Sunday, June 26, 2016

Chernow's Hamilton: Very Little Singing and Dancing



Reading Chernow’s biography of Washington several years ago, it was clear that the author had a special warm place in his heart for Hamilton. The biography shows Chernow’s affection for his subject in a greater detail, as he goes from Hamilton’s life on the islands to his death on the New Jersey shore. It even covers a bit of the afterlife with his killer and his family.

Though Chernow obviously has admiration and affection for the man, he is still able to show the flaws in Hamilton’s character, from the fact he had an affair and was essentially blackmailed to his falling out with the Federalists in charge of the party (and the country until the assention of Jefferson). If you are interested in learning about the founding of the country and the ideas behind it, this is a very strong secondary text to explore in your own education. 

A side note – there is little, if any, rapping in the text. That was all made up in the mind of the writer of the smash Broadway musical taking this book as its source material.

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