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Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

Walter Isaacson (Goodreads Author)

4.02 · Rating details · 129,809 ratings · 2,465 reviews

Benjamin Franklin is the Founding Father who winks at us. An ambitious urban entrepreneur who rose up the social ladder, from leather-aproned shopkeeper to dining with kings, he seems made of flesh rather than of marble. In bestselling author Walter Isaacson's vivid and witty full-scale biography, we discover why Franklin seems to turn to us from history's stage with eyes Benjamin Franklin is the Founding Father who winks at us. An ambitious urban entrepreneur who rose up the social ladder, from leather-aproned shopkeeper to dining with kings, he seems made of flesh rather than of marble. In bestselling author Walter Isaacson's vivid and witty full-scale biography, we discover why Franklin seems to turn to us from history's stage with eyes that twinkle from behind his new-fangled spectacles. By bringing Franklin to life, Isaacson shows how he helped to define both his own time and ours.

He was, during his 84-year life, America's best scientist, inventor, diplomat, writer, and business strategist, and he was also one of its most practical -- though not most profound -- political thinkers. He proved by flying a kite that lightning was electricity, and he invented a rod to tame it. He sought practical ways to make stoves less smoky and commonwealths less corrupt. He organized neighborhood constabularies and international alliances, local lending libraries and national legislatures. He combined two types of lenses to create bifocals and two concepts of representation to foster the nation's federal compromise. He was the only man who shaped all the founding documents of America: the Albany Plan of Union, the Declaration of Independence, the treaty of alliance with France, the peace treaty with England, and the Constitution. And he helped invent America's unique style of homespun humor, democratic values, and philosophical pragmatism.

But the most interesting thing that Franklin invented, and continually reinvented, was himself. America's first great publicist, he was, in his life and in his writings, consciously trying to create a new American archetype. In the process, he carefully crafted his own persona, portrayed it in public, and polished it for posterity.

Through it all, he trusted the hearts and minds of his fellow "leather-aprons" more than he did those of any inbred elite. He saw middle-class values as a source of social strength, not as something to be derided. His guiding principle was a "dislike of everything that tended to debase the spirit of the common people." Few of his fellow founders felt this comfort with democracy so fully, and none so intuitively.

In this colorful and intimate narrative, Isaacson provides the full sweep of Franklin's amazing life, from his days as a runaway printer to his triumphs as a statesman, scientist, and Founding Father. He chronicles Franklin's tumultuous relationship with his illegitimate son and grandson, his practical marriage, and his flirtations with the ladies of Paris. He also shows how Franklin helped to create the American character and why he has a particular resonance in the twenty-first century. ...more

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Kindle Edition, First Edition, 608 pages

Published July 1st 2003 by Simon & Schuster

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Aug 27, 2007 Dylan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: american-history, the-american-revolution

If Alexander Hamilton is one of the most underappreciated of the Founders then Benjamin Franklin is one of the most misunderstood. Isaacson ends his book with a concluding chapter that details this misundestanding. Throughout history each generation has taken a new look at Benjamin Franklin. As the author points out, Thoreau mocked him, Carnegie adored him and D.H. Lawrence despised him. So who was right, and why?

Isaacson, while pointing out his faults and follies, does not hide his own admirat If Alexander Hamilton is one of the most underappreciated of the Founders then Benjamin Franklin is one of the most misunderstood. Isaacson ends his book with a concluding chapter that details this misundestanding. Throughout history each generation has taken a new look at Benjamin Franklin. As the author points out, Thoreau mocked him, Carnegie adored him and D.H. Lawrence despised him. So who was right, and why?

Isaacson, while pointing out his faults and follies, does not hide his own admiration for Franklin. An interesting historical test is to consider that Franklin's style and personal life often overshadow his professional accomplishments and civic contributions. Because he lived apart from his wife, flirted with women, wrote about the science of farts and beget an illigitimate child the general public has ignored his historical importance. Rather than donning the frills and wigs of Paris, a trap Jefferson quickly fell into, Franklin purposefully wore plain suits, no wig and often times his famous fur hat. A man who set trends without trying, one of Franklin's greatest gifts was the ability to accomplish great things without anyone else realizing it.

His feigned naivite, strategic avoidance of conflict and simple appearance made him the perfect man to discover electricity and promote the lightning rod; propose a union of the colonies in 1759; negotiate for the repeal of the Stamp Act; carve out a treaty with and multiple loans from France; negotiate peace with Britain; champion the Connecticut compromise for a bi-cameral legislature, one with representation based on population, the other with equal representation frome each state; and propose the complete abolition of slavery.

