Young Hickory: The Making of Andrew Jackson [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Hendrik Booraem (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2001

Drawing on dozens of new sources, celebrated historical biographer Hendrik Booraem illuminates the adventurous, fighting life of the father of the Democratic party. Beginning with the dramatic story of the Jackson-Crawford clan's immigration from Ireland and culminating with Jackson's entrance into the legal world, Young Hickory brings Andrew Jackson into sharp focus by examining the events that made him.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Though much has already been written about Andrew Jackson, this book demonstrates that there is still room for new findings and fresh insights. Booraem, who taught history at Rutgers University and the University of South Carolina, is the author of biographies of James A. Garfield (The Road to Respectability) and Calvin Coolidge (The Provincial). The novelty of the current book is that it covers only the first 21 years of Jackson's life, taking him up to the time when he moved to what later became Tennessee. Using published works as well as numerous previously neglected archival materials, Booraem provides a thorough and fascinating account of life in the Carolina backcountry. He relates much that is new about Jackson's family and his youthful adventures in the Revolutionary War. A chief benefit is that Booraem takes great pains to correct errors, traceable to the myth-making of early 20th-century quasi-historian Augustus C. Buell, that still appear in many books. Recommended for all public and academic libraries. T.J. Schaeper, St. Bonaventure Univ., NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The best comprehensive biographies of many of our historical icons--Lincoln, Washington, and Jefferson, for instance-- amply examine the private lives of their subjects and devote substantial attention to their formative years before they became public figures. Many Jackson biographers have chosen to give short shrift to his early life, perhaps because of the relative paucity of available primary source material. Booraem, an award-winning biographer, has effectively utilized previously neglected material to shed considerable light on Jackson's family roots and his early life up to the age of 21. The youthful Jackson is here portrayed as proud, impulsive, stubborn, and all too ready to resort to violence when his pride or honor is wounded; in short, he resembles the familiar, mature Jackson. Although Booraem tends to speculate frequently on the causes behind the formation of Jackson's character, most of his assertions are plausible. This work is a valuable contribution to our knowledge about one of our most important and fascinating presidents. Jay Freeman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing (October 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878332634
• ISBN-13: 978-0878332632
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,978,660 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exciting Story, July 16, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Young Hickory: The Making of Andrew Jackson (Hardcover)

Young Hickory carries you along like a boat in a spring flood. The story of the British campaign in the Carolinas is as well-told as I have ever read. Booraem is a fine story-teller and paints an unforgettable picture of those exciting times. -

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative and interesting, September 12, 2007

By 

Moheroy (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Young Hickory: The Making of Andrew Jackson (Hardcover)

By focusing on just Jackson before he turned 21 and through a very nice sketch of life in the South (and later North) Carolina backcountry, Booraem provides a sympathetic and seemingly accurate account for the origins of most of Andrew Jackson's personal quirks.

Booraem is hesitant to psychoanalyxe, and while I disagreed with a few of his personal asessments, he spends most of his time providing facts not interpretation. The endnotes of this book are almost as fascinating as the narrative and between the two they provide much clarification of this rather shadowy period of Jackson's life.

Several not so positive points: Booraem provides n real explanation at all for Jackson's anti Indian sentiments (and later behaviour) but that seems to be largely guided by the need to stick as closely as possible to sources about Jackson. Deeper psychology is clearly not one of Booraem interests and so this is often a point that makes the book suffer narratively, but on the other hand it is probably what distinguishes this book from what came before it. The second weakness is related to the first, and that is the division between the perod to the death of Jackson's mother and his early legal career. A little more detail on the political situation in the Carolina backcountry would have been extremely useful. After reading this I began to look for a history of post revolutionary war North and South Carolina, but probably will never get around to it as I am not a Carolinian nor a professional historian. Whether this last complaint speaks badly of myself or Booraem, I'll leave the reader to judge.

On the whole I give this a very strong recommendation.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HUZZAHS FOR YOUNG HICKORY!, January 23, 2002

By 

James A. Cooke (Quincy, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Young Hickory: The Making of Andrew Jackson (Hardcover)

YOUNG HICKORY
The Making of Andrew Jackson
Hendrik Booraem

Character and personality are shaped, it is generally believed, almost entirely in the early years. When the poet William Wordsworth says, "the child is father of the man" he echoes an earlier poet, John Milton, who said, "childhood shows the man, as morning shows the day."

In this excellent biography by Hendrik Booraem we learn of the time, the events and the people that bent the twig that would grow into Old Hickory, the seventh president of the United States -- Andrew Jackson.

Old Hickory is but one of the many nicknames that adhered to President Jackson. It is a wonderfully appropriate name. The quality of hickory is strength and endurance; it is the perfect handle for any striking tool that delivers great force and will not break on impact. He was also called the Hero of New Orleans, Duel Fighter and Sharp Knife. It will probably never be known just how many duels Jackson fought, or even how many men he killed in the process. As president, Jackson was feared for his rages. They seemed uncontrollable, yet it is believed he used his anger as a precision tool to intimidate and control others.

"Young Hickory" provides a fascinating account of Jackson's life up to age 21. Biographer, Hendrik Booraem is a noted historian; this is his third book focused on the adolescent years of an American President. I have not read his first, "The Road to Respectability" (1988) about President James A. Garfield. But, I have read and reread "The Provincial" (1994) Booraem's penetrating take on Calvin Coolidge. That careful and insightful book goes further to explain the character of the 30th president than does any other single book published in the last 50 years. In the case of Coolidge -- Booraem's research is exhaustive and painstaking. Often, he discovered neglected primary sources or assigned a new spin to an old story. I can only assume that the same quality is present in his book on Jackson. Where the record is not clear, and that is often the case, he provides you with the divergent accounts and his reasons for the one he chooses and the basis for his informed speculation.

The style of this book is literate and graceful; the words conduct you to the world of young Andy Jackson and make you glad you took the journey. Young Hickory was born on March 15, 1767. He grew up in South Carolina and considered himself a native of that state. There is some basis for the stoutly held contention that he was in fact born in North Carolina. As a boy, Jackson endured hardship and suffering. It is a wonder that he survived his youth. But, let's have Rik Booraem speak from his preface:

"The story of his early life, which unfolded during the American Revolution in the Carolinas, is highly dramatic. He nearly died of small pox after being wounded and imprisoned at the age of fourteen. The war destroyed his home and his immediate family. He constructed an entirely new identity to replace the one he had lost. After becoming a successful lawyer, he turned his attention toward the land west of the mountains."