A review by greatlibraryofalexandra
John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, a Private Life, by Paul C. Nagel
4.0
I was intrigued by the mentions of JQA's life while reading McCullough's "John Adams," and this book really drove home for me what an interesting life this man had. As a member of the foreign service myself, I was riveted by his long career serving oversea for a fledgling State Department, and the unprecedented insights into who JQA was privately really made this book enjoyable. He was certainly a fascinating man, and that makes him an easy topic to study.
A few major problems keep this from being a full 5 star read.
For one, as others have noted, Nagel boasts repeatedly that he only includes one chapter on JQA's presidency, so full and rich was the rest of his life. While he's not wrong, I think the lack of analysis of the presidency was a mistake. Rather than underscoring how full JQA's life was, it tended to flippantly write off a major event. By the end of this book, I found myself forgetting he was, in fact, a president.
Again, as others note, Nagel focuses so heavily on the personal that significant aspects of the political get glossed over. I feel the need to read an additional book on JQA to get a better sense of the public aspect of his long, illustrious service.
And lastly: Nagel does an abysmal job of discussing JQA's relationship to slavery, which I feel is inexcusable, and he also has a bizarre, unpalatable habit of demonizing Abigail Adams whenever she is brought up. It is constant, and inexplicable: Nagel does not mention Abigail Adams without adding that he was "stern" "austere" "a shrew" - et cetera, and this comes off as merely personal rancor, as he provides very little (if any) evidence to indicate a) that JQA felt this hostile towards her and b) that she was acting any differently than John Adams the father was. In fact in one instance, Nagel demonizes Abigail only to then report how devastated JQA was by her death. It was difficult to get through these irritating parts of the book.
Nagel's attention to Louisa Adams is much kinder and more invigorating, and though this book definitely makes me want to read about Louisa herself, I am completely turned off to find that Nagel has a book on the Adams women.
But as a whole, this is a very enticing, energetic read that is truly interesting. The life of this man spans so many vastly interesting decades; the length of his life itself, and his time spent in public service, is astounding. I was particularly entranced by JQA's awareness of his own impending death, and the ability he had to record it in his journals. This is a president I will happily revisit, and I'd easily recommend this book.
A few major problems keep this from being a full 5 star read.
For one, as others have noted, Nagel boasts repeatedly that he only includes one chapter on JQA's presidency, so full and rich was the rest of his life. While he's not wrong, I think the lack of analysis of the presidency was a mistake. Rather than underscoring how full JQA's life was, it tended to flippantly write off a major event. By the end of this book, I found myself forgetting he was, in fact, a president.
Again, as others note, Nagel focuses so heavily on the personal that significant aspects of the political get glossed over. I feel the need to read an additional book on JQA to get a better sense of the public aspect of his long, illustrious service.
And lastly: Nagel does an abysmal job of discussing JQA's relationship to slavery, which I feel is inexcusable, and he also has a bizarre, unpalatable habit of demonizing Abigail Adams whenever she is brought up. It is constant, and inexplicable: Nagel does not mention Abigail Adams without adding that he was "stern" "austere" "a shrew" - et cetera, and this comes off as merely personal rancor, as he provides very little (if any) evidence to indicate a) that JQA felt this hostile towards her and b) that she was acting any differently than John Adams the father was. In fact in one instance, Nagel demonizes Abigail only to then report how devastated JQA was by her death. It was difficult to get through these irritating parts of the book.
Nagel's attention to Louisa Adams is much kinder and more invigorating, and though this book definitely makes me want to read about Louisa herself, I am completely turned off to find that Nagel has a book on the Adams women.
But as a whole, this is a very enticing, energetic read that is truly interesting. The life of this man spans so many vastly interesting decades; the length of his life itself, and his time spent in public service, is astounding. I was particularly entranced by JQA's awareness of his own impending death, and the ability he had to record it in his journals. This is a president I will happily revisit, and I'd easily recommend this book.