Daniel Webster: The Man and His Time
The life of Daniel Webster, eminent politician and statesman of the four decades preceding the Civil War, is here chronicled by a veteran biographer of the Jacksonian era (Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Democracy, 1833-1845, LJ 5/1/84). Called one of our five greatest senators and arguably America's finest orator by Remini, Webster also served three presidents as secretary of state and contributed to U.S. constitutional thought. His personal life was less successful: he was grieved by the early deaths of his children, and his inability to manage money led him into dubious financial stratagems. And he ended his career as a poignant antique crying for compromise to save the Union in an age that demanded slavery's final resolution. Remini's scholarship and style are flawless, and he introduces substantial new information?notably a new medical interpretation of Webster's death. It may be difficult to rouse public interest in a fat book about Webster, but this biography is strongly recommended for academic collections and larger public libraries.?Fritz Buckallew, Univ. of Central Oklahoma Lib., EdmondCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.