Rating: 
Summary: This is an epic biography worthy of a Pulitzer.
Review: I have not read Cabel's bio from 1918 on Franklin but this one by Carl van Doren might be the best. I tend to discount autobiographies as they tend to be highly partisan & even revisionist. The version Franklin's autobiography I read, & there seems to be dozens of them, was fairly modest.
This is a whole life biography & is taken in large part from Franklin's own writings, letters to from & about Franklin. The unabridged audio version was a real treat & the amount of research must have been staggering, considering it was written in the thirties.
This is a very through book. Where it treads lightly, whole books have been written. That is Franklin's lovers & the numerous children from these liasons, mostly in France. Mr. Van Doren is skeptical, keeping in mind when this book was written. Franklin loved woman & woman loved him but not nessarily in that way. He had many friends & "daughters" refering to his many, young female admirers. He keeps the wise grandfatherly image I had of him. In fact he was a neglectful husband & an absentee father to his own daughter deserting his wife during all those years overseas.
There is so much to him, a true citizen of the world. He was a self-made wealthy merchant, inventor, scientist, philospher & statesman. The title he was most proud was master printer, an individual who started from nothing. He had many roles in life & van Doren covers them all.
His most important years were spent in England & France. He loved London & Paris. He may have been tempted but he was always loyal to America, keeping her interest in mind. He was the face of America in Europe. He played the part expected of him; a rustic American philospher with a fur hat & was all the rage in the royal court of France.
The colonies were fortunate to have Franklin in England before the revolution & France during & after. That is where with, Franklin's connivance, the major decisions concerning America were being made.
His accomplishments ranged over various disiplines, as the inventor of the lightening rod, the Franklin stove used for heating, bifocals etc. He founded the first public library & fire department in America. He was the major contributor to the Albany Plan of Union in 1754. A document way ahead of its time, was a useful reference during the constitutional convention in 1789. He assisted Thomas Jefferson with key phrases in the Declaration of Independence. He was important in reaching consensus when the U.S. Consititution was being drafted.
Had he stayed in Philadelphia, he may simply have remained a popular, loyal, prosperous printer & businessmen. He saw first hand the disdain King George III had for him & the colonies. To him America was merely a source of taxes without the rights accorded to all free Englishmen. This & the humiliation he suffered at the hands of British Parliment, turned him into a uncompromising (for one of the few times in his life) rebel. With his patience, gentle diplomacy, wisdom & sense of fairness, America was well served. With apologies to Washington who never left North America & Jefferson, Franklin may be the greatest founding father.
While writing this review it occured to me that there are many similarities to Winston Churchill. Franklin was not a warrior as Churchill was but both men were visionaries & peace makers. Both were geniuses & prolific writers on any number of subjects. They were both statesmen & active in public service to a very old age. Both men dominated the times they lived in.
Read or listen to this fine book, then move on to other newer biographies. They all add somthing to this remarkable man.
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of biography!
Review: "Benjamin Franklin" is a wonderfully written biography of perhaps the greatest American who ever lived. Author Carl Van Doren presents a rich and detailed portrait of Franklin - printer, writer, philosopher, scientist, inventor, politician, statesman, and one of the founding fathers of the United States of America. By tracing the major influences on Franklin, and the key events of his life, Van Doren presents this self-educated genius as the apotheosis of the 18th century "Enlightened" man. Imbued with an insatiable intellectual appetite, a keen scientific mind, a high sense of morality, and a fervent patriotism, he was shrewd, wise, witty, and always confident in his own limitless abilities. The author describes in detail the great events of Franklin's life - his youth and young adulthood as a printer and writer of Poor Richard's Almamack; the philosopher, scientist and inventor of note; Postmaster General for Pennsylvania, and later for all the colonies; representative of the American colonies to Great Britain at the time of the American Revolution; signer of the Declaration of Independence; U.S. Ambassador to France after the Revolution; and signer of the U.S. Constitution. As good a biography as this is, "Benjamin Franklin" is also outstanding history. Van Doren skillfully "paints" Franklin's portrait against the backdrop of the tremendous social ferment, scientific awakening, and tumultuous political events which occurred during the second half of the 18th century. I gained not only a fuller understanding of Franklin's life and great genius, but also a greater appreciation of the times in which he lived. "Benjamin Franklin" is written with grace, clarity and obviously great scholarship. Winner of the 1959 Pulitzer Prize for biography, it is a brilliant masterpiece - one of the best biographies of any person I've ever read!
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of biography!
Review: "Benjamin Franklin" is a wonderfully written biography of perhaps the greatest American who ever lived. Author Carl Van Doren presents a rich and detailed portrait of Franklin - printer, writer, philosopher, scientist, inventor, politician, statesman, and one of the founding fathers of the United States of America. By tracing the major influences on Franklin, and the key events of his life, Van Doren presents this self-educated genius as the apotheosis of the 18th century "Enlightened" man. Imbued with an insatiable intellectual appetite, a keen scientific mind, a high sense of morality, and a fervent patriotism, he was shrewd, wise, witty, and always confident in his own limitless abilities. The author describes in detail the great events of Franklin's life - his youth and young adulthood as a printer and writer of Poor Richard's Almamack; the philosopher, scientist and inventor of note; Postmaster General for Pennsylvania, and later for all the colonies; representative of the American colonies to Great Britain at the time of the American Revolution; signer of the Declaration of Independence; U.S. Ambassador to France after the Revolution; and signer of the U.S. Constitution. As good a biography as this is, "Benjamin Franklin" is also outstanding history. Van Doren skillfully "paints" Franklin's portrait against the backdrop of the tremendous social ferment, scientific awakening, and tumultuous political events which occurred during the second half of the 18th century. I gained not only a fuller understanding of Franklin's life and great genius, but also a greater appreciation of the times in which he lived. "Benjamin Franklin" is written with grace, clarity and obviously great scholarship. Winner of the 1959 Pulitzer Prize for biography, it is a brilliant masterpiece - one of the best biographies of any person I've ever read!
