[Nea Wood]

I'm reading H.W. Brands' "The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin".

Do you recommend it? I watched "1776" on Independence Day, and now I have a hankering to learn more about Dr. Franklin! :-)

[McLynnan]

Yes, I've enjoyed it so far. I'm almost halfway through it. It seems well researched with a slight pro-Franklin slant. Franklin's genius awes me. My only disappointment is there aren't any pictures! You can get it in softcover at Barnes & Noble.

[hoosiermama]

Last summer I read FOUNDING BROTHERS, JOHN ADAMS, and APRIL 1865. Even though the last book was about the Civil War it gave me a much better understanding of the Revolutionary period.... and how slavery was an unfinished issue then and eventually resolved a hundred years later.

Did you enjoy 1776. First saw it in l976 then again this spring. Bawled like a baby when they began reading the names of the signer. My 5th great grandfathers had signed the Bradford Accords. (One spent the winter at VF, spied on the German troops...GW referred to him as "the little Dutchman") We owe our ancestors alot.

[joybelle]

He certainly wasn't John Adam's favorite person.