Sibling Rivalry and Brotherly Love

I just finished reading Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis. I usually don’t say things like this at the beginning of a review, for several reasons, but that is a damned fine read right there. I mean yes you should expect that of a Pulitzer Prize winner, but man I liked it. If you want more follow my rambling.

Frankly, I’m not sure I’m going to have a lot to say about this book, primarily because I don’t want to give much away. I’ll try to give what I can.

I like books about history, especially well written books, but you might have guessed that from my reading list. As the title suggests, this book is about The Revolutionary Generation. It doesn’t really cover a chronological series of events or a timeline of individuals. It borrows a hint form The Outer Limits. Instead of giving you a thousand channels, it seeks to expand one image to crystal clarity.

The book takes six “events” involving the famous and important founding members of the beginning of the US. Ellis expands on these events to give the reader a better understanding of the people involved and the events and politics that lead to and surrounded these events. In doing so he gives you a more intimate look at the people and the time than one normally gets from simple chronological histories of the era. I would go so far as to say that this book has improved my understanding of the time and people than most of the previous books that I have read combined.

I think that anyone who likes history, politics, personality, and the complex webs they weave, then you should like this book. It took me a little longer to read than normal, but that’s because I wanted to absorb every word. Everyone who cases about where this country has been and where it’s going should read this book.