My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams | Abigail Adams, John Adams

My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams | Abigail Adams, John Adams | Outstanding

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My Dearest Friend:...

	My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams Abigail Adams, John Adams Belknap Press, 2007 - 528 pages average customer review:based on 12 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The John and Abigail Adams' Correspondence Updated

This finely-produced book is the successor volume to "The Book of Abigail and John" (1975), also published by Harvard University Press (also reviewed on Amazon). However, there are importance differences between the two volumes. The 1975 collection contained 226 letters, covering the period 1752-1784. The present edition contains 289 letters, and continues until 1801, including John's service as Vice President and President. The present volume editors have largely avoided making updating corrections to capitalization and spellings, so one gets a rather interesting insight into how New Englanders of the period employed English to suit their own purposes. Unlike the 1975 collection, which contained editorial notes, diary entries and letters from other correspondents, here the letters pretty much stand alone. This has advantages (since it is pure Adams coming through) and disadvantages (annotations are missing that might have helpfully explained terms and identified individuals). A number of helpful illustrations (some in beautiful color) are collected in the center of the book. But the treasure here is the letters themselves. What a love story. I defy anyone to read these letters and not emerge with boundless admiration for Abigail. Considering that John was absent for years at a time, it fell to her to keep the homefires burning, raise the children, and deal with various challenges. What emerges is a quite literate Abigail, though she never benefitted from higher education, who seems to have an apt bit of poetry to cite for any occasion. The letters contain frank comments about folks like Hamilton, Washington, Jefferson, Franklin and others. They also reveal exactly how thin skinned John was, which condition was perpetually getting him into difficulties. Helpful introductions by Joseph Ellis and the editors, as well as a comprehensive index, add to the value of the volume. It is hard to think of a book that better captures the spirit of this period for the reader.

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Outstanding

This book is a wonderful adjunct to the HBO series and David Mc Cullough's brilliant book.."John Adams". I have never been devoted to our American history, preferring instead Ancient cultures. I see what I have missed and vow to read more about the brave and devoted men and women who, indeed ,created our country. The love affair between John and Abigail seemed to provide the great man, as well as Thomas Jefferson, with the strength and comfort that spurred them on. Bravo!!

My Dearest Friend

My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams

Well written

John & Abigail Adams

Slow reading. Getting through the speech patterns and phonetic spelling is a little tedious. Good incite into this couple's life.

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Wonderful book.

I started reading this while watching the John Adams HBO mini series. I didn't finish the book until after I had seen all 7 episodes. It was interesting to read their correspondence and realize how much of an asset Abigail was to John. If you enjoy reading letters, you will enjoy this book. The author inserts commentary prior to a particular time frame of letters in order for you to understand the tenor and specifics of the letters that follow. I enjoyed it.

reviews: 1, page 2, 3

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