I finished The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls quicker than I expected so it was really hard for me to find another book that I actually wanted to read. Then I thought, I could use a little more help in AP United States History; why not read a book on the founding fathers? My IRB book is called Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis. Ellis's other works pertain to American history, some of which including: His Excellency: George Washington, American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, and First Family: Abigail and John. As you can probably see, Joseph J. Ellis is a Historian and graduate from Yale and the College of William and Mary. He is also the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for History.
The Beginning of the book introduces some household names, like George Washington, Aaron Burr, John Quincy Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. Along with those well known names, Ellis also mentions some of the people "behind the scenes," like John Jay, Nathaniel Pendleton, Thomas Scott, and Edward Coles, to mention a few. I believe that Ellis's purpose so far is to show who the Revolutionary Generation was and to show who really built our nation.
Once I started to read the first chapter I was instantly excited. I would consider myself a big fan of "Hamilton: An American Musical," and the first chapter just happens to be titled: The Duel. In this duel, Vice President Aaron Burr shoots Alexander Hamilton because Hamilton did not endorse Burr in his presidential race against Thomas Jefferson. Ellis helps to connect with his audience by using an informative tone. Unlike the author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Lynne Truss, Ellis does not use a sarcastic or humorous tone with his audience but more of a serious tone to explain how important this duel was to the foundation of American History. In my opinion, this book can help students in history classes because Ellis thoroughly explains the events.
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