Rating: 
Summary: If you could invite one person to dinner, who would it be?
Review: After reading "Benjamin Franklin", he would be the one person -- dead or living -- who would make the most fascinating dinner guest for an evening. His list of accomplishments is practically endless: printer, writer, philosopher, postmaster general, inventor, scientist, diplomat, statesman, traveler, and conversationalist. The majority of people who are ultimately successful have a key talent in one area, focus on that talent, and rise to the top. It is so inexplicably rare to find someone of such vast talent who also excels in all his (her) talents. Benjamin Franklin was such a gifted individual and, thankfully for our nation, focused much of his energy and time into serving the public. Carl Van Doren has written an incredibly well-researched biography of one of our key founding fathers. Van Doren's style can sometimes be dry and too academic, but keep in mind that this book was initially published in 1938. Today's reader may expect a more conversational tone and faster moving story. However, Carl Van Doren's biography is heroic in its effort and the author's admiration clearly shines through for Mr. Franklin.
Rating:
Summary: 1939 Pulitzer Prize winner deserves reading
Review: As I get around to it I read Pulitzer Prize winners and when I came across this one I decided to read it, tho Franklin did not seem too interesting to me when I first learned about him in 4th grade. I was pleasantly surprised. Van Doren does a very good job making Franklin's life enjoyable to read about. He was a great man, and the most famous American of his time.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: I read Franklin's Autobiography years ago and loved every word. Now my interest led me to Van Doren's work and a truely wonderful book. Filled with Franklin's whitty quotes and substantive research, Van Doren gives you a great book packed full of interesting facts and a great view of history. It is a very long book, as the preface tells you in its first line, but a page turner which reads quickly and envelopes you into Franklin's life. One of my favorite biographies I have ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Here! Here!
Review: In my many years studying the history of our great nation and others, a carelessness of sorts followed my endeavors on Benjamin Franklin. As I finally considered closely examining the great philosopher/politician's life and accomplishments, I set out to find something written from a point of view somewhat unbiased yet informative. Carl Van Doren's accomplishments here should be considered in a manner befitting high esteem by any colleague serious enough to take the time out to comprehend his work. The facts of Franklin's life are grounded in traceable formatting, generously unbound with a sense of Mr. Van Doren's recurrent commitment to uphold a standard sometimes arguably overlooked by today's historians. Although I would have enjoyed added information on Franklin's later Constitutional convention involvement, enough was presented to obtain the idea of his role in shaping our important beginning. You will not be disappointed if you were to add this fine book to your collection.
Rating:
Summary: Homage to the greatest of men and son of liberty
Review: Mr. Van Doren has given us a gift. The gift of enlightenment into the life and experiences of one of our nation's finest citizens, the first great citizen of our country. Dr. Franklin, the journalist, philosopher, inventor, diplomat, politician, and great human being are revealed in this fine literary work.
Few men have been gifted with such a wealth of diverse talents, and have put those talents to such good and meaningful use. Merci M. Van Doren, tres magnifique.
Rating:
Summary: Exhaustive detail, excellent writing
Review: Sure, this book was written before my parents were born, but it seems to stand the test of time very well. If I hadn't checked the copyright date when I bought it, I might have thought this worek had been published only recently. The detailed information the author provides is fascinating and is presented in such a way that it avoids clouding the writing or boring the reader. One gets a feel not only for what Franklin did, but for what sort of man he was. The author is sympathetic to the object of his study, but not to the point where it becomes distracting. All in all, a wonderful read which contains an immense amount of fascinating information.
Rating:
Summary: Bravo!
Review: This remarkable, scholarly, and readable book brings the reader face-to-face with what seems an impossible life. The usual picture we get in school is intriguing, but here we meet a man whose range is staggering. Franklin the young, self-educated adventurer, writer, apprentice. Franklin the printer, entrepreneur, community activist. Franklin the pioneering scientist, delegate, historical visionary. Franklin the publisher, the spy, the sometimes invisible hand steering the birth of the modern republic. The inventor of a musical instrument that Mozart and others composed for. The outrageous wit who shocked Abigail and John Adams. Franklin the friend, free-thinker, and moralist. Creator of the stove, the lightning rod, the watertight compartment for ships' hulls. The first to understand how weather systems move, and ocean currents, and continents. Designer of roadways to connect the colonies and then the nation. Richly incorporating excerpts of Franklin's own voluminous writing, Van Doren's account is clearly factual, yet appropriately awed and inspired by a man "unsurpassed . . . in the range of his gifts or the important to which he put them."
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