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I just started reading this book and I have to say that it is likely one of the better single resources regarding what was going on politicaly leading up to the Revolution and the period after the war until the ratification of the US Constitution I have found. James Monroe was on the side of the Anti-Federalists and it provides a very vivid account of their position. It helped me to understand that side of the political dynamics to the Constitution much better than the Anti-Federalists Papers, and it is full of references that I intended to explore further.
If you are interested in Revolutionary history and want to understand some of the political dynamics surrounding the Constitution in much better detail, this book is a must have.

Also read "The Business of May Next: James Madison and the Founding" by William Lee Miller. Outstanding book about the genius of the man.

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I used to live about 3 miles from Oak Hill, Monroe’s fine plantation home in northern Virginia. It was designed by the architect of the White House, and is as nice a house, I think as Jefferson’s Monticello—though not quite as fancy. It is still a private residence, and is occasionally on the spring-time historic homes’ tour of Loudoun County.

Monroe’s doctrine of keeping European powers out of the Western Hemisphere as much as possible, making the USA the dominant power in the Americas, probably saved us from involvement in a world war or two...

This book is just packed with information, amazing things, that I did not know previously. It’s information that ties everything else I knew together very nicely. For me, I guess Monroe was my missing link.

It answers questions about what happened to Alexander Hamilton and Jefferson, why they resigned from Washington’s admistration. I had my hunches, but this book spells it all out.

I never knew that Hamilton was involved in a sex scandal or that there were allegations of misappropriation of funds against him. Many historians are so willing to paint him in the best possible light, they gloss right over what killed his political career. When I read about it, a light came on about why the Federalists might have crashed and burned, and it made them seem so life-like.

The book also goes into a bit of detail of all the trouble Thomas Paine got into regarding “The Rights of Man”. I’ve just started on the chapter that covers the French Revolution, and the Moroes helping the LaFayettes escape the Jacobians.

This book has me on the edge of my seat and I’m loving reading it.