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Alexander Hamilton Paperback – March 29, 2005

by Ron Chernow (Author)

3,695 customer reviews

#12 Most Read

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A New York Times Bestseller, and the inspiration for the hit Broadway musical Hamilton!

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Chernow presents a landmark biography of Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father who galvanized, inspired, scandalized, and shaped the newborn nation.

In the first full-length biography of Alexander Hamilton in decades, Ron Chernow tells the riveting story of a man who overcame all odds to shape, inspire, and scandalize the newborn America. According to historian Joseph Ellis, Alexander Hamilton is “a robust full-length portrait, in my view the best ever written, of the most brilliant, charismatic and dangerous founder of them all.”

Few figures in American history have been more hotly debated or more grossly misunderstood than Alexander Hamilton. Chernow’s biography gives Hamilton his due and sets the record straight, deftly illustrating that the political and economic greatness of today’s America is the result of Hamilton’s countless sacrifices to champion ideas that were often wildly disputed during his time. “To repudiate his legacy,” Chernow writes, “is, in many ways, to repudiate the modern world.” Chernow here recounts Hamilton’s turbulent life: an illegitimate, largely self-taught orphan from the Caribbean, he came out of nowhere to take America by storm, rising to become George Washington’s aide-de-camp in the Continental Army, coauthoring The Federalist Papers, founding the Bank of New York, leading the Federalist Party, and becoming the first Treasury Secretary of the United States.Historians have long told the story of America’s birth as the triumph of Jefferson’s democratic ideals over the aristocratic intentions of Hamilton. Chernow presents an entirely different man, whose legendary ambitions were motivated not merely by self-interest but by passionate patriotism and a stubborn will to build the foundations of American prosperity and power. His is a Hamilton far more human than we’ve encountered before—from his shame about his birth to his fiery aspirations, from his intimate relationships with childhood friends to his titanic feuds with Jefferson, Madison, Adams, Monroe, and Burr, and from his highly public affair with Maria Reynolds to his loving marriage to his loyal wife Eliza. And never before has there been a more vivid account of Hamilton’s famous and mysterious death in a duel with Aaron Burr in July of 1804.

Chernow’s biography is not just a portrait of Hamilton, but the story of America’s birth seen through its most central figure. At a critical time to look back to our roots, Alexander Hamilton will remind readers of the purpose of our institutions and our heritage as Americans.

“Nobody has captured Hamilton better than Chernow” —The New York Times Book Review

Ron Chernow's new biography, Grant, will be published by Penguin Press in October 2017.

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Building on biographies by Richard Brookhiser and Willard Sterne Randall, Ron Chernows Alexander Hamilton provides what may be the most comprehensive modern examination of the often overlooked Founding Father. From the start, Chernow argues that Hamiltons premature death at age 49 left his record to be reinterpreted and even re-written by his more long-lived enemies, among them: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and James Monroe. Hamiltons achievements as first Secretary of the Treasury, co-author of The Federalist Papers, and member of the Constitutional Convention were clouded after his death by strident claims that he was an arrogant, self-serving monarchist. Chernow delves into the almost 22,000 pages of letters, manuscripts, and articles that make up Hamiltons legacy to reveal a man with a sophisticated intellect, a romantic spirit, and a late-blooming religiosity.

One fault of the book, is that Chernow is so convinced of Hamiltons excellence that his narrative sometimes becomes hagiographic. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Chernows account of the infamous duel between Hamilton and Aaron Burr in 1804. He describes Hamiltons final hours as pious, while Burr, Jefferson, and Adams achieve an almost cartoonish villainy at the news of Hamiltons passing.

A defender of the union against New England secession and an opponent of slavery, Hamilton has a special appeal to modern sensibilities. Chernow argues that in contrast to Jefferson and Washingtons now outmoded agrarian idealism, Hamilton was "the prophet of the capitalist revolution" and the true forebear of modern America. In his Prologue, he writes: "In all probability, Alexander Hamilton is the foremost figure in American history who never attained the presidency, yet he probably had a much deeper and more lasting impact than many who did." With Alexander Hamilton, this impact can now be more widely appreciated. --Patrick O'Kelley --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly

