Synopses & Reviews
Review
"Fascinating...an erudite and illuminating study." The New York Times
Review
"This elegant book on Jefferson sets a standard history at its best." Chicago Tribune Editor's Choice
Review
"Joseph J. Ellis's American Sphinx is a brief and elegant return to Monticello. Mr. Ellis...is a remarkably clear writer, mercifully free of both the groveling and the spirit of attack that have dominated the subject in the past....American Sphinx is fresh and uncluttered but rich in historical context." The New York Times Book Review, Brent Staples
Review
"This elegant book on Jefferson sets a standard history at its best." Chicago Tribune Editor's Choice
Review
"Lively and provocative...first-rate." David McCullough
Synopsis
Following Thomas Jefferson from the drafting of the Declaration of Independence to his retirement in Monticello, Joseph J. Ellis unravels the contradictions of the Jeffersonian character. He gives us the slaveholding libertarian who was capable of decrying mescegenation while maintaing an intimate relationship with his slave, Sally Hemmings; the enemy of government power who exercisdd it audaciously as president; the visionarty who remained curiously blind to the inconsistencies in his nature. American Sphinx is a marvel of scholarship, a delight to read, and an essential gloss on the Jeffersonian legacy.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 369-421) and index.
About the Author
Joseph J. Ellis is the Ford Foundation Professor of History at Mount Holyoke College. Educated at the College of William and Mary and Yale University, he served as a captain in the army and taught at West Point before coming to Mount Holyoke in 1972. He was dean of the faculty there for ten years.
He is the author of four previous books: The New England Mind in Transition, School for Soldiers: West Point and the Profession of Arms (with Robert Moore), After the Revolution: Profiles of Early American Culture, and Passionate Sage: The Character and Legacy of John Adams. American Sphinx is the winner of the National Book Award.
Ellis lives in Holyoke, Massachusetts, with his wife, Ellen, and three sons.