A review by bookwormmichelle
First Family: Abigail and John by Joseph J. Ellis, John Adams, Abigail Adams

5.0

Well. This is NOT McCullough's John Adams. The book has neither the scope of McCullough's work nor quite as good writing. That said, this is a marvelous contribution to the body of recent work on the Adams family. It says something about the depth of the Adamses themselves and the material they left behind, that one can read half a dozen major books on them and still not be tired of hearing about them. I have long liked Ellis' work nearly as well as McCullough's, and I was delighted with this book. I think Ellis did a very good job of keeping the relationship between John and Abigail central, of elucidating the effects of the relationship upon each of them, and of siting the relationship in the midst of the politics and upheaval of the period. This is not just more treading a too-worn path; this book has its own message and is well worth the read even if one has read McCullough's John Adams, or other books or compilations of John and Abigail's letters. I know Ellis has occasionally been, um, dissed in the professional historical community, but I'm glad he keeps writing good accessible history for the rest of us.