By Andrea Wulf
Knopf, $30.00, 352 pages
If one thing becomes apparent when visiting the homes of the Founding Fathers and reading their letters and histories, it is that they were all, at heart, farmers. They owned plantations and obsessed about their condition and upkeep; they researched and visited farms outside of their homes while traveling; they even approached and conducted official business with a farmer?s mentality. Farming and gardening informed their sense of self and their ideals of country, and it is from this perspective that Wulf explores, with precision and passion, the founding of the United States of America.
This isn?t uncharted territory for Wulf, whose wonderful?The Brother Gardeners delved into the history of the English garden. Drawing from this background, she tackles Jefferson, Washington, Adams, and Madison?their lives and their roles in bringing this nation into existence?as gardeners. She examines each founder through his home and farm, from Washington?s Mount Vernon to Madison?s Montpelier, and then expands to how their farm management influenced them as statesmen. Wulf?s prose may at times be a bit overburdened with detail, but this is a fascinating account and unique perspective on this country?s founding.
Reviewed by Margo Orlando Littell
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