Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson

I had a tough time with the first half or so of this book, although it redeemed itself quite a bit during the back half.

The reason for my boredom with the first half of the book comes down to one of two reasons:  At first I thought it was because of the author's mechanical treatment of the subject.  This seemed odd because I so much enjoyed his Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs, but his Franklin biography was written quite a few years ago, so maybe he simply hadn't yet matured as a biographer?  Or perhaps Isaacson simply didn't have the required credentials as a historian to understand Franklin and his times?

The other possibility is Franklin himself, who frankly was a bit mechanical.  Oddly enough he reminds me a bit of myself, a little obsessed with order, avoiding "inefficiencies" and the wasting of time.  Neither Franklin nor I know how to relax.  But when reading of these proclivities in another it just seemed boring.  The first half of the book was like a well oiled machine or long set of acts and principles that lack a bigger vision.

But that all changed as the American Revolution approached.  Franklin appears as the elder statesmen, providing invaluable services as a diplomat, adviser and counselor to the key players of the Revolution, all of whom were much younger than himself.

Franklin was a man of principles that live on in the form of countless quotes attributed to him and his writings, some erroneously.  But in an odd way he lacked some important principles.  He was involved in several decades-long flirtations with much younger women, even sharing households with them at various times.  He lived most of his final years (decades even) on the other side of the Atlantic from his wife, even opting to stay in England as his wife's health foundered, ultimately missing her death.

Franklin also died estranged from his son William, a loyalist who became the British governor of New Jersey in the early days of the War.  After the Revolution Benjamin had the opportunity to rebuild the relationship, but he chose not to.

Benjamin Franklin was a lot of things: A brilliant businessman, a prolific and hugely talented writer, one of colonial America's most successful newspaper publishers and printers, a critical diplomat with France that arguably won the Revolution for America.  And he was so much more.

But he was also human, something he would openly admit.  Aren't we all.  I can only hope to overcome my own shortcomings to have as much impact on the world as such a prolific figure.