James madison biography reviews on wendy

Why not just trust that I remember the subject cited? Also, he has too much faith in my understanding of Latin phrases. But having said all that, I am enjoying this bio very much, and finding just enough info on Dolley to increase my fondness of her. Christopher Saunders said:. February 16, at pm. I agree with you — lots of information in this one, but a bit of a slog.

James madison biography reviews on wendy: Literary Fiction Customer reviews. &

Mark Singer said:. August 9, at am. Tags American historybiographiesbook reviewsJames Madisonpresidential biographiesPresidentsRalph Ketcham. Share this: Twitter Facebook Email Tumblr. Like Loading The early presidents, of course, lived in times when history was relatively more difficult to document than in later years can you imagine debating the Declaration of Independence with a room full of iPhones?

Melissa said:. November 25, at pm.

James madison biography reviews on wendy: A life of the fifth president

The majority seemed to really like it. Russell said:. But there was a single volume condensation that Brant wrote himself. He was retired in Eugene, Oregon. I was sent to interview him on the occasion of the publication of the condensed edition. He said he was impressed by the homework I did to prepare for the interview and he sent a copy of the book after be had seen the finished interview.

Swanson had collected the entire multi-volume series — expensive even in the s — and ta;liked to me at length about Brant and Madison. Brant would roll over in his grave. David said:. January 26, at pm. Steve — thank you for the blog! Your blog has been a wonderful resource. No David. Just no. I respectfully disagree. The Cheney bio of Madison is not beautifully written.

Not my judgement. Look how fast is was remaindered. Laura said:. January 9, at pm. Do any of the biographies adequately tackle what seems to me to be the greatest reason Madison is such an enigma all these years later — his seemingly paradoxical move away from the Federalist ideals that caused him to help author and subsequently advocate for the Constitution to become one of the foremost Jeffersonian-Republicans?

Also — I just stumbled across your blog and its such a great resource for history nerds like me! January 10, at am. But then again I may well have forgotten some of what I was exposed to 30 months ago in order to make room for more recent insights such as the bombastic exploits of TR and the clandestine dating habits of Warren Harding.

January 10, at pm. January 20, at pm. For example, while republicanism was threatened by institutional weakness during the s, it was threatened by excessive government i. Hamiltonian finance; the Alien and Sedition Acts during the s. Inez said:. July 22, at pm. I am reading through the Presidential biographies and am ready for James Madison. Found this one at my library.

It has decent reviews on Amazon. July 25, at am. August 15, at pm. I was wondering if this is a thread in the other bios of him? September 3, at pm. I prefer the academic and policy focused biographies with a touch of personal life, since this does contribute to philosophy, and Brant far succeeded my expectations. If I ever come into a windfall of cash, I would like to pick up the Brant series.

Jensen said:. March 21, at pm.

James madison biography reviews on wendy: The Color of Fear

I have a few Madison bios but neither of those, and am debating what to get first. Down the road I may end up with both, but for now I want to whatever one edges out the other, even if only slightly. John Poulsen said:. January 3, at pm. For those that have read them how are the ones on Madison by Brookhiser and the Jefferson one by Bernstein far as a beginning place to start?

January 5, at am. January 29, at pm. Thank you Steve. By any chance have you read the Lynne Cheney biography to know if it is a good one? Several people I know have really enjoyed the book while one or two were unimpressed. If you do read it, let me know what you think! Connie from CT said:. March 26, at pm. Steve has done a great job in reviewing Presidential Bios.

E Mullally said:. April 29, at pm. I enjoyed them all. April 30, at am. Thanks for your insights and good luck on your quest! Even though four years have passed since I tackled biographies of the earliest presidents I remember those days and books fondly! Teacher in Tejas said:. June 26, at pm. Daniel G said:. September 17, at am. I have just started reading through the presidents and I have come to Maddison.

Any suggestions between the two. Overall rating: 4 stars. Share this: Twitter Facebook Email Tumblr. Like Loading Steve said: June 4, at am. Malcolm Greenhill said: June 4, at am. Steve said: June 4, at pm. But so much to read, so little time… Reply. Liz Parrott said: June 4, at pm. Liz Parrott said: June 5, at pm. Caldwell said: November 22, at pm.

Steve said: November 22, at pm. Kerby Thompson said: August 12, at pm. Ryan Sem said: January 10, at pm. Ketcham captures Madison first as a disciple of republicanism and then into his own maturity as possibly the most steadfast and consistent defender of his particular conception of republicanism. Almost no other president was as dedicated to his legalistic ideals and the mechanics of American republicanism.

This book brings out the man and his virtues out of a complex historical period — an era he played a pivotal role in as secretary of state under Jefferson, active politician in the early s, and the crises of his own presidency, including the disaster of the war of Despite his failings, which are neither glossed over in this volume nor given precedence, Ketcham provides us with a deep portrait of a man who is too often relegated to a smaller part in the creation of the nation than he is given credit for.

The weaknesses of the book stand one: in sometimes spending too much time on details less relevant to the subject of the telling, and two: in being somewhat less readable than non-academics might benefit from. For myself, I learned that I really like a good, thorough, academic biography of a president, and one that attempts as much as possible to be analytical but unbiased.

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