Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
8th out of 49 books
—
3 voters
Benjamin Franklin
The greatest statesman of his age, Benjamin Franklin was also a pioneering scientist, a successful author, the first American postmaster general, a printer, a bon vivant. In addition, he was a man of vast contradictions. This best-selling biography by one of our greatest historians offers a compact and provocative new portrait of America's most extraordinary patriot.
"Super
...morePaperback, 352 pages
Published
August 11th 2003
by Yale University Press
(first published 2002)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
884)
Nov 06, 2008
Demetria
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
people who are interested in the founding fathers.
Shelves:
bio-memoir
We all know about the kite and we picture Benjamin Franklin in his little glasses looking quite serious, but after reading this book, it seems like Franklin was a a very flirtatious, intelligent, charming, diplomatic man. He sounds like a lot of fun and someone with a lot of big ideas and the drive to carry out his ambition. He did own slaves for a few years though before he became an abolitionist, so we probably would not have hung out and what not. The book is pretty engaging and the author d...more
I was terribly disappointed by what I was able to slog through of this book. I was also surprised to be so disappointed, because I have always thought that the small portions of the life of Benjamin Franklin that I've come across through the years has always seemed to present him as an exceptional and utterly fascinating person on every possible level. So to have this book be so painful was unexpected and confusing.
This biography, which doesn't dispute my perception of Franklin's impact, is simp...more
This biography, which doesn't dispute my perception of Franklin's impact, is simp...more
I had been wanting to read a biography of Ben Franklin, and this was a good pick. It's a short book and an easy read, though it took me a couple of months because I only read a few pages at a time (occupied by other books!).
Edmund Morgan's Franklin is a humble superhero of sorts. Reading about Franklin, I often wondered when the man found time to eat and sleep, with all the writing he did, all the meetings he attended, and all the thinking he engaged in. I come away from the book with a wish th...more
Edmund Morgan's Franklin is a humble superhero of sorts. Reading about Franklin, I often wondered when the man found time to eat and sleep, with all the writing he did, all the meetings he attended, and all the thinking he engaged in. I come away from the book with a wish th...more
Three stars was a gift. It wasn't that Morgan got his facts wrong, how could he? Everyone knows Franklin was an earnest achiever behind his aw-shucks Poor Richard facade, John Adams was a pompous ass, despite David McCullough's best efforts to reconstruct him.
But his writing style was egregious. Despite his age and credentials, Morgan wrote like a CNN or FoxNews copy writer: asking rhetorical questions and setting up false dilemmas, then telling you over and over again how he solved them. It may...more
But his writing style was egregious. Despite his age and credentials, Morgan wrote like a CNN or FoxNews copy writer: asking rhetorical questions and setting up false dilemmas, then telling you over and over again how he solved them. It may...more
2004 wrote: Franklin, being a great thinker and socialite and Morgan, beinga fine writer and interpreter, make this book a great read. Morgan pushes history into a timeless realm. This book quenched a thirst for getting to know Franklin further and fulfilled a book report for American History.
Morgan describes this as an introduction to a CD full of writings Franklin left us. It balances content between his personal and political life, focusing most of the last half on the latter. What doesn't fit the typical portrayal is that Franklin was a fit, athletic young man (he swam in a time when others of his class usually wouldn't). Franklin had an intense curiosity, an easygoing manner, and a very subtle approach to power through the influencing of others to get them to see an action as be...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This is not a book which I plan to speed read through. There is such a vast store of Franklin's wisdom, common sense and humor, packed between the front and back covers, and I do not want to miss even one nugget, one pearl!
Reading this book makes me ask myself:
(1) Where are the newspapers of today who see their duty to keep the men and women of society informed, educated and prepared for the events of the day by printing TRULY NEWS-WORTHY articles.
(2) Where are our present-day, honor-bound and...more
Reading this book makes me ask myself:
(1) Where are the newspapers of today who see their duty to keep the men and women of society informed, educated and prepared for the events of the day by printing TRULY NEWS-WORTHY articles.
