820s and 1830s in which a President threw his administration into turmoil over a woman. Secondly, there is a fine treatment of the role women were expected to play in the 1800s and the reasons Margaret Eaton and Rachel Jackson did not fit in. It's a fine well written story, very worthwhile.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Social History
Review: This book is well-written and difficult to put down. The author did his research well. It is a good explanation of the Margaret Eaton Affair and of the social mores that women were expected to live by in the 1820s and 1830s. It is also a classic example of the theory that "men get their identity by what they do; women, by their family." Margaret Eaton could not escape that she was the daughter of a "tavern-keeper" and many of the slanders against her were merely based on the prejudices of the time concerning the stereotypical behavior of the daughters of tavern-keepers.
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't put it down? No...I could
Review: Though it's not the worst book I've ever read, I had the hardest time getting past the third chapter. With promises that this book was interesting I was quite disappointed. The book reads like you are reading a geneology chart instead of a book of scandals. It throws in a name, and then EVERY person they are related to, who they are related to and so on. The story is interesting...if you can get past all the [crud]. If you're looking for an interesting book with history you've come to the wrong place. If you are looking for a history book with a few interesting high spots...you'll love it.
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