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Washington: A Life
RON CHERNOW

Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
194 reviews (2010) (904p)
Pulitzer Prize for Biography Winner
ALA Notable Books - Nonfiction Finalist

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Book Description
From National Book Award winner Ron Chernow, a landmark biography of George Washington.

In Washington: A Life celebrated biographer Ron Chernow provides a richly nuanced portrait of the father of our nation. With a breadth and depth matched by no other one-volume life of Washington, this crisply paced narrative carries the reader through his troubled boyhood, his precocious feats in the French and Indian War, his creation of Mount Vernon, his heroic exploits with the Continental Army, his presiding over the Constitutional Convention, and his magnificent performance as America's first president.

Despite the reverence his name inspires, Washington remains a lifeless waxwork for many Americans, worthy but dull. A laconic man of granite self-control, he often arouses more respect than affection. In this groundbreaking work, based on massive research, Chernow dashes forever the stereotype of a stolid, unemotional man. A strapping six feet, Washington was a celebrated horseman, elegant dancer, and tireless hunter, with a fiercely guarded emotional life. Chernow brings to vivid life a dashing, passionate man of fiery opinions and many moods. Probing his private life, he explores his fraught relationship with his crusty mother, his youthful infatuation with the married Sally Fairfax, and his often conflicted feelings toward his adopted children and grandchildren. He also provides a lavishly detailed portrait of his marriage to Martha and his complex behavior as a slave master.

At the same time, Washington is an astute and surprising portrait of a canny political genius who knew how to inspire people. Not only did Washington gather around himself the foremost figures of the age, including James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, but he also brilliantly orchestrated their actions to shape the new federal government, define the separation of powers, and establish the office of the presidency.

In this unique biography, Ron Chernow takes us on a page-turning journey through all the formative events of America's founding. With a dramatic sweep worthy of its giant subject, Washington is a magisterial work from one of our most elegant storytellers.


Other Award Winning Books by Ron Chernow
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
5269 reviews (2004) (832p) (NBCCA Bio) (NYTimes Non) (Amazon Dec EBio) (ALA Non) (Amazon Dec CBio) (Amazon 04 C50) (Amazon 04 E50)
Read Reviews | Visit this book's Amazon.com page
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow
54 reviews (1998) (768p) (NYTimes Non) (ALA Non)
Read Reviews | Visit this book's Amazon.com page
The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family by Ron Chernow
18 reviews (1993) (880p) (ALA Non)
Read Reviews | Visit this book's Amazon.com page

Ron Chernow Award Stats
Major Prize* Nominations 6  
Unique Books Nominated for a Major Prize* 4  
Pulitzer Prize Wins 1 Washington: A Life ·  
Pulitzer Prize Nominations 1 Washington: A Life ·  
National Book Critics Circle Award Wins 0  
National Book Critics Circle Award Nominations 1 Alexander Hamilton ·  
National Book Award Wins 0  
National Book Award Nominations 0  
Man Booker Prize Wins 0  
Man Booker Prize Nominations 0  
PEN/Faulkner Award Wins 0  
PEN/Faulkner Award Nominations 0  

*Major Prize = Pulitzer Prize, National Book Critics Circle Award, National Book Award, Man Booker Prize, and PEN/Faulkner Award

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