num_pages: 336
description: A New York Times  bestseller! "Of those writing about the founding fathers, [Gordon Wood] is quite simply the best." — The Philadelphia InquirerIn this brilliantly illuminating group portrait of the men who came to be known as the Founding Fathers, the incomparable Gordon Wood has written a book that seriously asks, What made these men great, and shows us, among many other things, just how much character did in fact matter. The life of each, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Franklin, Hamilton, Madison, Paine, is presented individually as well as collectively, but the thread that binds these portraits together is the idea of character as a lived reality. They were members of the first generation in history that was self-consciously self-made men who understood that the arc of lives, as of nations, is one of moral progress.Lin-Manuel Miranda’s smash Broadway musical Hamilton sparked new interest in the Revolutionary War and the Founding Fathers. In addition to Alexander Hamilton, the production also features George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Aaron Burr, Lafayette, and many more.Look for Gordon's 2017 release, Friends  John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. 
language: English
title: Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different
titlecomplete: Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different
genres: Historical, American Revolutionary War, American, History, Biography, United States, American History, American Revolution, Politics, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 3898
publisher: Penguin Books