5767. First Family Abigail and John, by Joseph J. Ellis (read 3 Dec 2021) This is the 6th book by Ellis I have read and, as always, he does a good job in making it a easy to read and informative book. I have read Page Smith's two-volume biography of John Adams and David McCullough's superlative biography of Adams but still found this book full of things of interest. Adams was a hot-headed but able man, very eager to be given credit for his role in gaining independence for his country, and, when he became president he did a great job in avoiding war with France--which Jefferson might have not done had he been president, as he almost was, losing in 1796 by only 3 electoral votes to Adams. I was surprised to learn that Adams was home for as much as he was while president, but it was truly a different world. And it was an amazing fact that both he and Jefferson--the two men most important to the creation of the nation--died exactly fifty years after the day deemed the nation's birthday, on July 4, 1826 ( )

Excellent! I've read a good bit about John Adams (and, via his story, Abigail). But Ellis' book really focuses on an amazing relationship of two amazing people in extraordinary times. And his laid back style is welcoming! ( )

Interesting look at the letters between Abigail and John Adams over the course of their 54 year marriage. Researched in great detail.... but still a little "dry." ( )

This is basically a dual biography of John Adams and Abigail Adams told through the lens of their letters and relationship. Thus, the "first family" of the title (we don't have any letters for George and Martha Washington, so we can not really know what their relationship was like). It is all told with Ellis's easy, engaging style. Along with his decades-long immersion in the source materials. The book could have been improved with images, but it is not a detraction. A pretty good dual bio, all-around. John Adams was an important figure in American history, and this serves as quite the biography for him and his wife. Less grand than McCullough's bio, but quicker and more accessible. ( )

In a similar vein to Ellis’s other books on the nation’s founders (First Brothers, Revolutionary Summer, Thomas Jefferson: American Sphinx) Ellis gives us a close look at two who are among the most notable of the pantheon: John and Abigail Adams. The couple left volumes of personal letters that let us peer into the political issues of their times, their personalities and their deep marital relationship. The letters provide the basis for greater understand of the tumultuous times and events. We see the successes as well as the failures and frustrations that the founders experienced without, valuably, the rose-colored glasses (or politically motivated distortion) too often seen today.

John Adams was one of the most skillful instigators of the political decisions that led the colonies to strike for independence from Britain. Clearly no founder deserves more credit for maneuvering the disparate and conflicting ideas and factions into the unity that severed the colonial ties with England. As a man, Adams was highly ambitious and decidedly vain; he was constantly motivated by his craving to be remembered and venerated by future generations. He was impulsive and often agitated, traits that Abigail worked hard to help him keep under control. Adams picked up the reputation in the years of and following his presidency of being a closet monarchist. This was undeserved, but Adams did hold a large measure of skepticism about wisdom of the masses that were apt to be swayed by demagoguery and passions of the moment. Adams was a staunch believer in the powers of the central government and he aligned with the federalist faction, although he and Hamilton became bitter enemies. His views were quite contrary to those of Jefferson who tended to support the primacy of the states over a central authority. He and Jefferson, once on the friendliest terms, became estranged during Washington’s administration. Jefferson became Adams’s vice-president due to the flaw in the constitutional method of presidential elections that resulted in the runner-up taking the vice-presidency (soon fixed by the twelfth amendment). As Adams’s subordinate Jefferson is shown to be devious and disloyal to an extreme degree. His manipulations played a part in Adams’s failure to be elected to a second term. In the late years of both men’s lives they reconciled and exchanged a remarkable correspondence. (In one of history’s most poignant coincidences, these two giants died on July 4, 1826 within hours of each other.)

Adams often made decisions from perspectives that ran counter to popular views; he believed that his contrary views supported their correctness. As president he held firm to the unpopular decision to remain neutral in France’s conflict with Britain when opposing factions either favored war with France or unfettered support for revolutionary France. He is long forgotten as the father of the US Navy, built at his insistence to thwart any ambitions of the Europeans with their powerful naval forces. He is often remembered for his most egregious decision to advocate for and sign the Alien and Sedition Act, a law aimed at silencing critics of his administration. What is too little recognized today is his belief in the separation of powers among the executive, legislature and judiciary, a concept he introduced with his authorship of the Massachusetts Commonwealth’s constitution. His “midnight” appointment of John Marshall as chief justice, much resented by successor Jefferson, turned out to have profound impact securing the role of the court in our democracy.

Abigail Adams was a remarkable woman for her times, perhaps for any time. Without formal education and in a society that expected women to eschew political opinions, she was deeply knowledgeable of the political issues that her husband and the country faced. Her advice to him was cogent and sophisticated and he relied heavily on her guidance in reaching his judgments. She was attuned to his weaknesses – his vanity and impulsiveness – and could mitigate the consequences of these traits through her advice to him. John and Abigail were a perfect balance for each other and both had not only deep affection but also complete mutual respect. Ellis points out that we owe to John’s frequent absences from home at Congress or abroad the presence of the volumes of correspondence they shared. Although certainly a hindsight perspective, Abigail can be said to be a forerunner of feminism and notions of gender equality – her complaints about the subordinate status of women in politics and the law are seen in her letters.

The book tells us much about the Adams’s family. John Quincy was the favored son and his parents’ high expectations and demands for his success as an adult were realized. The other Adams’s offspring did not fare so well. Charles became and alcoholic and died an early death. Thomas floundered in his legal profession and took to drink. Nabby had a bad marriage and succumbed to breast cancer while still young.

Ellis would claim that John and Abigail remain the foremost political couple that our nation has seen. One must agree. Franklin and Eleanor were powerful players on the nation’s stage, but her influence seemed to run parallel to his, not conjoined. Bill and Hillary? While effective political partners, one suspects that ambition undergirds the relationship, not affection as was the case of the Adams.

One aside about letters. The qualities of the correspondence shared between the Adams – introspective, thoughtful, expository, lengthy, etc. – are not features of today’s electronic media. One can’t imagine the richness of the Adams’s letters surviving the world of tweeting, instagram and Facebook. ( )