Isaacson makes clear, and he is quite convincing, that while Franklin had his faults, he was revered in his own time, accomplished as much or more than any other Founder, and deserves to be considerd as one of America's most historically important statesman. Franklin's personal creed was that doing good things for others was the ultimate form of religion. In life and in death (in his will he set up a trust fund for young tradesman in Philadelphia and Boston) he practiced his religion dutifully. A religion that we in America would do well to retrieve. ...more

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Jul 08, 2015 Matt rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook

Seeking to continue my trek to better understand the birth of America and its Founding Fathers, I tackled Walter Isaacson's biography of Benjamin Franklin. The book offers not only a great examination of the man, but also a wonderful set of vignettes related to all the activities Franklin undertook in his life. This most eclectic of men, the fifth generation of the youngest son of the youngest son, dazzled many he met and Isaacson's presentation surely will pull in many readers as well. In Isaac Seeking to continue my trek to better understand the birth of America and its Founding Fathers, I tackled Walter Isaacson's biography of Benjamin Franklin. The book offers not only a great examination of the man, but also a wonderful set of vignettes related to all the activities Franklin undertook in his life. This most eclectic of men, the fifth generation of the youngest son of the youngest son, dazzled many he met and Isaacson's presentation surely will pull in many readers as well. In Isaacson's examination, three themes emerge related to Franklin's persona: a common man, the inquisitive thinker, and the great Founding Father. Using these themes and Isaacson's strong narrative, the reader learns so much in this one tome, all of which helps better shape the view of this most varied of the early men who shaped America.

At no point did Ben Franklin make himself out to be anything other than a common man. He lived a simple life and grew up surrounded by sixteen siblings in a household where frugality was itself considered posh. Becoming self-sufficient at a young age, Franklin sought to make a name for himself in the Philadelphia region becoming a printer at a young age and beginning a career that would make him a household name before any of his Founding roles. He sought to educate the masses with the written word, from tracts to pamphlets and even into satirical books, proving that the pen has its might and can sway as effectively as the sword. Isaacson offers a dose of humanness to Franklin by discussing his dalliances that brought about a bastard son, William, but balances the scales when showing that Franklin did not shirk from his responsibilities. Franklin did marry and have a legitimate family of his own, but they seemed to take a secondary place to his work and eventually to his curiosities, as mentioned below. Franklin remained well rooted throughout his life, even when politics came knocking, differentiating himself from the likes of the military Washington or highly political Jefferson. A common man to the last of his days, Franklin always sought the best for his fellow man without pretentiousness or a sense of entitlement.

That Franklin was always thinking appears to be a recurring thread in Isaacson's narrative. Franklin never stopped wondering what was and what might be, given the chance. As early as when he began publishing, Franklin sought to better the lives of those around him by pushing the limits of the day and expressing a concrete desire to grow. Franklin printed his stories and ideas to force the common man to think about life and how he presents himself, hoping to open the mind up to new ideas or a better means of living the current one. Isaacson illustrates Franklin's ideas which included fire brigades, property insurance, and even public lending libraries. He saw an opening and a need and simply presented a plan in the microcosm of Philadelphia, which blossomed into something most people take for granted. Moving into the world of science, Franklin espoused a greater interest in opening new channels of thinking, but always practical ideas rather than esoteric or theoretical ones. Franklin began discoveries of electrical conversion and conservation by creating primitive batteries, curiosities around electric fencing, and paved the way for future theoretical scientists to formulate some of the ideas Franklin found while tinkering. Isaacson presents Franklin's ideas in such a way as to elevate his stature without leaving the reader to think he was better than anyone else, something biographers of Washington, Adams, and Jefferson fail to do in their respective tomes. Franklin did things for the curiosity of it and used that questioning spirit to help those around him. These ideas have, presently, become so ensconced in daily life that to learn of their inventor may leave the reader in awe.

Franklin's concern for the common man and his innovative mind spawned a retired life where politics played a central role. Early in the tome, Isaacson mentions that Franklin was the only Founding Father who had a hand in all of the documents related to the eventual sovereignty of America. While he was strongly loyal to the British Crown, he did see some of the issues his fellow colonists felt, particularly in the realm of taxation and control of local affairs. Isaacson discusses Franklin's plan to create a form of legislative agreement that would allow regional and even colonial issues to be handled within the region, while working with the Crown and permitting a British overseer. This idea could have, Isaacson posits, curtailed the need for the Revolutionary War and likely allowed a more Canadian-based solution to the colonial quagmire (the latter part of this point is not Isaacson's but my political insight). It failed and Franklin stood firm with his colonial brothers in fighting for equality and representation. Franklin was elected to represent Pennsylvania at the bargaining table in London, but all his insight could not sway the likes of HRH George III, which precipitated the eventual War of Independence. With extensive sections of the tome dedicated to Franklin's various diplomatic positions, in both London and Paris, during those years ahead of the War and the period of peace negotiations. Franklin stopped at nothing to secure America's support from European allies and to temper the issues arising in the Mother Country. Isaacson does a masterful job at presenting this, as well as arguing that Franklin was likely the single man able to quell the size of the fight put up by the British during this colonial divorce proceedings. All this and the number of "who's who" historical figures that Franklin encountered and liaised with will surely astound the reader to no end. Isaacson does not shy away from examining Franklin's extensive work on constitutional documents, after Britain negotiated a settlement. While Franklin was elderly and not the greatest orator, his ideas were firmly rooted in democratic means, to benefit the people. Some ideas fell by the wayside when the consummate politicians scoffed at his empowering the common man, while others received strong consideration and eventually inclusion in the final constitutional documents. To call Franklin an important character in the political realm of America seems an understatement.

