| Benjamin Franklin: An American Life |  | Author: Walter Isaacson
Publisher: Turtleback Books Distributed by Demco Media
Category: Book
Buy Collectible: $64.80
Avg. Customer Rating:  202 reviews
Sales Rank: 4632102
Media: Turtleback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 586
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6 x 1.8
ISBN: 0606302425
Dewey Decimal Number: 973.3092
EAN: 9780606302425
ASIN: 0606302425
Publication Date: April 30, 2004
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Condition: **THE HARDBACK BOOK!** A RARE TO FIND IN EARLY PRINT WITH A NICE DUST JACKET. NOT TURLEBACK. THE UNABRIDGED 1ST EDITION.SCHUSER, 2003. EARLY PRINT. WITH BEAUTIFUL PHOTOGRAPHS! HARDCOVER BOOK WITH GILT LETTERING, DUST COVER AND PAGES ARE IN PERFECT CONDITION. RAPID SHIPPING WITH FREE TRACKING, WELL PACKAGED. PRIORITY AIR MAIL.
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Amazon.com Review
Benjamin Franklin, writes journalist and biographer Walter Isaacson, was that rare Founding Father who would sooner wink at a passer-by than sit still for a formal portrait. What's more, Isaacson relates in this fluent and entertaining biography, the revolutionary leader represents a political tradition that has been all but forgotten today, one that prizes pragmatism over moralism, religious tolerance over fundamentalist rigidity, and social mobility over class privilege. That broadly democratic sensibility allowed Franklin his contradictions, as Isaacson shows. Though a man of lofty principles, Franklin wasn't shy of using sex to sell the newspapers he edited and published; though far from frivolous, he liked his toys and his mortal pleasures; and though he sometimes gave off a simpleton image, he was a shrewd and even crafty politician. Isaacson doesn't shy from enumerating Franklins occasional peccadilloes and shortcomings, in keeping with the iconoclastic nature of our time--none of which, however, stops him from considering Benjamin Franklin "the most accomplished American of his age," and one of the most admirable of any era. And heres one bit of proof: as a young man, Ben Franklin regularly went without food in order to buy books. His example, as always, is a good one--and this is just the book to buy with the proceeds from the grocery budget. --Gregory McNamee
Product Description
Benjamin Franklin is the Founding Father who winks at us. An ambitious urban entrepreneur who rose up the social ladder, from leather-aproned shopkeeper to dining with kings, he seems made of flesh rather than of marble. In bestselling author Walter Isaacson's vivid and witty full-scale biography, we discover why Franklin seems to turn to us from history's stage with eyes that twinkle from behind his new-fangled spectacles. By bringing Franklin to life, Isaacson shows how he helped to define both his own time and ours. He was, during his 84-year life, America's best scientist, inventor, diplomat, writer, and business strategist, and he was also one of its most practical -- though not most profound -- political thinkers. He proved by flying a kite that lightning was electricity, and he invented a rod to tame it. He sought practical ways to make stoves less smoky and commonwealths less corrupt. He organized neighborhood constabularies and international alliances, local lending libraries and national legislatures. He combined two types of lenses to create bifocals and two concepts of representation to foster the nation's federal compromise. He was the only man who shaped all the founding documents of America: the Albany Plan of Union, the Declaration of Independence, the treaty of alliance with France, the peace treaty with England, and the Constitution. And he helped invent America's unique style of homespun humor, democratic values, and philosophical pragmatism. But the most interesting thing that Franklin invented, and continually reinvented, was himself. America's first great publicist, he was, in his life and in his writings, consciously trying to create a new American archetype. In the process, he carefully crafted his own persona, portrayed it in public, and polished it for posterity. Through it all, he trusted the hearts and minds of his fellow "leather-aprons" more than he did those of any inbred elite. He saw middle-class values as a source of social strength, not as something to be derided. His guiding principle was a "dislike of everything that tended to debase the spirit of the common people." Few of his fellow founders felt this comfort with democracy so fully, and none so intuitively. In this colorful and intimate narrative, Isaacson provides the full sweep of Franklin's amazing life, from his days as a runaway printer to his triumphs as a statesman, scientist, and Founding Father. He chronicles Franklin's tumultuous relationship with his illegitimate son and grandson, his practical marriage, and his flirtations with the ladies of Paris. He also shows how Franklin helped to create the American character and why he has a particular resonance in the twenty-first century.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 197 more reviews...
 A Thorough Biography October 2, 2008
Benjamin Franklin's long and productive life has a special appeal to many people. As Isaacson suggests, perhaps he is the founder who appeals to so many people because he seems more accessible. There are several things I learned in this book that I had not really considered before, mainly his relationship with his family and the opinions others had of him in succeeding generations. As the author remarks, we picture him (somewhat inaccurately) as a spectacled, elderly man engaging in his kite experiment or we see him dispensing maxims about industry and frugality. In reality, there was much more to the man than these images would suggest.
