Rating: 
Summary: Title is Reversed
Review: In 1834 a naval officer named Uriah Levy bought Monticello, the former home of Thomas Jefferson. Levy was part playboy, part crusader and a passionate lover of beauty. He was also Jewish and for this reason he was not popular with the neighbors. Later his nephew Thomas Jefferson Levy owned the place until 1923. The Levy family saved Monticello from ruin, made great efforts to preserve and restore the estate, especially the grave site but instead of being thanked for their efforts they were criticized. Disaster struck when Jefferson Levy invited a woman named Maude Littleton to dinner. She was horrified by the decor and apparently, the Levy's themselves and launched a national campaign to wrest Monticello from them. Levy fought back and when he did sell the estate it was to a private foundation that runs the living history site today.
The Levy's presence was ignored or mentioned briefly and in offensive ways until the 80s but it's only with the publication of this amazing and highly entertaining book that they have really gotten their full due.
If you are fascinated by the life of Jefferson and are curious about what happened after his death or if you love history, architecture or simply want to read a good story get yourself a copy of Saving Monticello.
Rating: 
Summary: Best Book on Jefferson I've Read
Review: In his compellingly readable book, Marc Leepson gives long overdue credit to the Levy family for saving Monticello. Monticello, the greatest architechtural icon of America, would likely not be standing today if first Uriah Phillips Levy and then his nephew Jefferson Levy had not poured their money and their passion into preserving Monticello. Marc Leepson skillfully tells the dramatic story of how the Levys took proprietorship of Monticello and became the saviors of Jefferson's "essay in architecture." I discovered while reading Leepson's book that most of my suppositions regarding Monticello and Jefferson's role in preserving Monticello as an architectural shrine were false. It amazed me that I knew so little of the story of Monticello, and it further amazed me that Marc Leepson had ferreted out so many fascinating facts with which to dazzle the reader in this masterpiece of detection and research. If you read only one American history book this season, read this one!
Rating:
Summary: Buy it! It's a great read.
Review: Marc Leepson has written a facinating book about American history. Uriah Levy and Jefferson Levy were among the very first people in this country to recognize the value of historic preservation; and both devoted their lives and fortunes for Monticello and Jeffersonian ideals. The story of how Monticello endured neglect, lawsuits, and the American Civil war spans pivotal decades in our history. The dramatic conflict between Maud Littleton and Jefferson Levy, along with the many historic details, makes this a perfect book for both the serious historian and anybody looking for a good read. Bravo, Mr. Leepson!
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Summary: The Complete Story of how Jefferson's Monticello Was Saved
Review: Marc Leepson has written the first truly "honest" and "complete" story about the saving of Thomas Jefferson's wonderful home, Monticello. This story about how Uriah Levy, an Jewish-American Naval Hero, and his nephew Jefferson Levy, a merchant banker and stock investor early on in their liveunderstood the importance of preservation, especially America's treasures like Monticello and even Mt. Vernon,George Washingon's home.Not many American's in the 19th century really cared or understood preservation, and Jefferson's Monticello almost was destroyed through neglect and the horrors of the Civil War. The Levy family for more than 80 years were the ones singly responsible for saving Monticello. From fighting off law suits, tresspassers, anti-semitism and simple vandals wanting a piece of Thomas Jefferson's tomb, the Levy's keep the dream alive that Monticello would be there for future generations of American's to see and visualize what Jefferson had in mind. Uriah Levy, and Jefferson Levy deserve this honest rendering of their story, and so do all Americans. Michael A. Schwartz
Bethesda, Maryland
8/27/02 It doesn't matter whether or not your Jewish thyis story of
Rating:
Summary: Marc Leepson's Saving Monticello
Review: Marc Leepson's "Saving Monticello" is a marvelously crafted,com-
pelling story which completes the saga of Monticello. One has to
hope that Americans reading this book will recognize the contribution of the Levy family and the anti-Semitism which denied them the credit they deserved after having saved Jefferson's home.
As a public school history teacher the story of the Levy family will now be a part of my curriculum. Thanks to Marc Leepson
the history of Thomas Jefferson's home, after his death, will no longer be neglected.