While Franklin showed a varied and pleasantly passionate side, a quasi-fourth theme emerges throughout the tome; Franklin's complete abandonment of his family, particularly the women. Franklin galavanted throughout the colonies and into Europe with little regard for his wife, Deborah, penning letters to her on occasion and discussing how the woman whose home he shared while working in London had become so close to him. Franklin did not return when he discovered she'd had a stroke, nor did he rush back when she died. Franklin seemed to be divorced from his spousal responsibilities and did not give it a second thought. While he penned pleasant notes to his daughter and her husband, again, Franklin made little effort to attend her wedding or play any role in her life leading up to that point. Like the man always tinkering in the garage, Franklin had too much to do and too little time for those around him, unless they were as ensconced with his actions. Add to this, the aforementioned William, his bastard son, became a Royal Governor of New Jersey and thus put him opposite Franklin for much of the younger's adult life. It is interesting to note that Franklin had a wonderful relationship with his grandchildren, as Isaacson shows throughout, no matter how poorly he treated his own children. This is an interesting theme, familial abandonment, and one that I have not seen in any of the previous Founding Father biographies. Very poignant and it does balance well against all the good that Franklin did in his life.

Isaacson's biographical sketch of Franklin is both thorough and entertaining, keeping the reader away from the quagmires of the mundane while not skimming over key aspects. Full of wonderful insights throughout, Isaacson shows the attention to detail and extensive research he undertook to weave this together. With strong themes and exceptionally off the wall observations (that Franklin's fathering of William led to two additional generations of bastard children begetting bastards) keep the reader pushing forward with interest and awe, rather than out of a sense of necessity. Like the previous figure Isaacson tackled that I have already read (Steve Jobs), the man appears to come alive through the author's wonderful prose.

Kudos, Mr. Isaacson for your sensational biography. I cannot wait to sink my teeth into your other political juggernaut (Kissinger) or scientist (Einstein).

Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/ ...more

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Feb 08, 2021 Luís rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: g-biography, united-states, g-politics, e-4

This work is an excellent biography that pays homage to the dense and intense life of Benjamin Franklin. His scientific discoveries, with his famous kite, and his "social" inventions, will contribute to the unification of the States of America.
A very well documented biography. A few lengths in places but nothing prohibitive. ...more

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Nov 22, 2008 Jason Koivu rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, history, non-fiction

An excellent start-to-finish biography, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life begins by touching on his childhood as best as it can considering the lack of material to work with. After that, Isaacson takes the reader through a more detailed account of Franklin's early entrepreneurial life, through his many inventions, and into his later statesmen days. I was struck by the author's well-balanced hand for both time, achievements, personal and professional details, and philosophical and political ide ...more

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Dec 01, 2010 Chrissie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Chrissie by: Laura

Shelves: usa, 2013-read, leaders, audible, bio, history

ETA: I decided to change this to four stars since I enjoyed the author's Einstein even more, and I gave that four.

***********************

Why do YOU want to pick up a book about Benjamin Franklin? If you want his biographical details you need not even read a book, just check out Wikipedia. I wanted more. I wanted to understand his soul. I wanted to get under his skin. I wanted all the historical details in Wikipedia and more. I got what I wanted. Benjamin was an amazing person; people have only a ...more

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Dec 17, 2012 T-bone rated it did not like it · review of another edition

The only time this book caught my attention was when I fell asleep reading it in bed and dropped it on my face. I stopped reading before I hurt myself further. This fascinating insight on page 82 was the last straw, "For the last 17 years of Deborah's life, Franklin would be away, including when she died. Nevertheless, their mutual affection, respect, and loyalty - and their sense of partnership - would endure." ...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: American History Buffs

Recommended to Lisa (Harmonybites) by: The Ultimate Reading List - Biography

Shelves: history, non-fiction, ultimate-reading-list, biography, science

This was a pleasure and just the kind of biography I find trustworthy. The kind that acknowledges other views and controversies and with extensive notes and sources in the back. More than that, it's the rare biography that can inspire smiles and even giggles--I'd mark this up to five stars if I could credit Isaacson for that--but the source of the humor is the frequent quotes from Benjamin Franklin himself. Isaacson said in his introduction that "Benjamin Franklin is the Founding Father who wink ...more

