This series is reprinting old biographies of some pretty fascinating people. I remarked in my review of John Knox that the language was challenging and you really needed to be paying attention. With that in mind, I was really leery of Jackson, as this book is almost three times as long as Knox.
I didn't need to worry. The language, while sometimes sounding a bit outdated, is easy to understand. Some of the quotes take a second reading, but not many.
As for the narrative, well, I was eagerly turning pages. I knew a bit about Andrew Jackson. A bit. You know, he was president number 7, he was from "the west" and he was a big name at the Battle of New Orleans. Maybe I knew a bit more... but not a whole lot.
This book started me off saying, "I didn't know that" from the very start. Like the fact that Jackson fought in the Revolutionary War -- and was a POW besides. He lost his entire family to that war (his father had died before Jackson was born).
I was fascinated by the chapters on the War of 1812 -- a war I really know very little about. Maybe my boys are rubbing off on me, but the discussion of his battle strategies were well told and really, that was the point where I did not want to put the book down.
This is a title I am going to have Connor read while studying American history in the coming year.
Disclaimer: I received this book for free from New Leaf Publishing Group. No other compensation was received. The fact that I received a complimentary product does not guarantee a favorable review.
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