Benjamin Franklin: An American Life in The Complete Idiots Guide to the Ultimate Reading List

Oct 15, 2012 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it really liked it

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

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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Sep 03, 2022 Christian Dibblee rated it liked it

Shelves: american-history, biography

A solid installment from Isaacson, but you can tell it's an early work by him. I found his more recent biographies more engaging and a bit more coherent.

First, some thoughts on Franklin. A very cool guy in many ways - he achieved scientific, diplomatic, and political progress all without any sort of a traditional academic experience. I enjoyed learning about his lightning rod experiment, which he didn't even perform first! Isaacson does a decent job discussing the revolutionary nature of this ex A solid installment from Isaacson, but you can tell it's an early work by him. I found his more recent biographies more engaging and a bit more coherent.

First, some thoughts on Franklin. A very cool guy in many ways - he achieved scientific, diplomatic, and political progress all without any sort of a traditional academic experience. I enjoyed learning about his lightning rod experiment, which he didn't even perform first! Isaacson does a decent job discussing the revolutionary nature of this experiment--I'm pretty sure we don't totally understand it's benefits today. Franklin also was one of the first to propose a unification of the colonies, and he did so way back in the 1750s, complete with federalism and a president. For that, he deserves much credit. Indeed, the book discusses multiple times when Franklin trumpeted colonial self-governance. He sparred often with the Penn family who, believe it or not, were deemed Proprietors of the colony, essentially an all-powerful authority, complete with their own lands.

To the extent I have an issue with Franklin as a person, it begins with his times in London. He first left in 1762 and failed to attend his son's wedding. And in 1764 he left again for London - it would be the last time he saw his wife! And despite entreaties, he stayed in London after the Stamp Act crisis rather than attend his daughter's wedding at home. I find such a cavalier approach to relationships were off-putting. And Franklin's life is almost defined by such disregard for his family!

That said, I had never heard of the Cockpit Hearing, where members of Parliament grilled Franklin on his views about the rebellion in America. Nor did I know that he met often with Admiral Howe in an attempt to stave off revolution. But his efforts proved fruitless, even though Isaacson consistently represents Franklin as still loyal to the Crown.

Which brings us to Philadelphia in 1776. Franklin spent very little time there, it turns out. He was there long enough to undertake an ill-fated mission to Quebec and to make suggestions on the Declaration. We owe the words "self-evident" to him! But shortly after that, he left for France as an envoy to help get France into the war.

This is probably the most interesting part of the book. At one point, Franklin played the Brits and French against each other, resulting in the treaty with France, a key diplomatic achievement for the colonies. This is also the first time that John Adams appears. His relationship with Franklin is very interesting. They were like oil and water, Adams the resentful and sensitive Stoic, Franklin the cultured and hedonistic aesthete. That latter description matches Franklin's years in Paris - I found him very frivolous and somewhat unserious. Isaacson spends much time on this, including Franklin's poems and his various paramours. That wasn't especially interesting for me.

But the Treaty of Paris was interesting, for sure. Britain sent two negotiators, and at one point France even refused to deal with Franklin! The back-and-forth here was riveting, particularly Franklin's confidence that the U.S. could reach a good resolution and his decision (with Adams and John Jay) at one point to conclude a separate peace with Britain behind France's back. (Though Franklin did almost scuttle it all over his insistence that the U.S. not pay loyalists.

After the treaty, Franklin met with Adams and Jefferson to frame the new nation's relationships with the European countries. Sometime about now he invented the bifocals! He left in 1785 after a frosty meeting with his son, who he hadn't seen or talked with for many years.

Franklin's time at the Constitutional Convention receives underwhelming attention. Isaascson doesn't delve too deeply into Franklin's proposals, and at one point suggests that The Great Compromise was more likely to pass because Franklin introduced it. I'm not so sure about that. In any event, Franklin's speech at the end of the Convention is worthwhile - he emphasized unanimity and infallibility, qualities that today's politicians lack. Less than a year later, Franklin died after writing a letter to Thomas Jefferson.

Obviously, this was an eventful life that makes for an interesting biography. My problem with Franklin is his approach to family. He loved his grandson, but his treatment of almost everyone else seemed callous to me. And Isaacson doesn't really condemn him for it! That annoyed me. I also didn't love that Franklin cared a lot about putting on airs. That might make him wise, but it also makes him disingenuous. Isaacson also didn't persuade me of his central thesis, which was that Franklin lived a quintessentially American life. Perhaps. He certainly achieved great things through hard work, which might link with the American notion of a Protestant work ethic. But I also feel like Isaacson overstates his case a bit. Franklin probably would have been a genius in any country - that he succeeded in America sometimes felt like an afterthought to me.

I give the book a three-star review for another reason: I thought Isaacson misspent some of his time. We hear much about Franklin's Parisian social adventures and much, much less on his time at the Constitutional Convention. For me, the former simply was not interesting. And yet we heard much about it. That said, I thought Isaacson did very well on the early Franklin - his witticisms, his printing business, and his various written creations. But in the end, I thought the book was a bit on autopilot. Isaacson's later efforts are, in my opinion, better.

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Sep 27, 2015 Rick rated it it was amazing

This was an excellent book about Franklin. After reading it, you may wonder if, after Washington, Franklin may be the next most important founder. His amazing life ranges over many fields including inventor, philosopher, and of course politician. He was loved and reviled in his time and perhaps in ours as well. Whether you love Franklin or hate him this book will give you an excellent insight into his life.

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Jan 20, 2022 Peggy rated it really liked it

Thoroughly enjoyable. One thing I love about good biographies is that you pick up a lot of history along the way, things never alluded to in courses and textbooks.

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