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Summary: Whattaguy!
Review: This biography maintains a beautiful balance between the political, scientific, philosophical and personal Benjamin Franklin. And what a task! He was the only man to actively contribute to and to sign all four great documents that were instrumental in forming the United States of America; the Dclaration of Independence, the alliance with France, the treaty with England and finally the Constitution.
He never stopped looking at natural events and making lists, keeping statistics, finding ways to make practical the scientific theories he discovered; electricity with the famous key and lightening experiment, the effects of color and heat, leading to the dark clothes in winter, light clothes in summer syndrome, depth of water and degree of warmth, the famous stove, the bifocals. The list goes on.
His philosophical writings were also practical. He tried to have his life mirror his moral code; be frugal, speak the truth, be industrious and speak ill of no man, and his success in his personal and political actions can be attributed much to his following these precepts.
Walter Isaacson's research is wide and deep (Franklin would have been proud)and because it deftly goes from the political to the personal to the scientific, it is never boring and indeed, quite revealing of a national figure you probably thought you had heard everything. You will be surprised and end up loving this patriarch of democracy as much as the author seems to.
A summa cum laude award for this excellent biography!
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Summary: Things we never knew
Review: This was a great book if you love history, especially American history. There are a lot of things about Benjamin Franklin that are in this book that you do not learn in history class. Walter Isaacson did a great job in writing this book. I am sure to treasure it and have my children read it when they are old enought to understand American history.
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Summary: FOUNDING GRANDFATHER
Review: It's very easy to forget that Benjamin Franklin was among the generation of leaders known as the Founding Fathers. I am sure that he would want it that way. More than a politician, Franklin's interests ranged just about as far as his imagination would allow ranging from science to inventions to diplomacy to agriculture to publishing. Nothing seemed to escape his eye or his intellect.In Benjamin Franklin: An American Live author Walter Isaacson offers the sort of multifaceted look at Franklin that is most fitting. Isaacson describes a life that aptly takes it place among our nation's greatest individuals. If George Washington is, appropriately, our preeminent Founding Father then perhaps Franklin rightly assumes the role of Founding Grandfather who, as most grandfathers do, "winks at us" and invites us to not take ourselves too seriously, to not be afraid to ask appropriate questions and to believe in ourselves both as individuals and collectively as Americans. Most importantly, with nothing else to prove to himself, Franklin's role as described by Isaacson seems to be that of a benevolent overseer, watching the activities of a group of ambitious children and stepping in only when they needed more experienced guidance. Isaacson's book is a must read describing Franklin's humble beginnings to his loftiest achievements. Whether it's flying a kite in a thunderstorm, inventing bifocals and stoves, or mentoring men who would become the first governmental leaders of America, Isaacson's Franklin provides a new perspective of an American icon. Douglas McAllister
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Summary: Amazon.com is right - use your grocery money to buy this!
Review: The official Amazon.com review is right - this is indeed a book on which to spend your grocery money, and also an ideal book to give parents, grandparents, history major grandchildren, friends at work and whoever else for Christmas. How encouraging that a book as good as this is on the Amazon top 100 bestseller list. Christopher Catherwood, author of CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND ISLAMIC RAGE (Zondervan, 2003)
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Summary: A fabulous reading of a fabulous book
Review: I disagree with the reviewer who thought the CD version is "boring." I found it to be very engaging. Additionally, it's an appropriate abridgement--it's not so short you lose the flavor of the book and the fun details. As for the book itself, it was interesting enough to hold my attention, and I generally hate biographies.
Rating:
Summary: decent
Review: I dont recommend the Cd verison, its a little boring. Franklin was an extraordinary individual who predicted americas expansian, negotiated our peace and set the basis for our way of life. At the same time he was a scientist and a brilliant businessman. AN important book about a man who was quintisentially American. Pulling himself up by his bootstraps.
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Summary: Succeeds on so many different levels
Review: An incredibly impressive work by someone who can be described as an armchair historian, taking into account his day job. Isaacson has clearly done exhaustive research on Franklin's life and, fortunately for the reader, does not get lost in the minutiae. Isaacson gives a wonderful sense of just who Franklin was and what he was like. The reader is actually able to get to know this subject. Some of his qualities are very likeable and admirable, others, such as his relationship with his family and relatives (with the exception of his sister), are not so admirable. But Isaacson successfully avoids getting too close to his subject, and presents Ben with his "warts and all."
Isaacson also gives a very good sense of the times in which Franklin lived, a quality which is necessary for any good biography. While understanding a subject's actions is important, it is perhaps even more important to understand the reasons behind those actions. Isaacson wonderfully paints a picture for the reader of 18th century America.
And then, finally, Isaacson, in his last chapter, explains how Franklin has been perceived throughout our nation's history, and why his reputation rises and falls. It is a fascinating look at how important these Founding Fathers have become to us, in terms of using them as measuring sticks. They have become our Rohrschach test, our archetypes.
All in all, a splendid read.
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Summary: Benjamin Franklin, An American Life
Review: I found this book to be very inspirational. Benjamin Franklin was really an outstanding individual and Isaacson does a great job telling his story. Ben Franklin seemed to learn the hard and valuable lessons of life while he was still young. He learned how to fight for his beliefs and influence others with tact, cleverness, and success. He strove to be an active and valuable citizen. He made major contributions to what we treasure as 'americanism'. He was a founding father of our country in every sense of the word. I hated the last chapter of the book entitled "Conclusions". I hereby advise Walter Isaacson to omit it on the next revision. That chapter undid many of the wonderful feelings I picked up reading the earlier chapters. I advise new readers of the book to remove those pages and shred them before even reading one word in the book.
Ralph Hermansen
September 10, 2003
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Summary: The prototypical American
Review: Ben Franklin, signer of the Declaration of Independance, of the Treaty of Paris that ended the Revolutionary War, and of the Constitution of the United States, and the most proletarian of the Founding Fathers, has been afforded a wonderful tribute in this probably definative biography for our generation of a truly great man. Jefferson is generally thought of as America's first Renaissance man, but as Isaacson amply demonstrates, the title most rightly belongs to Franklin. Isaacson carries the story of Franklin's life from the time of his birth in humble circumstances to his death at 83, when he had become one of the world's most famous men. Isaacson gives us insight into the sources of Franklin's well deserved fame. Franklin's autobiography, extensively quoted, is probably the most famous of this genre in the world still, certainly in this country, and provides a constant backstop for Isaacson's loving portrait of an exceedingly complex man. Had he come to the fore today, in these days of Republican mores and instant scandel, Franklin's sexual and marital history would have destroyed one of America's greatest citizens before he even started. Thank God he lived in a more civilized time. A wonderful and exhilerating read. wfh
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Summary: Well Done!
Review: Great book, just buy it and enjoy!
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