After hulking works on J.P. Morgan, the Warburgs and John D. Rockefeller, what other grandee of American finance was left for Chernow's overflowing pen than the one who puts the others in the shade? Alexander Hamilton (17551804) created public finance in the United States. In fact, it's arguable that without Hamilton's political and financial strategic brilliance, the United States might not have survived beyond its early years. Chernow's achievement is to give us a biography commensurate with Hamilton's character, as well as the full, complex context of his unflaggingly active life. Possessing the most powerful (though not the most profound) intelligence of his gifted contemporaries, Hamilton rose from Caribbean bastardy through military service in Washington's circle to historic importance at an early age and then, in a new era of partisan politics, gradually lost his political bearings. Chernow makes fresh contributions to Hamiltoniana: no one has discovered so much about Hamilton's illegitimate origins and harrowed youth; few have been so taken by Hamilton's long-suffering, loving wife, Eliza. Yet it's hard not to cringe at some of Hamilton's hotheaded words and behavior, especially sacrificing the well-being of his family on the altar of misplaced honor. This is a fine work that captures Hamilton's life with judiciousness and verve. Illus.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product details

Paperback: 832 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books (March 29, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0143034758
ISBN-13: 978-0143034759
Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.9 x 9.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 3,695 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #333 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #79 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs

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Full and well-drawn portrait of Hamilton; less so for his opponents

ByDaniel Putmanon July 30, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This book is a beautifully rendered portrait of Hamilton, both his public life and his private life. As so many other reviewers have noted, the book is an example of first-rate biographical research and most of the book is well-written.

Up to chapter 16, “Dr. Pangloss,” the story is superbly told. But, when Thomas Jefferson enters Hamilton’s life, much of the book becomes a contrast between Hamilton, who had his own well-documented personal failings, with Jefferson who, if the text is to be believed, had nothing but personal failings. Jefferson is variously described as hypocritical, duplicitous and conniving. Undoubtedly, Jefferson fit much of this description but so did Hamilton in their Federalist-Republican (anti-Federalist) feud in the 1790’s. What bothered me was the unrelenting negative portrayal of Jefferson, Madison (after 1790) and John Adams. Hamilton is portrayed accurately and fully as a brilliant and decent man with some major flaws. Jefferson and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Madison and Adams, are portrayed as deeply flawed individuals who happened to have a few good points. The language reinforces this. If one were to count the negatively loaded adjectives and verbs accorded to Hamilton’s three main opponents, they would vastly outnumber any positive linguistic connotations. In order to sharpen Hamilton’s character portrayal, the image that Chernow gives of Hamilton’s opponents is, given other biographies of these men, less than just.

The name-calling, smear campaigns and character assassinations in the 1790’s are appalling (but less so given the 2016 Presidential campaign). However, a dozen years after independence and only a few years after the Constitution was ratified, the fears of the anti-Federalists were real ones. Jefferson’s and Madison’s hypocrisy and the foibles of John Adam’s personality notwithstanding, the concerns expressed were often genuine ones at that time about what kind of country the United States would be and how the Constitution should be interpreted. The possibility that the Jeffersonians may have had a point gets lost in Chernow’s constant barrage of claims about duplicity, hypocrisy and malevolent intentions.

So I thought this was a brilliant portrayal of the man who founded our economic and, to a large extent, our political system. The portrayal of Aaron Burr is excellent and the factors leading up to the duel are gripping. But the mid-section of the book would have been even stronger if Chernow had presented Hamilton’s foes in a fuller, less negatively charged light.

22 comments 195 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Every American Should Read THis Book

BySamuel B. Lopezon April 20, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I'm still reading this book, but am enjoying it greatly. I only recall the highlights of the America Revolution that I learned in school, plus don't think I was that interested in it back then. I can only speak about the first part of the book which is about the Revolution and the fight for the Constitution. The author, Mr. Chernow, appears to be making a statement about the importance of Alexander Hamilton during this period and the trust that George Washington had in him. He does not leave out details of other founding fathers, but the book is about Alexander Hamilton and the details regarding the other FF's is in relation to events that included Hamilton. It's no wonder that people balked at the current U.S. Treasurer wanting to remove Hamilton from the $10 bill, his vision of the United States was from position of wanting what is best for everyone.

