Samuel Adams: America's Revolutionary Politician (American Profiles)

Rating:
Summary: Well-Written Political Biography
Review: This biography focuses on the political life of Samuel Adams and his key role in leading Massachusetts to rebel against Britain to protect its liberties. Little is written about Adams' personal or family life and the coverage of his participation in the Continental Congresses is also slim, apparently due to a lack of sources, since Adams destroyed most of his correspondence and Congressional deliberations were secret. There are issues that I wished would have been discussed in more detail, e.g. the author has only a limited discussion of Adams' alleged role in replacing Washington as commander-in-chief (apparently a canard spread by his enemies).

The author explains well the development and sources of Adams' political philosophy and how it guided his actions before, during, and after the Revolution.

The prose is well-written with many short quotations from Adams. Overall, an informative and fairly interesting biography of a key and often overlooked figure of the American Revolution.