Ocean State Libraries

The #1 New York Times bestseller, and the inspiration for the hit Broadway musical Hamilton!

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Chernow presents a landmark biography of Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father who galvanized, inspired, scandalized, and shaped the newborn nation.
"Grand-scale biography at its best—thorough, insightful, consistently fair, and superbly written . . . A genuinely

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Ben Franklin was the scientist who, with the help of a kite, discovered that lightning is electricity. He was also a statesman, an inventor, a printer, and an author-a man of such amazingly varied talents that some people claimed he had magical powers! Full of all the details kids will want to know, the true story of Benjamin Franklin is by turns sad and funny, but always honest and awe-inspiring.

"A brief biography of the eighteenth-century printer, inventor, and statesman who played an influential role in the early history of the United States."--

"During 1954-1955, John F. Kennedy, then a U.S. Senator, chose eight of his historical colleagues to profile for their acts of astounding integrity in the face of overwhelming opposition. These heroes include John Quincy Adams, Daniel Webster, Thomas Hart Benton, and Robert A. Taft." "Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1957, Profiles in Courage - now reissued in this handsome hard-cover edition, featuring a new introduction by Caroline Kennedy, as well...

An analysis of the intertwined careers of the founders of the American republic documents the lives of John Adams, Aaron Burr, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington.

Originally written as a guide for his son, Benjamin Franklin discusses his life, accomplishments, and ideas.

Benjamin Franklin is perhaps the most remarkable figure in American history: the greatest statesman of his age, he played a pivotal role in the formation of the American republic. He was also a pioneering scientist, a best-selling author, the country's first postmaster general, a printer, a bon vivant, a diplomat, a ladies' man, and a moralist, and the most prominent celebrity of the 18th century. Franklin was, however, a man of vast contradictions,...

"Ben Franklin is the most lovable of America{u2019}s founding fathers. His wit, his charm, his inventiveness{u2014}even his grandfatherly appearance{u2014}are legendary. But this image obscures the scandals that dogged him throughout his life. In The Loyal Son, award-winning historian Daniel Mark Epstein throws the spotlight on one of the more enigmatic aspects of Franklin{u2019}s biography: his complex and confounding relationship with his illegitimate...