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

A superb biography

ByRichard C. Reynoldson June 6, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This 800+ page tome recalling the life of one of our Founding Fathers gives the reader quite a detailed view of the political scene in America before, during and after the Revolution. There is a section in the book that shows photos of paintings of Hamilton and other key individuals in his life. Also included are the author’s research notes, a bibliography, and an index.
Hamilton was an illegitimate child, a fact that was to have a negative impact on his personality and character because he was hypersensitive to criticism on his birth origins. He was raised on Nevis and St. Croix in the British West Indies and showed a great talent in his early years for finance and commerce. When he arrived in America as a young man just before the Revolution, he badgered George Washington for a commission in the army and, after various arguments and other unpleasant events , he finally wound up as a colonel. During the revolution he served as Washington’s chief of staff and handled most of the chief’s correspondence. After the war he became active in politics and, as Secretary of the Treasury, he was responsible for creating the Bank of the United States, a brilliant fiscal move that established the foundation for America to prosper and become today’s world leader.
After leaving office, Hamilton practiced law but also engaged in political activity during his free time. He was easily bored and had to always be doing something like reading, writing or speaking to groups. He married Eliza Schuyler, daughter of prominent New York parents, who eventually bore him five sons and two daughters. Besides having to deal with the black mark on his birth, Hamilton had an adulterous affair with a woman named Mary (aka Maria) Reynolds, something that his political enemies used against him again and again for many years. Mary and her husband, James Reynolds (no relation, I trust), actually schemed together to blackmail Hamilton for money; he made several payments to keep the scandal quiet but to no avail.
Author Ron Chernow gives a fairly balanced picture of Hamilton’s career in politics, law, soldiering and government service. He also gives us terribly unfavorable views of Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and John Adams, many more than I ever thought possible from my meager study of American history. The worst is reserved for Aaron Burr who, as Jefferson’s Vice President, managed to precipitate his historic duel with Hamilton in Weehawken, New Jersey. Chernow covers the aspects of this death-dealing event in considerable detail citing historic records written by eye witnesses.
The book’s pace tends at times to be slow because it’s filled with historical details, some of which are repetitive. Nevertheless it’s a fascinating read and it causes reflection on today’s electioneering for the U. S. president. It seems that scoundrels, sleazes and individuals with questionable integrity still have a place in American politics.

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Great read!

ByAmazon Customeron August 18, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

It is amazing that the US exists at all! In Hamilton, Chernow paints a true picture of the founders and their interpersonal relationships. Often our history relates these men as Gods. In fact, they were all men, very complicated men that accomplished something amazing and lasting. It was inspiring that men, even somewhat flawed men, can do such great things. Perhaps there is hope for the country's future despite the flaws of current leaders.

0CommentWas this review helpful to you?YesNo

GOt caught up with the buzz about the mustical

ByJami Seidelon May 10, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I read the book and enjoyed it. Reading biographies on our founders reinforces what a miracle the forming of our government was. The book reads as easily as a novel, though with quotes some of the words we no longer use. I do like that we see the greatness of Hamilton and his fellow founding fathers also with the frailty of character that each had as all of us humans have. Goodness, was Hamilton great, but he definitely had his flaws.

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Most recent customer reviews

Read Chernow’s Hamilton

This book is excellent. Full of illuminating information about our founding fathers and their institutions. A compelling read despite its length.

Published 22 hours ago by Howard

Well done.

Fascinating details. I suggest you read it with "Empire of Liberty"

Published 22 hours ago by Frank H.

Amazing!!

Very long biography but worth every page. The most amazingly detailed, yet fascinating story of one of America's great great heroes.
Brilliantly written and researched.Read more

Published 1 day ago by MO

Enjoyed the book very much

Enjoyed the book very much. Learned a lot of facts about the founding of the country that I never knew.

Published 1 day ago by PennyUPS

Very interesting

Easy read and concise.

Published 1 day ago by Amazon Customer

Five Stars

excellent and informative

Published 1 day ago by Visa

Five Stars

Great to read before you see the play.

Published 2 days ago by Paula

Great book

A really great book; a wonderful account of early American history. All the inside stuff you never learned in history class.

Published 2 days ago by David C. Biddle

Great, but L O N G.

Very excellent, highly detailed book that captures a lot of a very historical era. My only complaint was that it was R E A L L Y LONG.

Published 3 days ago by Guy M. Marzano

Makes one realize and appreciate just how brilliant Alexander Hamilton was

Makes one realize and appreciate just how brilliant Alexander Hamilton was. A long and very thorough book, used as source information for the producers of "Hamilton", the...Read more

Published 3 days ago by Alexander D Newton

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