The Patriots: Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and the Making of America

Description

Now in paperback! In this gripping narrative, Winston Groom brings his signature storytelling panache to the intricately crafted tale of three of our nation's most fascinating founding fathers-Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams-and paints a vivid picture of the improbable events, bold ideas, and extraordinary characters who created the United States of America. When the Revolutionary War ended in victory in 1783, there remained the stupendous problem of how to establish a workable democratic government in the vast, newly independent country. Three key founding fathers played significant roles- John Adams, the brilliant, dour, thin-skinned New Englander; Thomas Jefferson, the aristocratic Southern renaissance man; and Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the Caribbean island of Nevis. Their lives and policies could not have been more different; their relationships with each other were complex, and often rife with animosity. And yet these three men led the charge-two of them creating and signing the Declaration of Independence, and the third establishing a national treasury and the earliest delineation of a Republican party. The time in which they lived was fraught with danger and the smell of liberty in the air, excitement strained by vast antagonisms. But above it all, they fulfilled the heavy role of creating the United States of America. Drawing on extensive correspondence, epic tales of war, and rich histories of their day-to-day interactions, bestselling author Winston Groom shares the remarkable story of the beginnings of our great nation.

Winston Groom was born in Washington D.C., but grew up in Mobile, Alabama, on the Gulf Coast. After a brief period in the Army, Groom returned to Washington, where he worked as a reporter at the Washington Star, covering the political and court beat. He enjoyed a stint in New York City, befriending and socializing with literary legends before returning to Alabama, where he settled down to writing and enjoying life. He is the author of 18 previous books, including Forrest Gump and The Aviators.

"Like Groom's other works, [this book] stands or falls on the author's talent for weaving engaging stories for the general reader. Here is where Groom shines. "Hamilton, Jefferson, and Adams made the country what it is today, and their dust still sparkles like stars in the minds of their fellow Americans," he concludes. Groom bequeathed his readers an entertaining take on the intellectual war that shaped our nation."--The Wall Street Journal "[Groom's] mastery of plot and storytelling leaves him inordinately well-disposed to piece together the tangled mass of major battles and peashooter skirmishes."--Chicago Tribune "Groom brings the novelist's touch to history."--Associated Press "Groom narrates in a genial, almost conversational way, making all the twists and turns completely understandable. When he narrows the focus, the action comes alive."--Washington Post "Readers of all his fiction and nonfiction might well feel inclined to testify that he is fast becoming a national treasure."--The Advocate "Winston Groom has that most enviable gift as a writer, an instantly likable voice... he also possesses a remarkable historical imagination... capable of bringing a neglected or half-forgotten moment bursting noisily back to life."--The Wilson Quarterly