Andrew Jackson: Seventh President of the United States (Encyclopedia of Presidents)

Rating:
Summary: A quick biography of our seventh president
Review: This Encyclopedia of Presidents volume on Andrew Jackson included reproductions of several political cartoons and pamphlets from the heated elections in which he was involved. For example, there is an anti-Adams campaign booklet circulated by Jackson's supporters during the 1832 presidential race, as well as several anti-Jackson political cartoons, all of which would make fairly interesting handouts for young students studying the Jacksonian Age and the birth of the Democratic Party. Jackson was the first presidential candidate to win the popular vote three times in a row, but the first time around he did not have an electoral majority. When John Quincy Adams cut a deal with Henry Clay, it was Adams who won the White House. Given what happened in Florida in the 2000 election, certainly young students will be interested in all these political machinations.

Alice Osinski begins this juvenile biography of Jackson as all volumes in the Encyclopedia of Presidents begin, with a defining moment from the subject's life. For Jackson it is his inauguration in 1829, when crowds of rowdy citizens were welcomed into the White House. Although Jackson is called "The Frontier President," the lesson is clearly about his populism, where his election was seen as a victory for the common man. Chapters are devoted to Jackson's youth, how he made a success of his life on the frontier, and his celebrated efforts during the War of 1812. His two terms as President are divided into the Birth of the Democratic Party, which covers the infamous Trail of Tears of the Cherokee nation cause by his decision to move all Indians west of the Mississippi, and Long Live the Union, which focuses on the controversy over the National Bank and other federal versus states issues. A final chapter deals with Jackson's few years after leaving the White House. Clearly this volume is not just a substantive juvenile biography, it also takes pains to deal with all of the controversial issues of Jackson's political life, whether judged by the standards of his time or our own. Teachers and students looking to get beyond what little can be found about Jackson in a standard American History textbook will find this a good source for additional information.

Rating:
Summary: The controversial political career of Andrew Jackson
Review: This Encyclopedia of Presidents volume on Andrew Jackson included reproductions of several political cartoons and pamphlets from the heated elections in which he was involved. For example, there is an anti-Adams campaign booklet circulated by Jackson's supporters during the 1832 presidential race, as well as several anti-Jackson political cartoons, all of which would make fairly interesting handouts for young students studying the Jacksonian Age and the birth of the Democratic Party. Jackson was the first presidential candidate to win the popular vote three times in a row, but the first time around he did not have an electoral majority. When John Quincy Adams cut a deal with Henry Clay, it was Adams who won the White House. Given what happened in Florida in the 2000 election, certainly young students will be interested in all these political machinations.

Alice Osinski begins this juvenile biography of Jackson as all volumes in the Encyclopedia of Presidents begin, with a defining moment from the subject's life. For Jackson it is his inauguration in 1829, when crowds of rowdy citizens were welcomed into the White House. Although Jackson is called "The Frontier President," the lesson is clearly about his populism, where his election was seen as a victory for the common man. Chapters are devoted to Jackson's youth, how he made a success of his life on the frontier, and his celebrated efforts during the War of 1812. His two terms as President are divided into the Birth of the Democratic Party, which covers the infamous Trail of Tears of the Cherokee nation cause by his decision to move all Indians west of the Mississippi, and Long Live the Union, which focuses on the controversy over the National Bank and other federal versus states issues. A final chapter deals with Jackson's few years after leaving the White House. Clearly this volume is not just a substantive juvenile biography, it also takes pains to deal with all of the controversial issues of Jackson's political life, whether judged by the standards of his time or our own. Teachers and students looking to get beyond what little can be found about Jackson in a standard American History textbook will find this a good source for additional information.