SAMUEL ADAMS: A Life

NF/NF. Hardcover with dust jacket in 'as new' condition. ~~~ Frontispiece, prelude, introduction, 34 pages of notes, bibliography, index, 338 pages. ~~~ "Unlike Jefferson, Washington, or other Founding Fathers, Sam Adams could point to few accomplishments before the era of the Revolution began. With the end of "benign neglect" and the onset of the efforts by Britain to tighten restrictions on the American colonies, Adams' true talents emerged. He was, as his cousin John Adams stated, a "born rebel." Stoll has written a compact, admiring biography of Adams aimed at general readers. He examines Adams' rich but sometimes sad personal life, including his marriages and family tragedies. The strongest part of the narrative, of course, concerns his career as a Revolutionary agitator and statesman. Many of Adams' comrades in the struggle were secular deists, but Adams was a devout Christian who sincerely saw the hand of God working in the struggle for his concept of liberty and eventually independence. His fiery rhetoric was infused with biblical allusions. Like many successful Revolutionaries, Adams was single-minded, frequently intolerant of other views, and frighteningly confident of his own righteousness. Stoll effectively conveys both the virtues and defects of a somewhat neglected but very essential figure in our Revolutionary struggle." --Jay Freeman