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Jan 01, 2009 Laura rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: bios-and-autobios, us-history, xx-2010-xx, nf, favorites, lib-has-audio, library

I loved this book. Isaacson did a fair and balanced job, describing the man without whitewashing over his flaws. By the end, I felt like Franklin was mine, like he somehow belonged to me. I knew he would be an interesting person, but I had no idea how much this man did with his life. Nor did I understand just how involved he was before there was any US at all. We could still be a British colony without him - or even a French one! Something else I never learned in school, France's involvement.

Th ...more

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Apr 20, 2008 Suzanne rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, american-history

This is a throroughly entertaining, well-researched, well-written biography of Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson. It is lengthy (over 600 pages) and one feels obligated to read the footnotes because they further the work. The first third of the book moved quickly (childhood, moving to Philadelphia, beginning life as a printer, Poor Richard's Almanac). The middle third bogs down (life in England and France, the beginning of the Revolution) and the final third picks up (back in France, negotiat This is a throroughly entertaining, well-researched, well-written biography of Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson. It is lengthy (over 600 pages) and one feels obligated to read the footnotes because they further the work. The first third of the book moved quickly (childhood, moving to Philadelphia, beginning life as a printer, Poor Richard's Almanac). The middle third bogs down (life in England and France, the beginning of the Revolution) and the final third picks up (back in France, negotiating the peace etc)
I realized while reading this that I had many preconceptions based on rumor regarding Franklin. Yes he was flirt and loved women, but there was only one illegitimate child (not the rumored hundreds) and he (William Franklin) became the Governor of New Jersey. Franklin's wife Deborah (with whom he had 2 children, Sally and a son who died as a child) was "common-law" because she had been abandoned by her husband who disappeared to the Carribean. Divorce was illegal and without a death certificate, she could not remarry. It appears that he loved her but she would not travel with him and never left Philadelphia. So he went alone, and often stayed away for years. Sadly, despite her wish for him to return, he was in Europe for the last 15 years of her life. ???? Hard to fathom.
On a political level much of what our country is can be attributed to Franklin's vision and support of a middle class. Jefferson, who founded the University of Virginia, believed that the role of education was to train the future leaders of the world by handpicking the best and brightest, and giving them the best education. Franklin totally disagreed believing that educational opportunities needed to be available to all, and based his founding of the University of Pennsylvania on those principles. Meritocracy, hard work, frugality...were beliefs he espoused throughout his life.
Isaacson has a great writing style. He is less dry than David McCullough and Joseph Ellis, but not quite up to Doris Kearns Goodwin in flow. Not a quick read, but really enjoyable. ...more

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Jul 12, 2012 Jerome rated it liked it · review of another edition

Biographies generally bore me, and this was no exception.

So pedestrian, so conventional, so obviously a poor rehashing of much better Franklin biographies that preceded this one. One wonders why Isaacson even bothered to write the book. Money, perhaps? Whatever his motivation, the result is underwhelming.

One of the difficulties with biography is that you already know most of the plot, and you probably know how it ends too. To create a sense of suspense and excitement, you need to need to do two Biographies generally bore me, and this was no exception.

So pedestrian, so conventional, so obviously a poor rehashing of much better Franklin biographies that preceded this one. One wonders why Isaacson even bothered to write the book. Money, perhaps? Whatever his motivation, the result is underwhelming.

One of the difficulties with biography is that you already know most of the plot, and you probably know how it ends too. To create a sense of suspense and excitement, you need to need to do two things. First, you need to construct a "plot" that is more than just a chain of events - you need to turn this life into some kind of story. Second, you need to add enough originality and insight to give the reader something they hadn't thought of before - a new twist on a familiar tale.

Isaacson does neither. He follows Franklin from cradle to grave, covering his life with reasonable thoroughness, some attention to alternative sources and points of view, and with excellent command of English grammar and vocabulary. For this he is to be commended - his experience as a successful journalist shows. However, he has not managed to create anything that pulls the reader a long - neither the "what next" plot nor the "what will he tell me next" insights.

