Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage [Hardcover]

Edith Gelles (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 14, 2009

Married in 1764, Abigail and John Adams worked side by side for a decade, raising a family while John became one of the most prosperous, respected lawyers in Massachusetts. When his duties as a statesman and diplomat during the Revolutionary War expanded, Abigail and John endured lengthy separations. But their loyalty and love remained strong, as their passionate, forthright letters attest. It's in this correspondence that Abigail comes into her own as an independent woman. It's also in these exchanges that we learn about the familial tragedies that tested them: the early deaths of their son Charles from alcoholism and their daughter Nabby from breast cancer.

As much a romance as it is a lively chapter in early American history, Abigail and John is an inspirational portrait of a couple who endured the turmoil and trials of a revolution, and in so doing paved the way for the birth of a nation.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

John and Abigail Adams were married for 54 years. There are, of course, numerous biographies of each of them, but this is the first full-length joint biography. Gelles’ focus here is on the relationship, even partnership, between two highly intelligent, strong-willed individuals. Although Gelles places them within the context of the great events swirling around them, this is a rather intimate, small-scale account. Gelles does not break any new ground. Based substantially on correspondence, the portraits of John and Abigail are familiar: John brilliant, principled, and often inflexible; Abigail his intellectual match and a complement to him, with a calmer demeanor and better social skills. To her credit, Gelles does not try to inflate Abigail’s influence on public policies. Despite her independent spirit and occasional suggestions to “remember the ladies,” this was essentially an eighteenth-century marriage, with Abigail concerned with domestic affairs as she endured long periods of separation from her husband. Still, this is a fine, well-documented examination of a long, successful partnership. --Jay Freeman

About the Author

Edith B. Gelles, Ph.D., holds degrees from Cornell, Yale, and the University of California-Irvine. She has taught at several universities and is a Senior Scholar at Stanford's Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research. She lives in Palo Alto, California.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; First edition (April 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061353876
• ISBN-13: 978-0061353871
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #910,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Portrait of a Marriage has it all, May 7, 2009

By 

Michael Cole (Solana Beach, ca USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage (Hardcover)

This book has it all-- history, biography, politics, larger than life characters and a great love story and, to top it all off, it is a pleasure to read. Gelles tells the story of John and Abigail Adams's 54-year-long marriage against the backdrop of the American Revolution, the founding of the republic, and its first tumultuous years.
In this engaging and often moving book, Abigail and John Adams step off their pedestals and become warm, breathing, feeling people that we care about. The book chronicles their lives from their courtship through the long years of their marriage and its many separations, sacrifices, trials and triumphs until John Adams' final years as a widower. Theirs was a partnership based on mutual respect and regard, love, sympathy, forbearance, ambition and intellect.
I came to the end of this book feeling grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Adams for leaving us the legacy of their letters to each other and for Edith Gelles who has brought her deep knowledge of the period to weave them together into this inspiring story.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Abigail scores!, October 13, 2009

By 

Birdman (Minnetonka, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage (Hardcover)

It is not that the prodigiously gifted Edith Gelles brings anything new to the John-and-Abigail story or to the episodes of post-Revolutionary America of which they were part. Instead -- more than any previous work by a noted historian -- except, perhaps for Phyllis Levin -- Gelles emphasizes in in an unambiguous way the critical role Abigail Adams played in the early life of the Republic.

Even as she reiterates the awful political impact of Adams'Alien and Sedition Acts, it is Abigail's staunch adherence to the underlying morality and strategic value of the acts, in the context of the age, which vindicates their passage. A woman of fierce intelligence and unbridled humor, her breathless engagement in every facet of the Revolution and its aftermath is the stuff of great history.

While some read history to catalog facts, I read it for Story. Gelle's story is riveting and her storytelling gifts -- of economy and language -- make this an irresistible read. Some will argue about Gelles'specific theoretical statements or peripheral details of events within and beyond the Adams family, but I don't have time for that minutiae. Academic history aside (and history is often a pure construct) Gelles' book is also a superb family chronicle, unparalleled by any I've read over the past five years.

As someone who was once an academic, I've noted two types of history books in recent years: those to be shelved and those to be read. The shelved volumes have gazette value and are often doorstops consisting of 50% text and 50% source-notes. Gelles'intends her well-documented book to be read and read again,and her language is so accessible the work is suitable for intelligent readers of all ages.

As for Abigail, whose reputation and importance have survived the ages, Gelles resurrects her thoughts, actions and spirit with such verve, the book is an indispensable read for most gender-neutral fans of the American Revolution

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Marriage, Love and Friendship, August 13, 2009

By 

Lauren Cetlin (Fairfield, Connecticut) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage (Hardcover)

Expecting to read a biography/textbook, I was pleasantly surprised that Abigail and John felt more like that great novel one can't wait to come home from work to resume reading.I found myself feeling upset at their hardships of family crisis and years of separation. I hoped that their marriage would survive the long years apart from each other, that John and Thomas Jefferson could resolve their differences, that their daughter would survive breast cancer.I enjoyed entering into the world of Abigail and John in New England and Europe during the time of "The Founding Fathers" - and MOTHERS. This is a book about marriage, love, and friendship.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in spirituality, love, survival or history. Expect a well researched, factual biography written in a heartfelt manner.