“Jon Meacham won the Pulitzer Prize in 2009 for his biography of Andrew Jackson, American Lion. This year he explores the complexities of one of our early presidents in Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power. The book brings vividly to life an extraordinary man and his remarkable times, presenting Jefferson the politician and president, a great and complex human being forever engaged in the wars of his era. Philosophers think; politicians maneuver. Jefferson’s genius was that he was both and could do both, often simultaneously. Such is the art of power. Meacham writes, ‘The closest thing to a constant in his life was his need for power and control. He tended to mask these drives so effectively . . . the most astute observers of his life and work had trouble detecting them.’ The book also delves into his contradictions, including his hypocrisy on the issue of slavery . . .”—Broadway Books, Portland. Read more and buy Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy, The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses Grant in War and Peace and Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman from Broadway Books.
Each day until Christmas, the tireless staff at Broadway Books will post a recommendation for a great gift book on the store’s blog, Bookbroads. 24 Days of Books posts are written by Sally McPherson, Roberta Dyer and Kate Bennison.