The fault of the book, then, is its subject, but how Isaacson writes about him. Its chief fault is the lack of narrative flair: With the notable exception of the first and last chapters, we have a chronological account broken into small sections. Here's one particularly mundane succession: "Constitutional Ideas" (a mere 2 pages)," "Meeting Lord Howe Again (5 pages)," "To France, with Temple and Benny (4 pages)." A more satisfying approach would have traced Franklin's domestic political thought in one larger chapter, but this would violate Isaakson's chronological imperative. At times the book's equally weighted, well-ordered facts yield a pace that is both plodding and boring. The book is best when it manages to integrate larger themes with the strictly biographical details. ...more

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Dec 04, 2017 Dan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

An excellent biography of America's greatest statesman. As told in this litany by Isaacson, it was astonishing to learn that so many principles of our government and constitution are in whole or in part Franklin's ideas or were ideas that Franklin advocated for. I would say that the second half of this book, Franklin as the elder statesman, was as perfect a biography as I have read. ...more

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Jan 11, 2015 Brad Feld rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: biography

Ben Franklin is one of my heroes, along with Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman, and a few others. As I start my march through reading books about American presidents, I figured I’d start with a famous American who was never a president but was deeply involved in creating the situation where there could be American presidents.
I’m a big fan of Walter Isaacson and his biographies (I’ve read many of them.) Benjamin Franklin: An American Life didn’t disappoint. Isaacson is great at making a biography ...more

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Aug 13, 2008 Margaretann rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Went to the King Tut exhibit in 2007 and was equally impressed by the Ben Franklin museum - where the exhibit was shown in PA. Loved this book; learned so much - maybe I'm a nerd but it was a page turner that I looked forward to each day! ...more

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Mar 28, 2018 Sue rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A few years ago, I had a chance to visit the Franklin museum in Philadelphia. I was stunned by the diversity of Franklin’s contributions to the new nation and to science. The all too popular image is of a bald man flying a kite under dangerous conditions, while spouting cheerful advice about thrifty and efficient living. I resolved then to learn a bit more. Besides, I am a sucker for historical biographies.

The chapters on the early years felt plodding. Perhaps there is too little actually known ...more

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Oct 31, 2017 Ahn Mur rated it liked it · review of another edition

This took a while. Not that the two have a whole lot in common, but the sheer size of it reminded me of War and Peace; it felt like it was too long until after I finished it, wherein I could appreciate that the length itself was a necessary medium for expressing the shocking length of Franklin's life. Though 85 is not altogether abnormally old, Franklin's life was subjectively twice that, full and productive as it was.
The final chapter was especially important in conveying the overall takeaways ...more

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Jan 19, 2017 Jimmy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: history, biography

An abridged audio tape. America was so lucky to have men like Benjamin Franklin to start us off. I read his Autobiography as a high school student, and it inspired me to be a better person. I may read it again now.

When I look at today's "conservative" movement, I am ashamed of it. It is truly a disgrace to our country. They could do well to study the lives of men like Franklin who worked hard to better himself but also to help others. He believed in good governance, in helping the poor, and--Oh ...more

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Mar 19, 2018 Bonnie Wilson rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: abandoned

I can't continue with this. Franklin himself is fascinating, but the author is entirely too enamored and uncritical. He also repeats himself over and over - to the point of repeating laudatory quotes about Frankin from other writers.

Meanwhile, on less flattering fronts - like Franklin's initial attitudes toward slavery - he is quite brief and succinct, abandoning the minute detail with which he approaches Franklin's more admirable qualities.

The author is also overly taken with Franklin as an av ...more

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Mar 29, 2017 Esme rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: biography

I had a problem paying attention to history in high school, and even in college. I did passably well and forgot 90% of what I learned. I was way more focused on biology and astronomy and thought history was boring. As a result, whenever history comes up in conversation I feel way out of the loop and it's a tad embarrassing.

I've been trying to rectify this by reading biographies and I thought it would be like pulling teeth, but it's been delightfully entertaining - I was not expecting that.

This I had a problem paying attention to history in high school, and even in college. I did passably well and forgot 90% of what I learned. I was way more focused on biology and astronomy and thought history was boring. As a result, whenever history comes up in conversation I feel way out of the loop and it's a tad embarrassing.

I've been trying to rectify this by reading biographies and I thought it would be like pulling teeth, but it's been delightfully entertaining - I was not expecting that.

This book was written as though the author actually knew Ben Franklin, there's a bibliography in the back of the book that's around 60 pages long, it's extraordinarily well researched!

It was written in a tone like he was Franklins best friend, and is telling us stories and tidbits from his life not just a list of accomplishments and dates. It actually sounded *almost* like a narrative. I loved this part of it, it actually made a biography hard to put down, which I didn't know was a thing.

I learned stuff right off the bat from the first page, and this guy lead one of the most interesting lives I've ever heard of. If he were a fictional character people would say he was written over the top and not believable.

What I remembered from him in high school was he was an eccentric inventor who was also a politician, I didn't realize how he almost single handedly developed the city of Philadelphia. He arrived there when the city had ~2,000 people living in it, without paved roads. He developed the school system and the tax system to pay for it - as well as helped out with the first school for black children. He practically invented the police department, taking it from a gang of paid thugs to a tax paid civil service - he did the thing for the fire dept, postal service, and militia. He went from being a Loyalist to King George to an outspoken Rebel who helped develop the Declaration of independence. I mean, there's about 10001 things I'm leaving off this list too, he dabbled with electricity and developed the lightning rod (which was a big deal back then), and helped develop paper currency.

