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Title: Patriarch : George Washington and the New American Nation by Richard Norton Smith ISBN: 0-395-85512-8 Publisher: Mariner Books Pub. Date: 17 February, 1997 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (11 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Washington's Needed Presence at our Founding Illustrated
Comment: Smith has written a good book that rightly focuses on Washington's building of our national government through careful consideration of precedent and the ability to balance factions through the force of his dignity and integrity.
Our new American government need not have stuck by its Constitutional structure. Indeed, that document was a plan on paper that could arguably have been observed more in the breech had Washington had anything like Napolean's thirst for personal power.
Yet that marvelous document was strengthened by Washington's desire to observe its structure and strictures. Smith details how our first president was keenly aware that his organization of the government and almost every action were setting the precedents that would determine whether his successors would be preside in his spirit or in a vein more threatening to the liberties he had helped purchase during the Revolution.
He also had the help of very intelligent men in his cabinet -- principally Hamilton and Jefferson -- who had opposing views as to the nature of the federal government and its goals and desired relationship to the individual, states and the economy. That Washington was able to keep them both in his employ during the critical period of his first term reveals him to be a very good politician who was adept at balancing interests, using his prestige, and satisfying the egos of men who thought they were destined to design the nation in this first presidency.
I would have liked a little more detail on the actual organization of the government and it's establishment. Smith focuses more on the personal and relationships of Washington and his key subordinates -- somewhat of a style over substance analysis of his two terms. Yet at this period, style and nuance were critical to setting a positive tone for the presidency and Smith's focus is certainly a good lense through which to shed more light on this important historical era.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great Focus on Washington's Presidency
Comment: What I'd like you to do now is to go to the James Thomas Flexner's "Indispensable Man" review I wrote, read the first paragraph and come back here.
Now that I've established the importance of learning about GW, I must recommend to you R.N. Smith's book. He focuses on Washington's presidency and helps us to understand why he is consistantly ranked by historians as one of the top three U.S. presidents. Smith focuses on his precedents and the respect he commanded from all, including Jefferson and Hamilton who, without Washingtons' leadership might have destroyed each other and the country in their political intrigues. Highly recommended.
Rating: 4
Summary: Extensive Groundwork
Comment: I was fascinated with this book about Washington's Presidency, but I would be remiss in not mentioning that is not much concerned with anything outside his presidency. It is not dry or lacking in details, but I found myself becoming more interested in the fleeting, anectdotal passages, or some of the more personal interactions Washington had. For instance, I found it gripping to follow Washington's decision making process when he is presented with evidence that a close acquaintance may be a traitor. This story only goes on for about two pages and similar examinations are found only few and far between the long stretches on global situations and policies. However, I would guess this proves that one of the important things to note about Washington was that he was not as outwardly notable as some of the more flamboyant and boisterous of those founding fellows surrounding him.
I feel very informed about Washington the president, but I would now like to learn a little bit more about the man.
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Title: Washington: The Indispensable Man by James Thomas Flexner ISBN: 0316286168 Publisher: Back Bay Books Pub. Date: 22 February, 1994 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: George Washington: Ordinary Man, Extraordinary Leader by Robert F. Jones ISBN: 0823221873 Publisher: Fordham University Press Pub. Date: June, 2002 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: The Genius of George Washington by Edmund S. Morgan ISBN: 0393000605 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: April, 1982 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph J. Ellis ISBN: 0679764410 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 07 April, 1998 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: John Adams by David McCullough ISBN: 0743223136 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 03 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
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