We sometimes stereotype famous individuals of the past as one-dimensional, but we are delighted and sometimes chagrined to learn that they are just as complex as we are. Franklin was no exception. We see in this book aspects of his relationships with people and his family that we would not normally come across in a brief glance of the man. He would, literally, be distant from his common law wife Deborah as his overseas trips would end up as years away from home. He would part ways with his son (illegitimate son) William over the independence debate. He would champion the cause of the artisan class and the middling sort, but just as easily associate with the powerful and the rich.
His varied interests and life experiences certainly endear him to many people. Not many founders can claim to have done as many varied things as Franklin. He wasn't a skilled orator or debater, or as deep a political philosopher as other founders were, as the author touches on, but these are probably other examples of why he seems more accessible to people. He was both conservative and liberal on varied issues, but was generally more democratic than other founders. He was also a very tolerant man when it came to religious sects. He was a scientist who believed in practical inventions and solutions; he wasn't as caught up in the language or theories as other scientists were.
I've left out much on his well known role during and after the American Revolution. This isn't to minimize his accomplishments in his profession or in the critical events of his day, in which he was often a key player. The author ably covers all of these important facets of Franklin's life. The numerous acquaintances with various people in this country and those in England and France, the flirtatious correspondences with some of his women admirers, and so forth are also ably covered here.
Clearly, the author likes this middle class / populist appeal of Franklin's and tries to present him in such a light. This is a wonderfully written biography that sheds much light on the man.
 Ben Franklin, the good and the bad August 20, 2008
I am a fan of narrative nonfiction history, so I was a bit offset when I started reading Benjamin Franklin. It's not really a narrative biography, but by the end of the first page, I didn't care.
The book is well written by Walter Isaacson and it is about a fascinating man. I knew very little about Benjamin Franklin when I began this book. Not so now.
Isaacson looks at the many facets of the man's life--printer, author, politician, diplomat, revolutionary, inventor, scientist. Franklin was a man who defined his time and defined America, as can be seen by the fact that's he's the only American who signed all 4 crucial documents in America's founding.
Isaacson also looks at Franklin's faults and contradictions. Though Isaacson tries to figure out how they could exist in Franklin, he never quite manages to get inside Franklin's head.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable read. I came away with a new appreciation of Franklin.
Man of Many Passions August 2, 2008
Initially I imagined reading this book from time to time, knowing I would "eventually" complete it.
Well, I was wrong. Isaacson's book is so engaging and Franklin so remarkable that I wasn't able to stop reading until the 84-year-old Franklin had come to the end of his life. If school books could be so appealing (and more teachers as captivated by history as Isaacson is by Franklin) - then soon we'd have a land full of knowledgeable history lovers. It would do a nation good.
You also can learn more about Franklin's worldview on thinkwriter.blogspot.com. He was the right man at the right time in America's history. . . and I daresay readers will appreciate him on a whole new level after reading Isaacson's book. Enjoy - no matter how long it takes you!
Wonderfully detailed and objective July 23, 2008
In "Benjamin Franklin," Walter Isaacson manages to chronicle the life of Franklin in a thorough, well-analyzed fashion, while simultaneously allowing the reader to draw many of his own conclusions from the research presented in the book.
I was intrigued to read this book after reading David McCullough's "John Adams." It's certainly no secret that Adams and Franklin did not get along terribly well during the bulk of their interactions in Europe, and reading that book left me guessing that, in all likelihood, there was another side to the story.
While at times it seemed that McCullough could be somewhat heavy-handed in his judgment toward Franklin, I felt that Isaacson did a good job presenting the most likely facts of the case and allowing the reader to determine the most likely manner in which the pieces fit together. He did certainly tend to err on the more sympathetic side of controversies surrounding Franklin, and was probably to generous in his judgment of Franklin's thoroughly practical and emotionless approach toward religion.
One thing I appreciated about this book relative to most other colonial era biographies was the focus on the years prior to the revolution, which obviously encompassed the bulk of Franklin's life. Franklin's life leading up to the revolution seems to serve as a microcosm of the views of the colonies in the years between the French and Indian War and the Revolution.
All in all, I heartily recommend this book to anyone with an interest in colonial America and the founding fathers.
Excellent!!! June 30, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It is enlightening how the spectrum at which Benjamin Franklin's contributions to America can hardly be contained in one book. A glimpse into his common sense, wisdom, and morality are organized with precision and passion through Walter Isaacson's masterpiece. I now better understand Franklin's connection with other fathers of our country and have a deeper desire to learn about them as well.
Futhermore, I am impressed at the background of the author. His experience and education give me more respect for his work.
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