Rating:
Summary: Marc Leepson's Saving Monticello
Review: Marc Leepson's "Saving Monticello" is a marvelously crafted,com-
pelling story which completes the saga of Monticello. One has to
hope that Americans reading this book will recognize the contribution of the Levy family and the anti-Semitism which denied them the credit they deserved after having saved Jefferson's home.
As a public school history teacher the story of the Levy family will now be a part of my curriculum. Thanks to Marc Leepson
the history of Thomas Jefferson's home, after his death, will no longer be neglected.
Rating:
Summary: Review for Saving Monticello
Review: My best friend gave me Saving Monticello for Christmas, and I have totally enjoyed reading it and pondering it, especially when I spend my nickels. I would even read parts of it aloud to my boyfriend, who never reads. I visited Monticello some years ago, therefore the book had special meaning to me, having walked the grounds and experienced the essence of Thomas Jefferson's home.
Saving Monticello is an excellent way to spend a weekend. The author, Marc Leepson, has obviously thoroughly researched the quest by the unknown heroes of Monticello's restoration, the Levy family, who rescued Thomas Jefferson's Monticello from the ravages of time.
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Summary: A Tremendous Service To American History
Review: On a recent visit to Monticello, I noticed the grave of Rachel Phillips Levy and the plaque that mentions the Levy's ownership of Monticello for almost a century. Intrigued, but knowing nothing of the story, I looked for a book on the subject. Finding Saving Monticello was like discovering an aspect of American History that I didn't know existed! Impeccably researched and documented, Saving Monticello provides a tremendous service to American History by revealing the previously untold story of one of America's best loved and fascinating famous homes. This book should be required reading for all students of American History.
Rating:
Summary: An irreplaceable landmark saved for posterity
Review: Our third president, Thomas Jefferson, possessed many talents, but a grand vision was among the top of his possessions. Over a period of many years, he designed, built, and re-built his grand home in the Piedmont of Virginia. Neither the plain saltbox home of John Adams nor the stately yet conventional Mount Vernon home of George Washington, Monticello was a home of which the entire country could be proud. Exhibiting many classical architectural elements along with some truly unique touches, Thomas Jefferson�s Monticello was a home that completely fit the remarkable qualities of its owner. After Jefferson�s death on the 50th anniversary of the country�s birth, Monticello was soon sold to clear some of his substantial debts. Saving Monticello is the story of the ultimate preservation of this irreplaceable national treasure. The story primarily features the Levy family, a collection of intriguing characters who continue the goal preserving Jeffersons home, at great person cost, through several decades, and against substantial opposition. Marc Leepson has produce a clear narrative of this fascinating history, covering Monticello�s repeated near ruin and its restoration to its original glory. Written in a clear manner, yet with abundant detail, this book is required reading for Jefferson scholars, students of architecture, or merely those interested in a great historical tale. It is clearly the best account of the largely unknown saga of the saving of Monticello.
Rating:
Summary: An irreplaceable landmark saved for posterity
Review: Our third president, Thomas Jefferson, possessed many talents, but a grand vision was among the top of his possessions. Over a period of many years, he designed, built, and re-built his grand home in the Piedmont of Virginia. Neither the plain saltbox home of John Adams nor the stately yet conventional Mount Vernon home of George Washington, Monticello was a home of which the entire country could be proud. Exhibiting many classical architectural elements along with some truly unique touches, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello was a home that completely fit the remarkable qualities of its owner. After Jefferson's death on the 50th anniversary of the country's birth, Monticello was soon sold to clear some of his substantial debts. Saving Monticello is the story of the ultimate preservation of this irreplaceable national treasure. The story primarily features the Levy family, a collection of intriguing characters who continue the goal preserving Jeffersons home, at great person cost, through several decades, and against substantial opposition. Marc Leepson has produce a clear narrative of this fascinating history, covering Monticello's repeated near ruin and its restoration to its original glory. Written in a clear manner, yet with abundant detail, this book is required reading for Jefferson scholars, students of architecture, or merely those interested in a great historical tale. It is clearly the best account of the largely unknown saga of the saving of Monticello.
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