What I really loved about the author, though, is that he didn't glance over the negative aspects of Franklin. He had a very hard time maintaining personal and intimate relationships even with his own family. He really did not treat his brother, John, all that well, nor his son William - and his wife died alone. He did own slaves to begin with, and argued that America should be more white. However, later on in life after working with the school for black children he had a change of heart and became an outspoken abolitionist ~100 years before they would be set free.

Holy wow, this guys life was something else. ...more

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Jul 22, 2019 Grumpus rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, biography

The grumpus23 (23-word commentary)
Remarkable life. Genius. A great patriot on one hand but an unsympathetic family man. Good book, but not my favorite Walter Isaacson biography.

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May 02, 2012 Joe rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Isaacson is getting a lot of attention and reading right now for his Steve Jobs biography and there is some symmetry in his biography of Franklin, surely the Steve Jobs of his day, (a comparison favorable to Jobs, for sure.)

Isaacson does a great job in placing Franklin in his startling historical context. Ben Franklin is old! He is so old when he was born we even reckoned time by a different calendar - the Julian instead of the Gregorian. He was a contemporary of such old-timey Puritan giants as Isaacson is getting a lot of attention and reading right now for his Steve Jobs biography and there is some symmetry in his biography of Franklin, surely the Steve Jobs of his day, (a comparison favorable to Jobs, for sure.)

Isaacson does a great job in placing Franklin in his startling historical context. Ben Franklin is old! He is so old when he was born we even reckoned time by a different calendar - the Julian instead of the Gregorian. He was a contemporary of such old-timey Puritan giants as Cotton and Increase Mather! The Salem Witch Trials had occurred a mere 14 years before his birth. (Witchburning as as recent past for him almost what Beatlemania was for me...) The America in which he came of age was a truly different place than what it was for men like Washington and Adams. Thomas Jefferson was young enough to have been his grandson!

Isaacson does a great job in bringing this almost exotic American to life and enumerates his many unique accomplishments and contributions to American and world culture. I cannot do justice to it here, but Isaacson explains how many of Franklin's scientific accomplishments (he coined the term "battery" for electrical storage and also came up with "positive" and "negative" charges as concepts) remain impressive and even crucial to today's scientific understandings.

Isaacson also demystifies much of the lore of Ben Franklin's sexual reputations: he was no saint, but nowhere near the libertine his enemies made him out to be. His advance age and serious gout would have kept him from the kind of shenanigans he is famous for in France.

Isaacson also give space to Franklin's constantly evolving spiritual understanding. He was certainly no orthodox Christian by any understanding, but neither did he die as the Deist he was famous for being in his younger days.

Isaacson concludes with a gripping essay on Franklin's importance to American and even world history. There are perhaps none as versatile and as wide accomplished as Franklin in the annals of any nation. ...more

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Mar 25, 2020 Emma Deplores Goodreads Censorship marked it as abandoned · review of another edition

Shelves: united-states, research, biography, nonfiction

My apologies to the unknown library patron whom I forced to return this book so that I could check it out, right before the libraries shut down indefinitely. If I'd known, you could have kept it.

First, this book is long and surprisingly dull for a popular biography. Second, as of page 92, where I finally decided to quit, there was remarkably little historical detail - it focuses in on the biographical aspects to the point that it's almost divorced from history, unusual for a biography of someon ...more

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Apr 23, 2008 Chantal rated it liked it · review of another edition

This book gave me a much broader perspective on Benjamin Franklin. I had read his autobiography in junior high and loved it. I determined that he was the genre of person I would have enjoyed as a friend. The man thinks like me in many respects. I adopted some of his ideas because they fit me.

While I admired him, this book painted a more thorough picture of who he was, flaws and all. Now that I am an adult, it seemed appropriate to see the fuller picture of this character I thought so highly of. ...more

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Aug 04, 2016 Brian Willis rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Readers searching for a readable, engaging, and page turning account of the least patrician of the Founding Fathers can search here for a very fun read through the life of Franklin. Filled with his aphorisms and wisdom, but never glossing past his failings (his family life was very complicated to say the least), this book covers all of the great accomplishments: his publications, his entrepreneurship, his innovations, his diplomacy, his statesmanship, and finally his hidden hand behind many of t ...more

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May 04, 2020 Rahni rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, nonfiction, history, audio

So, it's kind of* a funny story.

I had just finished Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin , and at the end was the recommendation to follow it up with Walter Isaacson's Benjamin Franklin: An American Life. Well, sure, I thought equably, Now's as good a time as ever. Who knows when my interests, time, and chance may align again?

