A Treasury of Great American Scandals: Tantalizing True Tales of Historic Misbehavior by the Founding Fathers and Others Who Let Freedom Swing [Paperback]

Michael Farquhar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2003

Following on the heels of his national bestseller A Treasury of Royal Scandals, Michael Farquhar turns his attention to matters a little closer to home with A Treasury of Great American Scandals. From the unhappy family relationships of prominent Americans to the feuds, smear campaigns, duels, and infamous sex scandals that have punctuated our history, we see our founding fathers and other American heroes in the course of their all-too-human events. Ineffectual presidents, lazy generals, traitors; treacherous fathers, nagging mothers, ungrateful children, embarrassing siblings; and stories about insanity, death, and disturbing postmortems are all here, as are disagreeable marriages, vile habits, and, of course, sex: good sex, bad sex, and good-bad sex too. We can take comfort in the fact that we are no worse and no better than our forebears. But we do have better media coverage. Bonus educational material:

* A brief history of the United States, including scandals!
* The American Hall of Shame!
* A complete listing of presidential administrations!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

There's nothing about a certain recent president's sexual wanderings in this entertaining collection: notes Farquhar, an editor and writer at the Washington Post, "History needs a little time to percolate.... Besides, the first three centuries of American scandal should put a little perspective on the relatively minor sins of recent memory." The bad behavior is not all sexual (though there is that, too)-it sometimes involved family. George Washington kept his distance from a mother bent on publicly humiliating him. Benjamin Franklin arranged the arrest of his own son, colonial governor of New Jersey and a British loyalist. Dirty campaigns (in 1828, Andrew Jackson accused John Quincy Adams of aspiring to kingship; Adams's followers in turn called Jackson a murderer); congressional floor fights; and demagoguery all figure here. Politicians are the main offenders in this collection, but they are complemented by witch hunters in early Salem, Mass., and other "just plain strange" events. Readers who enjoyed Farquhar's earlier A Treasury of Royal Scandals will find much to savor here.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Michael Farquhar is the author of A Treasury of Royal Scandals. As a writer and editor at the Washington Post, he specializes in history. His work has also appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Dallas Morning News, Reader's Digest, and Newsday, as well as on Discovery Online.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); 51500 edition (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142001929
• ISBN-13: 978-0142001929
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #98,710 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat of a rehash, February 26, 2004

By 

Dave Schwinghammer "Dave Schwinghammer" (Little Falls, Minnesota USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Treasury of Great American Scandals: Tantalizing True Tales of Historic Misbehavior by the Founding Fathers and Others Who Let Freedom Swing (Paperback)

Many of the scandals referred to in Farquhar's title are familiar (Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton's duel; Ben Franklin's animosity toward his son; Robert Lincoln's commitment of his mother to an insane asylum), but there are quite a few that strike a cord. Thomas Jefferson's brother Randolph for one. Apparently he couldn't be trusted to manage his own affairs and one of Jefferson's slaves refers to him as "one mighty simple man--used to come out among the black people, play the fiddle and dance half the night." Unfortunately, this account is only one-page long, and Farquhar makes no mention of the fact that it may have been Randolph rather than Thomas who impregnated Sally Hemings.
Some of the other highlights (or lowlights) from GREAT AMERICAN SCANDALS involve James Buchanan's sexual preference; J. Edgar Hoover's vindictiveness; and some direct quotes from Richard Nixon's Oval Office tapes. And there's an especially eerie section on what happened to some famous corpses, including Tom Paine's and John Paul Jones's.
The section on the Salem Witch trials shows how duplicitous human beings, even young ones, can be. According to Farquhar, life in Salem was so dull that the girls made the whole thing up to get attention.
Despite the rehashing of some well-known historical episodes, SCANDALS is a fast read and well-worth the cost of the book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT READING, August 16, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: A Treasury of Great American Scandals: Tantalizing True Tales of Historic Misbehavior by the Founding Fathers and Others Who Let Freedom Swing (Paperback)

I read this author's first book on Royal Scandals and found it both informative and, at times, very funny. This new book on American Scandals is even better. In Great American Scandals, the reader will find topics that are generally familiar and completely unknown. From the Salem Witch Trials to the 1970s Congressional sexcapades, the author writes with a combination of facts and wit. You will realize, after reading this book, how much you didn't know about the topics you thought you were familiar with.

For example, everyone knows that Mary Todd Lincoln was mentally ill. Who knew her own son took her to court to have her committed to a mental institution!

Farquhar gives a great history on "dueling" - beginning with the famous Burr-Hamilton duel and moves into its history and its popularity in the 19th century - involving several well and lesser known politicians.

I particularly enjoyed the information on the Presidents...the Nixon "quotes" are classic...

I highly recommend this book - a must read for all fans of US History!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who Knew How Much Fun History Could Be, October 31, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: A Treasury of Great American Scandals: Tantalizing True Tales of Historic Misbehavior by the Founding Fathers and Others Who Let Freedom Swing (Paperback)

I picked up Michael Farquhar's book because I thought the cover was so funny. Glancing at a few pages, I knew I had to buy it. Turns out, you really can judge a book by its cover! The stories are hilarious, and sometimes even moving. Anyone who was ever bored by their American History classes should read this wonderful book and discover just how fun history can be.