Jefferson and Monticello The Biography of a Builder by Mclaughlin, Jack - 1988

Henry Holt and Co.. Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. 1988. First Edition; First Impression. Hardcover. 0805004823 . Author inscribed and signed bookplate. Dust Jacket now in Mylar Protective Cover. Beautiful scarce collectors grade copy of this book. This book, a National Book Award nominee in 1988, is the life of Thomas Jefferson as seen through the prism of his love affair with Monticello. For over half a century, it was his consuming passion, his most serious amusement. With a sure command of sources and skilled intuitive understanding of Jefferson, McLaughlin crafts and uncommon portrait of builder and building alike. En route he tells us much about life in Virginia; about Monticello’s craftsmen and how they worked their materials; about slavery, class, and family; and, above all, about the multiplicity of domestic concerns that preoccupied this complex man. It is and engaging and incisive look at the eighteenth-century mind: systematic, rational, and curious, but also playful, comfort-loving, and amusing. Ultimately, it provides readers with great insight into daily life in Colonial and Federal America. ; 1.3 x 8.8 x 6.1 Inches; 289 pages; Signed by Author .