You see, my friend, Amber, had chosen Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin as our May 2020's Book Club selection, and I--true to form ...more

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Aug 31, 2021 Rebecca Wilkins rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2021

This book has been on my shelf for many years and I have tried to read it at least 3x. I have been reading a lot of biographies this summer and thought that finally I would tackle it one more time. I persisted and did finish. I like Walter Isaacson and Franklin is certainly an interesting chap but for some reason this book and his life are either overwhelming or boring. There was no great romance. His marriage to Deborah was more of a convenience. He flirted heavily with younger women especially This book has been on my shelf for many years and I have tried to read it at least 3x. I have been reading a lot of biographies this summer and thought that finally I would tackle it one more time. I persisted and did finish. I like Walter Isaacson and Franklin is certainly an interesting chap but for some reason this book and his life are either overwhelming or boring. There was no great romance. His marriage to Deborah was more of a convenience. He flirted heavily with younger women especially in his old age but it wasn't something to capture the imagination. He was a good guy and did a lot of science which would have made him famous anyway but he also was there to help form the United States and so much of what became American culture. He was always the old guy lurking on the sidelines of the founding fathers and I don't even think showed up in Hamilton the musical. But he contributed so much to all of that and yet I don't ever see a hip hop musical about him.

Is learning about his life important? Yes. I did get a clearer picture of all that he contributed. He started out as an apprentice in a print shop and did make a living as a printer. He claimed to be a "leather apron" which I assume in Colonial Times was the equivalent of a blue collar worker. He remained true to the tradesmen and regular middle class folks. In France he didn't even wear the powdered wigs that everyone else did to be fashionable. But he did dine with the King and was respected by royalty and scientists.

Something I didn't realize: "Since the 1750's he had been instrumental in shaping every major document that led to the creation of the new republic. He was the only person to sign all four of its founding papers: the Declaration of Independence, the treaty with France, the peace accord with Britain and the Constitution."

"He devised legislatures and lightning rods, lotteries and lending libraries. He sought practical ways to make stoves less smoky and commonwealths less corrupt. He organized neighborhood constabularies and international alliances. He combined two types of lenses to create bifocals and two concepts of representation to foster the nation's federal compromise. He snatched lightning from the sky and the scepter from tyrants."

"Indeed the roots of much of what distinguishes this nation can be found in Franklin: its cracker-barrel humor and wisdom; its technological ingenuity; its pluralistic tolerance; its ability to weave together individualism and community cooperation; its philosophical pragmatism; its celebration of meritocratic mobility; the idealistic streak ingrained in its foreign policy; and the Main Street (or Market Street) virtues that serve as the foundation for its civic values. He was egalitarian in what became the American sense: he approved of individuals making their wealth through diligence and talent, but opposed giving special privilege to people based on their birth."

"His support for religion tended to be based on his belief that it was useful and practical in making people behave better, rather than because it was divinely inspired." He supported all churches and beliefs but didn't belong to any. In recently reading that Harvard has an atheist chaplain, I thought of Franklin. The atheist chaplain Epstein has a book GOOD WITHOUT GOD which was Franklin and yet he worried that without religion people would have no morals.

"He embodied a spirit of Enlightenment tolerance and pragmatic compromise." "A stand for compromise is not the stuff of heroism, virtue or moral certainty. But it is the essence of the democratic process." "Though averse to rabble rule, he favored direct elections, trusted the average citizen and resisted anything resembling elitism." We were lucky to have the old man around when the country was being formed. ...more

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Jan 26, 2008 Dan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I enjoy providing background in my reviews of how I’ve acquired or read a book, because I believe it helps to paint a picture of my tastes, desires, and it might even give you more information about me. In other words, maybe the books I read act as my own autobiography. I bought this highly anticipated book only a short time after getting a new job as a store manager with FranklinCovey. Having made good friends with the store manager of the Waldenbooks store down the hall from my old store, I sp ...more

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Jan 14, 2022 J rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: history

I learned a lot about Franklin in this book that I did not know. Especially regarding his early years and his work as a printer. I appreciate his tendency to focus on the practical and his belief that he can best serve God by serving his fellow man. He sounds like a highly practical person, but not a spiritual one or member of any church.
This book also looked at Franklin's personal relationship which seem to be a contradiction at times. Flirting with women in England and France and spending 15 ...more

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Apr 23, 2022 Author Annabelle Leigha rated it liked it · review of another edition

Meh - I've read better... Very jumpy and not very thorough. ...more

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Jun 19, 2012 Keith rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: biography

Another view reminding us that all people are human with both strengths and weaknesses. I find it exceedingly interesting that some people succeed regardless of their faults, and others of us let our faults dominate. (Now, Discover Your Strengths)

Here are a few things that caught my attention as I read this book.

