Book Review: “James Madison: A Life Reconsidered” by Lynne Cheney

“James Madison: A Life Reconsidered” by Lynne Cheney is, simply put, a must read. The author could not have picked a more appropriate title for me with the use of the word “reconsidered” as I was never completely sold on the greatness of President James Madison as a historical figure, to be honest.

As a historian who was always enthralled with the pugnacious character of Alexander Hamilton, any of his contemporaries that were on the opposing end of his politics I also took offense to. This book completely shattered all of my preconceived notions about a man who was gentle, intensely brilliant, at the epicenter of the building of our nation, and whose leadership was exemplary.

“JAMES MADISON: A LIFE RECONSIDERED” BOOK STATS:

• Published 2014
• 564 total pages
• 465 pages of text
• 18 chapters
• 1 epilogue
• 8 black and white picture pages inset
• 1 Notes section
• 1 extensive Bibliography section
• 1 Index section
• Hardcover available

MIND BLOWN! COOL THINGS I LEARNED:

• Although a highly esteemed founding father, James Madison never was wealthy
• James Madison is a Virginian like Jefferson and Washington
• He studied at Princeton under John Witherspoon
• Madison and Jefferson were intellectuals who often interchanged ideas
• Madison was in his early thirties when he served in the Continental Congress
• He wrote for the famed Federalist
• He was president in 1812 when war broke out
• Madison helped to found the University of Virginia
• James Madison left 35 volumes of memoirs totaling more than 20,000 pages

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Cheney, Lynne. 2014. James Madison: A Life Reconsidered. New York: Viking Press.

“JAMES MADISON: A LIFE RECONSIDERED” BOOK REVIEW:

It’s kind of funny how we get caught up in the quarrels and opinions of those who have been dead for over 300 years. James Madison, like Thomas Jefferson, were not only Virginians, but also not Federalists like Alexander Hamilton.

“A Life Reconsidered” summarized my journey through reading this wonderful book because at every turn of the page I realized that I had sorely misjudged one of our greatest Presidents. It was time to reconsider James Madison.

Thanks in large part to Lynne Cheney’s masterful writing, James Madison came to life and swelled the pages with his intellect. Never a rich man, he was the consummate scholar living off of the largesse of others, including his father who was fairly well-to-do. All of James Madison’s energy was dedicated to scripting our Country’s constitutional future.

STAR RATINGS:

• Amazon Link
• The James Madison Museum of Orange County, VA.
• 15 Beautiful Photos of James Madison’s Montpelier Home.