{"product_id":"franklin-washington-the-founding-partnership-isbn-9780062880154","title":"Franklin \u0026 Washington: The Founding Partnership","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Larson's elegantly written dual\u003cbr\u003ebiography reveals that the partnership of Franklin and Washington was\u003cbr\u003eindispensable to the success of the Revolution.\" —Gordon S. Wood \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian\u003cbr\u003ecomes a masterful, first-of-its-kind dual biography of Benjamin Franklin and\u003cbr\u003eGeorge Washington, illuminating their partnership's enduring importance. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNATIONAL BESTSELLER \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e•\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOne of \u003cem\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/em\u003e's \"10 Books to Read in February\" \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e•\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e One of \u003cem\u003eUSA Today’s\u003c\/em\u003e “Must-Read\u003cbr\u003eBooks\" of Winter 2020  •  One of \u003cem\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e's\u003cbr\u003e\"Top Ten\" Spring 2020 Memoirs\/Biographies\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTheirs was a\u003cbr\u003ethree-decade-long bond that, more than any other pairing, would forge the\u003cbr\u003eUnited States. Vastly different men, Benjamin Franklin—an abolitionist\u003cbr\u003efreethinker from the urban north—and George Washington—a slavehold­ing general\u003cbr\u003efrom the agrarian south—were the indispensable authors of American independence\u003cbr\u003eand the two key partners in the attempt to craft a more perfect union at the\u003cbr\u003eConstitutional Convention, held in Franklin’s Philadelphia and presided over by\u003cbr\u003eWashington. And yet their teamwork has been little remarked upon in the\u003cbr\u003ecenturies since.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIlluminating Franklin and Washington’s\u003cbr\u003erelationship with striking new detail and energy, Pulitzer Prize–winning\u003cbr\u003ehistorian Edward J. Larson shows that theirs was truly an intimate working\u003cbr\u003efriendship that amplified the talents of each for collective advancement\u003cbr\u003eof the American project.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter long sup­porting British rule, both Franklin and Washington became key early proponents of inde­pendence. Their friendship gained historical significance during the\u003cbr\u003eAmerican Revolution, when Franklin led America’s diplomatic mission in\u003cbr\u003eEurope (securing money and an alliance with France) and Washington commanded\u003cbr\u003ethe Continental Army. Victory required both of these efforts to succeed, and\u003cbr\u003esuccess, in turn, required their mutual coordination and cooperation. In the\u003cbr\u003e1780s, the two sought to strengthen the union, leading to the framing and\u003cbr\u003eratification of the Constitution, the founding document that bears their stamp.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFranklin and Washington—the two most revered\u003cbr\u003efigures in the early republic—staked their lives and fortunes on the\u003cbr\u003eAmerican experiment in liberty and were committed to its preservation. Today\u003cbr\u003ethe United States is the world’s great super­power, and yet we also wrestle\u003cbr\u003ewith the government Franklin and Washington created more than two centuries\u003cbr\u003eago—the power of the executive branch, the principle of checks and balances,\u003cbr\u003ethe electoral college—as well as the wounds of their compromise over\u003cbr\u003eslavery. Now, as the founding institutions appear under new stress, it is time\u003cbr\u003eto understand their origins through the fresh lens of Larson’s \u003cem\u003eFranklin\u003cbr\u003e\u0026amp; Washington, \u003c\/em\u003ea major addition to the literature of the\u003cbr\u003efounding era.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e\"Excellent.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eValdosta Daily Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Larson laudably tries to counter the tendency of historians, especially biographers, to focus on individuals rather than teams... A leadership study showing how two different personalities can forge a partnership. ... [A] well-written and interesting biographical narrative. ... Great leadership teams generally are not composed of people with matching personalities. Instead, they are forged by people who bring different strengths and traits to the table. America’s founding needed people who were brilliant, such as Jefferson and James Madison, and those who were passionate, such as John Adams and Samuel Adams. Likewise, as Larson shows, Franklin and Washington brought two different sets of traits. ... [Their differences] were also based, as Larson shows, on personality and values. Washington’s embodiment of noble virtues and aristocratic grandeur made him a revered commander and an iconic leader, but Franklin showed that on slavery, an outlook based on simple virtues and humility can be more clear-eyed.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWalter Isaacson, Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Larson presents a concise yet engaging narrative that illuminates how individuals can have as much impact on events as broader societal or economic forces.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“F\u003cem\u003eranklin \u0026amp; Washington\u003c\/em\u003e does ample justice to its subjects’ achievements. ... Larson lays down a pairing that has hitherto been neglected. Few would quibble with Mr. Larson’s verdict that George Washington and Benjamin Franklin rank as the pre-eminent Founders: Without the former’s determined leadership of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and the latter’s assiduous cultivation of the French support that ultimately secured victory, there would be no United States.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eStephen Brumwell, Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Larson brings together the lives of these titans, showing how their backgrounds and joint interests made them ideal partners. … An inspired approach for considering the lives and legacies of these two founding fathers.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist, STARRED Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Essential reading. ... Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Larson writes a dual biography of two founding fathers, shedding light on a special partnership and decades-long bond that made America possible.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eUSA Today, \"A Best Book of 2020 so far\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Laudabl[e]. ... A leadership study showing how two different personalities can forge a partnership. ... Well-written and interesting. ... Great leadership teams generally are not composed of people with matching personalities. ... As Larson shows, Franklin and Washington brought two different sets of traits.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWalter Isaacson, Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“America has always been a team project, and its Founding co-captains are Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.  But until now, curiously, there has not been a joint biography worthy of these two great Captains America. Edward J. Larson finally delivers just what we need: a crisp narrative crackling with great stories and deep insights.  Equally fun and wise—a rare combination—\u003cem\u003eFranklin \u0026amp; Washington\u003c\/em\u003e is an indispensable book about our two indispensable Founding Fathers.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAkhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science, Yale University, and author of America's Constitution: A Biography\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"In 1790, John Adams joked that the history of the Revolution would eventually boil down to Washington and Franklin doing pretty much everything. This was not as much of a joke as Adams imagined: Edward J. Larson's elegantly written dual biography reveals that the partnership of Franklin and Washington was indispensable to the success of the Revolution.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eGordon S. Wood, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for History and the Bancroft Prize, and author of Revolutionary Characters and Empire of Liberty\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44888976425189,"sku":"NP9780062880154","price":29.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780062880154.jpg?v=1730230221","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/franklin-washington-the-founding-partnership-isbn-9780062880154","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}