In Pursuit of Reason: The Life of Thomas Jefferson

In Pursuit of Reason: The Life of Thomas Jefferson

"A major contribution." Washington Post
The authoritative single-volume biography of Thomas Jefferson, perhaps the most significant figure in American history. He was a complex and compelling man: a fervent advocate of democracy who enjoyed the life of a southern aristocrat and owned slaves, a revolutionary who became president, a believer in states' rights who did much to further the power of the federal government. Drawing on the recent explosion of Jeffersonian scholarship and fresh readings of original sources, IN PURSUIT OF REASON is a monument to Jefferson that will endure for generations.

Amazon.com Review

The life of Thomas Jefferson, demonstrably the most intellectual of America's presidents, has fascinated scholars for generations. A careful but elusive autobiographer, Jefferson left behind such a wealth of information about himself and his times that he has fueled hundreds of studies. Noble Cunningham's one-volume life is somewhat dispassionate, giving only a little sense of Jefferson's greatness, but it covers the essential episodes in the Founding Father's life with admirable balance and conciseness. Read this along with Joseph Ellis's American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, and you'll have a very good idea of why we continue to find the early statesman fascinating today. --Gregory MacNamee

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reissue edition (May 12, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345353803
• ISBN-13: 978-0345353801
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.9 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds