“John Adams” by Page Smith was the first comprehensive biography of Adams written once the second president’s personal papers became widely available.  Published in 1962, this epic biography consists of two volumes spanning nearly 1,200 pages.  This biography was the winner of a 1963 Bancroft Prize (awarded to outstanding books on the history of the Americas) and has long been recognized as one of the earliest, most thorough, treatment’s of John Adams’ life.

In a manner reminiscent of Flexner’s nearly contemporaneous multi-volume work on Washington, this biography meticulously chronicles John Adams’ life from his earliest days as a youth in what is now Quincy, MA to his final days in that same town, at the age of 90.  What transpired in the 45 years between his graduation from Harvard to the end of his presidency was a surprisingly interesting tale of dogmatic focus on self-improvement, a pursuit and embrace of significant political opportunities, extraordinary opportunities to work and live abroad, and an unusually strong devotion to…

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