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Book Review 9/10/2008 Tony Lawrence

American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic

I happened to read both of these together, and of course found them complementary. Of the two, I liked "American Creation" more, probably because of its broader scope. However, learning more about Jefferson's psyche was also very interesting.

I was a little surprised at the vehemence of some of the negative reviews of both these books. I don't read Amazon reviews until after I have read for myself and I didn't expect to find this, but apparently what most readers find objective and well researched triggers deep anger in others. Perhaps those are the extremists who either want to see our founding fathers as unsullied heroes or black villians; Ellis paints a much more complex picture of the men and the times.

I enjoyed both of these (as did most Amazon readers) and recommend them to others who like good historical writing.

Send comments and new posts to tony@aplawrence.com

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