Product Description

Selected and annotated by the author of the acclaimed Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, this collection of Franklin's writings shows why he was the bestselling author of his day and remains America's favorite founder and wit. Includes an introductory essay exploring Franklin's life and impact as a writer, and each piece is accompanied by a preface and notes that provide background, context, and analysis.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #353402 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 576 pages

Review
"A thoroughly researched, crisply written, convincingly argued chronicle."

-- The New York Times Book Review

Review
"In its common sense, clarity, and accessibility, it is a fitting reflection of Franklin's sly pragmatism....This may be the book that most powerfully drives a new pendulum swing of the Franklin reputation."

-- The New York Times

"The most readable full-length Franklin biography available."

-- The Washington Post Book World

"A thoroughly researched, crisply written, convincingly argued chronicle."

-- The New York Times Book Review

About the Author
Walter Isaacson is the author of Benjamin Franklin: An American Life and the president and CEO of the Aspen Institute. He has been the chairman and CEO of CNN and the managing editor of Time magazine. He is the author of Kissinger: A Biography and coauthor of The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made. He lives with his wife and daughter in Washington, D.C., and Aspen, Colorado.

Customer Reviews

Excellent book.
This is a fine selection from Franklin's writings, including the entire 'Autobiography'. All texts have been judiciously chosen by the editor, arranged in chronological order and prefaced by intelligent, concise and well written introductory notes. Franklin's importance and permanence clearly emerge from the reading.

I only wish there were more excerpts from Franklin's delightful 'Poor Richard's Almanac'. The selections presented in this edition come from the Almanacs for the years 1733, 1734, 1736, 1737, 1738 and 1739, and they barely fill 15 pages. Nonetheless they might well satisfy the reader and in any event there is plenty of rarely published letters and articles from the Pennsylvania Gazette to make up for the possible lack of material from the almanacs signed by 'Richard Saunders'.

This is the perfect book to discover Franklin and also a very good one for those who already know him, thanks to the editors insightful notes and to the opportunity to review Franklin's writings in chronological order, from a historical and biographical perspective.

The Original Diplomat
This is a great collection of the writings of Benjamin Franklin. For me, the real value here lies not so much in the fact that he was a self-made man, but in the advice he gave about connecting with people and interacting with others both from a business and from a personal point of view. His ability in that area led directly to his success (along with some luck). I wish more people read the Autobiography and other papers just for that reason alone. In the long run, that may be the greatest contribution made by Ben Franklin.

Best Ben Franklin Book
...actually I can't say it's the best, but I can say I did a significant amount of searching for the perfect compilation of Ben Franklin writings to add to my library. This book (speaking of the hardback) is very nice. The binding is nice and tight. The dust jacked is made of very high quality paper, it almost feels like it's some sort of polyester. It's a nice book... aesthetically.

Inside it has a number of Franklin's writings; stuff he published in his newspapers, essays, letters, and of course it has his autobiography at the end. That's the part that I actually read. The autobiography is excellent. It gives you a real flavor for the kind of life that we all can live. Read it, enjoy it, learn from it, and then put it away for a few years and then read it again.

Buy the hardback if you love books not only for their words but... just because you love having nice books.