"Franklin later concluded that the loss of money he was owed was balanced by the loss of the burden of having Ralph as a friend. A pattern was emerging. ... Franklin easily made casual f Another view reminding us that all people are human with both strengths and weaknesses. I find it exceedingly interesting that some people succeed regardless of their faults, and others of us let our faults dominate. (Now, Discover Your Strengths)

Here are a few things that caught my attention as I read this book.

"Franklin later concluded that the loss of money he was owed was balanced by the loss of the burden of having Ralph as a friend. A pattern was emerging. ... Franklin easily made casual friends, intellectual companions, useful patrons, flirty admirers, and circles of genial acquaintances, but he was less good at nurturing lasting bonds that involved deep personal commitments or emotional relationships, even within his own family. (Page 44)

"When an Indian child has been brought among us,taught our language and habituated to our customers, yet if he goes to see his relations and make one Indian ramble with them , there is no persuading him ever to return." (Page 153)

One Parisian, who added the perfect French complement about his love of silence: "He knew how to be impolite without being rude." (Page 328)

"Franklin had won, … The greatest diplomatic victory the United States has ever achieved."… [That] partially points out the paucity of American successes over the years at bargaining tables," (Page 349)

He was a sociable man who liked clubs that offered enlightening conversations and activities, but the friendships he formed with his fellow men were more affable than intimate. He had a genial affection for his wife, but not enough love to prevent him from spending 15 of the last 17 years of their marriage an ocean away… With his many women admirers, he preferred flirting rather than making serious commitments, and he retreated into playful detachment at any sign of danger. (Page 487)

I found it interesting that his years in England was portrayed as politically unsuccessful, but in France he was eminently successful at winning the hearts of the country and negotiating agreements and treaties both with France and with England.

Chapter 18 describes shifting opinions of America regarding Franklin over the decades. Some decades he is in favor and some decades he is out of favor. This chapter reminds me that an assessment of a historical character is continually shifting. The current values of the society determine who they hold in esteem and who they scorn. ...more

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Jun 21, 2012 C rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone interested in Benjamin Franklin or the founding of America

Shelves: non-fiction

This thoroughly researched biography takes a close look at Benjamin Franklin’s life, particularly exploring his personality and beliefs. It starts with his English ancestors, follows his parents’ emigration to America, then chronicles his life until his death. I enjoyed reading the stories behind his many maxims. The book provides insight into colonial life before, during, and after the American Revolution. It highlights Franklin’s achievements and lasting influence on America.

I had considered m This thoroughly researched biography takes a close look at Benjamin Franklin’s life, particularly exploring his personality and beliefs. It starts with his English ancestors, follows his parents’ emigration to America, then chronicles his life until his death. I enjoyed reading the stories behind his many maxims. The book provides insight into colonial life before, during, and after the American Revolution. It highlights Franklin’s achievements and lasting influence on America.

I had considered myself a Franklin fan, and I learned more that I like about him, but I also unexpectedly learned even more that soured my view of him. I admire his work ethic, frugality, innovation, self-improvement, entrepreneurship, business sense, negotiating abilities, and rational decision-making. However, although he was personable and a great networker, his relationships were generally shallow, and he was a distant and generally unloving husband and father.

I also disagree with Franklin’s religious views. He abandoned Calvinism for Deism, then created his own brand of Deism based on good works. He believed in God, but only as a benevolent but distant deity who was best served by helping others. He believed that religion was really only useful for making people behave and improving society, and that all religions were valid. He always stressed the material over the spiritual.

Franklin’s motto could have been “Do well by doing good.” He showed that one could attract wealth by being in the business of serving others. He said that he’d rather “live usefully” than “die rich.” He warned against welfare, and supported trickle-down economics. Franklin retired from business at 42, the midpoint of his life, but he arguably accomplished more in the second half. In fact, he was 69 at the signing of the Declaration of Independence!

Franklin was a master diplomat; he knew how to negotiate for mutual benefit, which is why he quickly became involved in politics, then moved from the local to the international level. He used the Socratic method (non-confrontational questioning) to influence people. He also said that a secret to being more revered than resented is to be self-deprecating and unpretentious, which he practiced throughout his life.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Benjamin Franklin or the founding of America. I also recommend Franklin's autobiography, or the modern adaptation (my review). ...more

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About Walter Isaacson

Walter Isaacson

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Walter Isaacson, a professor of history at Tulane, has been CEO of the Aspen Institute, chair of CNN, and editor of Time. He is the author of 'Leonardo da Vinci; The Innovators; Steve Jobs; Einstein: His Life and Universe; Benjamin Franklin: An American Life; and Kissinger: A Biography, and the coauthor of The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made. Visit him at Isaacson.Tulane.edu and on T ...more