When George Washington Became Great

City Journal ^ | Myron Magnet

[aculeus]

I read this article earlier. Deserves wide readership!

[neverdem]

BTTT!

[hinckley buzzard]

Probably the best biography written about Washington is by James Flexner: Washington: The Indispensable man. Flexner wrote an encyclopedic four volume biography but recognized the need for an accessible one volume work. He emphasized that the one volume work is not simply a cut and paste of the larger work, but was written more or less de novo to capture the essence without sacrificing integrity.

I recommend it highly for anyone who actually wants to learn about this remarkable man. "The Father of his Country" is not an exaggeration.

[dsutah]

I remember having a text-book in college written by Flexner! The miniseries in the 80s on George Washington was based in large part on that book and book series. At the end of the show, actor Barry Bostwick (played Washington) sat down at a table w/the book series, along w/other books and papers, and spoke of how the series was based on those Flexner books. There were some other books and papers from The Library of Congress, that were used for references as well.

I remember digging in the store-room in our house; trying to find the book (condensed form of book series) and finding it! I’d hoped somehow, that book was still around, and sure enough, it was! Thankfully, I hadn’t sold it along with some of my other books!