(2) Where are our present-day, honor-bound and...more
Finally Done
Dec 20, 2008
Brian Steed
added it
Interesting that Franklin is considered the “first American”, considering he held onto his dream that the colonies would remain tied to England until it was obvious to him that reconciliation was no longer an option. And considering he spent more time in Europe than in America, and seemed to prefer the company of Europeans over his fellow colonials. But I’m always amazed how much more generally accomplished the great men of those times were compared to the great men of today,presumably because t...more
If you're looking for a short biography of this incredible founding father, I recommend this one. While it does not give a chronological account of the events and happenings of Franklin's life, it provides the reader instead with an understanding of how Franklin's ideals and views of the world evolved over his career as a scientist and stateman. The reader will gain a greater appreciation for why the revolution was necessary and just how precious the freedoms we so often take for granted today a...more
Edmund Morgan's Benjamin Franklin is a great biography of an extraordinary human being. Morgan, a distinguished historian, wisely avoids relying on secondary sources, and instead focuses on Franklin's own words and those of his contemporaries, as collected in the Papers of Benjamin Franklin. The result is an extremely well-written biography that tells Franklin's life story effectively and economically. Morgan's Franklin is familiar in some ways, as the prodigious inventor, the ceaselessly indust...more
Having never read a biography of Franklin before, I don't have much of a basis for comparison. But this book seemed to be a lot more geared towards an understanding the methods and motivations behind the great man's actions, than a strict historical recounting of the events of his life. From a purely factual standpoint, it was immensely informative for me; but I also really appreciated the opinions & conclusions at which the author, Edmund Morgan (Professor Emeritus of History at Yale), has...more
What an amazing story about an amazing man. I didn't know the true breadth of Franklin's inventions, though I knew they were many, until reading this book. Also, his notoriety during his time is immense, considering the methods of communication of the day. I can truly appreciate his ideas for government, as well, in light of today's political antics, as well.
Thorough and engaging story about this remarkable man.
Thorough and engaging story about this remarkable man.
Edmund Morgan presents a very different approach to analyzing Ben Franklin's life. He does not go day by day or even year by year but instead looks at the overall legacy. While I think this is an interesting way to look at Franklin's life it is not as useful as Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson. It is still possible to learn a lot about his cultural legacy and intellectual legacy. I did learn things about Ben Franklin that I had not from other biographies because this does s...more
The biography wasn't organized in a way that made it easy to read. I'd like something a little more sequential. Also, there are a lot of conclusions about Franklin's character, etc. instead of facts. I guess the author had to condense from many sources, but I'd like to make some conclusions myself instead of having all the authors opinions so obviously thrust upon me.
This book helped me learn a great deal about that era of American History, probably significantly more than I learned in my high school and college classes (history was by far not my favorite subject). The book was not difficult to read, and finding out detalls of how Banjamin operated and his value to our country was quite interesting.
Benjamin Franklin: inventor, printer, writer and politician, has continually facinated and intrigued me. Therefore, no matter who writes his biography, I am still captivated by Frankin's integrity and the ingenuity he possessed throughout his lifetime. A truly remarkable man.
This was a book about Benjamin Franklin's adult, political career. I found it very readable and interesting. By researching Franklin's papers, Morgan has written a very personable, concise biography of Franklin.
This is a good general book and provides context for Franklin's life which is helpful to have before reading Ben's autobiography. The author has a bit of humor, which is very appropriate to a man like Ben.
Ben Franklin is a fascinating human being, and reading about him is well worth doing; this is considered a somewhat short biography, but there are too many quotations and other stylistic issues to describe this as engaging reading. But don't give up. There are other Ben Franklin book options out there that are well worth consideration.
Really liked this biography. Ben is my favorite early American founder. I admire his eclectic interests.
The author manages to convey the personality of Franklin as well as his genius mind in this book!
Franklin really came alive in this book. Morgan created Franklin's world and let us peak into it.
I did not finish this book. I did not care for the author's style of writing.
It sags a bit in the middle... but Franklin's a really interesting guy.
A great book. Morgan brings a truly fascinating character to life.
Best book on Benjamin Franklin I have read.
Nice and short. Great, to the meaty, info.
I liked this biography of Franklin and it made me like Franklin more (too much reading of his Autobiography is not good for my opinion of him). Still it is slight history compared with the books on the Puritans and on the settlement and rise of slavery in Virginia that rightfully make Morgan one of the greatest of American historians. Enjoy the picture it paints and the adulation of Franklin it provides. It could have been 50-75 pages slimmer - some parts, especially in the middle, dragged.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
