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Overview
In this captivating book, bestselling historian Ray Raphael tells the vivid stories of seven dynamic historical figures from the country's earliest days, stories that anchor a sweeping, original, and intimate history of the entire Founding Era.
From the beginnings of unrest in 1761 through the passage of the Bill of Rights in 1788, this stirring account lets us follow the intertwined lives of George Washington and a private soldier in his army. Robert Morris, who rescued the nation from bankruptcy, goes head to head with Thomas Young, a country doctor and peripatetic revolutionary who incited rebellion in seven states. And we are moved by the challenges of poet and historian Mercy Otis Warren, the most politically engaged woman of her time; Timothy Bigelow, a blacksmith who helped topple British rule; and Henry Laurens, a conservative politician and slave owner with an abolitionist son.
Founders gives us a fresh and highly entertaining new history of the American Revolution and reveals an entire generation of patriots who pushed for independence, fought a war, and set the United States on its course.
Synopsis
Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, Hamilton, Adams, and Madison--together they are best known as an intimate cadre of daring, brilliant men credited with our nation's founding. But does this group tell the whole story? In his widely praised new history of the roots of American patriotism, celebrated author Ray Raphael expands the historical canvas to reveal an entire generation of patriots who pushed for independence, fought a war, and set the United States on its course--giving us "an evangelizing introduction to the American Revolution" (Booklist).
Called "entertaining yet informative" by Library Journal, Founders brings to life seven historical figures whose stories anchor a sweeping yet intimate history of the Founding Era, from the beginnings of unrest in 1761 through the passage of the Bill of Rights thirty years later. Here we follow the intertwined lives of George Washington and a private soldier in his army. America's richest merchant, who rescued the nation from bankruptcy, goes head to head with a peripatetic revolutionary who incited rebellion in seven states. Rounding out the company is a richly nuanced cast that includes a common village blacksmith, a conservative enslaver with an abolitionist son, and Mercy Otis Warren, the most politically engaged woman of the time.
A master narrative with unprecedented historical scope, Founders will forever change our image of this most crucial moment in America's past.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
In this brisk narrative survey, Raphael offers a history of the events between the outbreak of colonial protest in the 1760s and the ratification of the Constitution in 1788. He does so through the lives of seven people, some, like George Washington, justly celebrated, others obscure. All seven and many others come alive in their acts and words, their stories serving as the spine of the book. No one will come away without a better idea of how social class, ideas, careers, ambitions and plain luck interwove themselves into the revolution carried on by an entire people. Raphael also weaves his tale around such staple themes of American history as the growth of popular sovereignty and westward expansion. From the author of A People's History of the American Revolution, none of this is surprising, nor is the skill of his pen. The book adds nothing to what's already known, but it will delight readers and no doubt add to their knowledge through a tale rarely told so well. 27 b&w illus. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Library Journal
Raphael (A People's History of the American Revolution; Founding Myths) again attempts to give credit to patriots whose contributions to the nation's founding are not celebrated or even widely known. Stars of this entertaining yet informative account include military bankroller Robert Morris, conservative politician and reluctant rebel Henry Laurens, blacksmith-turned-insurgent Timothy Bigelow, young and eager soldier Joseph Plumb Martin, rabble-rousing country doctor Thomas Young, and Puritan poet-turned-political commentator and historian Mercy Otis Warren. The final key player in this narrative is George Washington, and Raphael manages to put a fresh spin on his overly familiar story. The author relies heavily on primary sources, especially diaries, letters, and Martin's and Warren's published works, to craft a highly readable work of popular history that is sure to be a hit among readers who prefer to look at history from a bottom-up perspective. A worthy complement to Raphael's previous works, this is recommended for American history collections in all public libraries.
—Douglas King