Abigail and John - Large Print by Edith Gelles (Paperback)

About the Book

"Fascinating...Gelles has provided a balanced portrait, and her mastery of the period's issues and history is evident on every page. Her treatment of the family... [is] written with understanding and sensitivity... But it is her strength as a feminist historian that makes her treatment of Abigail the most gripping... masterful and captivating." -- Washington Times

"A landmark... Well-organized and expertly composed, the book is an impressive addition to the nation's written history." -- Oklahoma City Oklahoman

Readers who enjoyed Doris Kearns Goodwin's No Ordinary Time, Cokie Roberts's Founding Mothers, and David McCullough's John Adams will love "this eminently readable... charming and sensitive, yet candid and unflinching joint biography" (Daniel Walker Howe, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848) of America's original "power couple" Abigail and John Adams.

Book Synopsis

"Fascinating...Gelles has provided a balanced portrait, and her mastery of the period's issues and history is evident on every page. Her treatment of the family... [is] written with understanding and sensitivity... But it is her strength as a feminist historian that makes her treatment of Abigail the most gripping... masterful and captivating."
-- Washington Times

"A landmark... Well-organized and expertly composed, the book is an impressive addition to the nation's written history."
-- Oklahoma City Oklahoman

Readers who enjoyed Doris Kearns Goodwin's No Ordinary Time, Cokie Roberts's Founding Mothers, and David McCullough's John Adams will love "this eminently readable... charming and sensitive, yet candid and unflinching joint biography" (Daniel Walker Howe, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848) of America's original "power couple" Abigail and John Adams.

From the Back Cover

The marriage of John and Abigail Adams is one of the most extraordinary examples of passion and endurance that this country has ever witnessed. Theirs was a unique union, one based on mutual respect and ambition, intellect and equality. Using their letters, Abigail & John provides an inspirational portrait of a couple who weathered the trials of a revolution, and in so doing paved the way for the birth of a nation.

Review Quotes

"Edith Gelles' accomplished, engaging and wonderfully accessible Abigail and John ushers us into the intimate life of one of the most public of American couples. Gelles' long familiarity with 18th century American history and her deep knowledge of the Adams' story is palpable on every page." - Susan Faludi, author of Backlash and The Terror Dream
"No one knows more about John and Abigail Adams than Edith Gelles. Now Gelles has marshaled her considerable talents as a scholar and writer to tell the spellbinding story of these two remarkable individuals. The result is not only a compelling double biography, but a page-turning account of the American Revolution and the founding of the American Republic." - John Ferling, author of Almost a Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence and the upcoming The Ascent of George Washington
"Abigail & John is a terrific new book, rich in detail and full of insight. Gelles captures not only the emotional world of this extraordinary couple, but their material and intellectual context as well. And on every page, she reminds us why we remain captivated by them after all these years." - Carol Berkin, author of Revolutionary Mothers and Presidential Professor of History, Baruch College, CUNY.
"A dual biography spotlighting one of the most remarkable partnerships in American history.... A moving picture of a marriage whose terms required constant renegotiation as events forced each partner to assume or relinquish tasks commonly ascribed to the other sex. From Braintree to Boston, Paris to London, Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., . . . the Adams's story is one of politics interwoven with family life. Gelles pushes their marriage and family life vividly to the fore. She examines the couples' shared sorrows . . . as well as the many triumphs that would have been impossible, but for Abigail's wise management of her household and solicitous care for her brilliant, deeply insecure husband. A revealing exploration of an exceptional marriage marked by mutual understanding, empathy and deep love." - Kirkus Reviews
"Edith Gelles has given us a portrait of the marriage of John and Abigail Adams of great subtlety and depth. The story she tells is of an extraordinary couple whose marriage grew in understanding and affection in a time of immense change and tension. Her perspective, which emphasizes how the private lives of John and Abigail affected their responses to public events, is a departure from conventional interpretation that usually describes how public events shaped the private world of the two Adamses. Above all, Gelles reconstructs their story in prose that is always lucid and frequently moving. This is a book of great power and interest." - Robert Middlekauff, author of The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution 1763-1789
"Abigail & John is an engaging story of the progress and ultimate success of the Adamses' marriage through war and revolution, diplomatic and political adventures, family traumas and lengthy separations. Their revealing and provocative letters demonstrate a strong partnership of equals-in the eighteenth century sense-and give us a love story for the ages." - Margaret A. Hogan and C. James Taylor, editors, My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams