- Paperback: 160 pages
- Publisher: OUP USA (10 April 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0195368703
- ISBN-13: 978-0195368703
- Product Dimensions: 20.4 x 18.6 x 0.8 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,983,611 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
Benjamin Franklin (Lives & Legacies (Oxford))
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"An excellent introduction to this foremost founding father.... When all Franklin's accomplishments are set out as succinctly and fluently as Gaustad sets them out, what Shakespeares Cassius said of Caesar--'He doth bestride the narrow world like a Colossus'--appears eminently repeatable, sans sarcasm, about Franklin."--Booklist
"Edwin S. Gaustad's admirable brief life of Benjamin Franklin is written with grace and informed by a lifetime of close and thoughtful study of the American past. Perhaps our greatest historian of American religion, Gaustad deftly weaves together the many strands of Franklin's life and thought. In the process, he exemplifies Franklin's teaching: 'What is serving God? 'Tis doing Good to Man.'" --R. B. Bernstein, author of Thomas Jefferson
"Edwin Gaustad has written a short life of Benjamin Franklin that is rich in detail and insight. Here is Franklin on his way up in Pennsylvania, the public-spirited craftsman and businessman, the pragmatist whose idea --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Product Description
The tenth and youngest son of a poor Boston soapmaker, Benjamin Franklin would rise to become, in Thomas Jefferson's words, "the greatest man and ornament of his age." In this short, engaging biography, historian Edwin S. Gaustad offers a marvelous portrait of this towering colonial figure, illuminating Franklin's character and personality. Here is truly one of the most extraordinary lives imaginable, a man who, with only two years of formal education, became a printer, publisher, postmaster, philosopher, world-class scientist and inventor, statesman, musician, and abolitionist. Gaustad presents a chronological account of all these accomplishments, delightfully spiced with quotations from Franklin's own extensive writings. The book describes how the hardworking Franklin became at age 24 the most successful printer in Pennsylvania and how by 42, with the help of Poor Richard's Almanack, he had amassed enough wealth to retire from business. We then follow Franklin's next brilliant career, as an inventor and scientist, examining his pioneering work on electricity and his inventions of the Franklin Stove, the lightning rod, and bifocals, as well as his mapping of the Gulf Stream, a major contribution to navigation. Lastly, the book covers Franklin's role as America's leading statesman, ranging from his years in England before the Revolutionary War to his time in France thereafter, highlighting his many contributions to the cause of liberty. Along the way, Gaustad sheds light on Franklin's personal life, including his troubled relationship with his illegitimate son William, who remained a Loyalist during the Revolution, and Franklin's thoughts on such topics as religion and morality. Written by a leading authority on colonial America, this compact biography captures in a remarkably small space one of the most protean lives in American history. "Gaustad's admirable brief life of Benjamin Franklin is written with grace and informed by a lifetime of close and thoughtful study of the American past." --R. B. Bernstein, author of Thomas Jefferson
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Customer Reviews
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.co.uk.
5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Everyone Should Read This Biography
8 Aug 2006
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Professor Gaustad has written another outstanding biography in the Lives and Legacies Series by Oxford University Press. I recommend highly his biographies of Roger Williams and Benjamin Franklin. While geared towards "young adult" readers, anyone interested in American history should read this book. Franklin was the prototypical American whose ideas and actions shaped so much of our republic's early development.
It is not a "kids" book. It combines first-rate scholarship in a concise (125 pages) format with clear, non-academic writing. This makes it accessible to readers of all levels and ages. It should be used in high school and under-graduate colleges and universities. While recent commendable biographies of Franklin by H.W. Brands, Edmund Morgan and Walter Issacson abound, this one is the best!
I hope that Professor Gaustad can contribute another work to the Lives and Legacies series. We need a new biography of William Penn.
It is not a "kids" book. It combines first-rate scholarship in a concise (125 pages) format with clear, non-academic writing. This makes it accessible to readers of all levels and ages. It should be used in high school and under-graduate colleges and universities. While recent commendable biographies of Franklin by H.W. Brands, Edmund Morgan and Walter Issacson abound, this one is the best!
I hope that Professor Gaustad can contribute another work to the Lives and Legacies series. We need a new biography of William Penn.
Was this review helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biography > Historical > United States > Military
- Books > Biography > Political > United States
- Books > History > Countries & Regions > Central America & Caribbean > 1500-1800
- Books > History > North America
- Books > History > Social & Economic History > Inventions
- Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Social Sciences > Cultural Studies > History of Ideas
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
