JOHN ADAMS by DAVID McCULLOUGH (2001)

I feel sorry for John Adams. I think he is the most undervalued of our Founding Fathers. Here was a man who was one of the leaders in the push for independence and who worked tirelessly for the cause. He was the one who negotiated the final peace treaty with England, and who negotiated loans from Dutch banks when they were needed most. As president, he held the nation to a steady course, building a strong naval defense while ensuring a peace, all while war with France would have been the politically popular move. He was intellectually brilliant. He was a faithful husband and friend. He was man of incorruptible integrity who never spoke ill of an adversary for political gain, while being subjected to some of the most malicious attacks ever endured by a president.

So why doesn't he get the popular recognition today received by some of his contemporaries? In modern eyes, the Alien and Sedition Act, particularly the limitations on the press, is the primary blot on his record. Although he didn't sponsor the act, he didn't veto it when it passed in Congress.

Mainly, I have come to believe, he is undervalued because he was not a politician. Along with Washington, he believed that political parties were harmful to the emerging democracy. Thus he was caught between the Federalists, led by Alexander Hamilton, and the Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson, both of whom did all they could to undermine him. He knew from the beginning that Hamilton was not his friend, but he believed that Jefferson was, until he finally realized that he, too, was secretly plotting against him.

And yet later in life, when both he and Jefferson were retired, Adams forgave him and began an extensive correspondence. That's more than most would have done, but Adams was a strong adherent of Christian precepts, including forgiveness.

More than any of the Founding Fathers, Adams' life is an open book, because he preserved his letters and writings, including his letters to his wife. In contrast, Jefferson destroyed much of his private correspondence. (He had many things to hide, as it turns out.)

These were the opinions I gained from reading this highly recommended biography of our second president. Privately, I also believe that Adams was undervalued because he did not look the part. He was relatively short and fat and not impressive in appearance, in contrast to the tall and patrician-appearing Washington and Jefferson.

This is an extremely well-written biography which reads much like a novel, seamlessly including massive research. I highly recommend it as a way to re-evaluate our second president.