MixedThe Wall Street Journal\"... both a lighthearted travelogue and a timely exploration of Washington’s historical legacy ... Years ago, the Washington biographer Douglas Southall Freeman warned that the details of such ceremonies can become \'dull to read about.\' With an upbeat and conversational style, Mr. Philbrick succeeds in avoiding this danger ... Given Mr. Philbrick’s determination to see even the parts of the past that don’t make us proud, it seems strange that he has only kind words for the crowds pulling down [Confederate] statues ... In defense of protesters taking history into their own hands, Mr. Philbrick cites the example of a New York mob ... Unfortunately, Mr. Philbrick omits the most important part of the story: Washington afterward issued orders condemning such acts of lawlessness.
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Robert Elder
PositiveThe Wall Street Journal... timely and thought-provoking ... A biographer intent on a livelier narrative might devote more space than Mr. Elder does to the events leading up to this moment and the tension that followed from it. Calhoun’s decision to resign the vice presidency for a seat in the Senate, where he eventually negotiated a compromise that averted civil war, receives exactly one sentence. But what interests Mr. Elder is ideas, and Calhoun’s ideas were pointing him toward the fateful path he would follow ... Attempts to make Calhoun fit neatly into our current politics miss the message of this much-needed biography..
