Benjamin Franklin has been written about, quoted, and misquoted as much as any figure in America history. But his most significant contribution, as ambassador to France during the American Revolution, is largely overlooked. Stacy Schiff focuses on just this period in this readable biography. She shows how Franklin’s personality—charming, disarming, honest, and devious—exactly suited his mission. Without his efforts, it is possible France wouldn’t have entered the war, becoming the force that brought England to surrender. Jason Culp is solid as narrator. His diction is clear, and he varies his pacing, which keeps the reading from becoming monotonous. He adds a touch of accent to French and English figures, which gives the reading a bit of flavor without becoming cartoonish. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
The Pulitzer Prize-winning historian on the “locked-room mystery” of Salem, and why it still haunts us today.
Stacy Schiff gets it. She gets people. She studies lives tirelessly and fiercely and perfectly, and when she is finished studying, she publishes works of flawlessly interpreted, beautiful, and meticulously researched prose. Her biographies have reenergized our love of history, and given us the gift of feeling well-informed and eloquent when defending powerful women, dropping “did you knows?” […]
Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff has written about a fascinating and diverse group of subjects, from Véra (Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov), to Benjamin Franklin and Cleopatra.