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    American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile that Saved American Independence
    American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile that Saved American Independence
    American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile that Saved American Independence
    Ebook445 pages11 hours

    American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile that Saved American Independence

    By Jane Hampton Cook

    3.5/5

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    John Quincy and Louisa Adams’s unexpected journey that changed everything.

    American Phoenix is the sweeping, riveting tale of a grand historic adventure across forbidding oceans and frozen tundra—from the bustling ports and towering birches of Boston to the remote reaches of pre-Soviet Russia, from an exile in arctic St. Petersburg to resurrection and reunion among the gardens of Paris. Upon these varied landscapes this Adams and his Eve must find a way to transform their banishment into America’s salvation.

    Author, historian, and national media commentator Jane Hampton Cook breathes life into once-obscure history, weaving a meticulously researched biographical tapestry that reads like a gripping novel. With the arc and intrigue of Shakespearean drama in a Jane Austen era, American Phoenix is a timely yet timeless addition to the recent renaissance of works on the founding Adams family, from patriarchs John and Abigail to the second-generation of John Quincy and Louisa and beyond.

    Cook has crafted not only a riveting narrative but also an easy-to-understand history filled with fly-on-the-wall vignettes from 1812 and its hardscrabble, freedom-hungry people. While unveiling vivid portrayals of each character—a colorful assortment of heroes and villains, patriots and pirates, rogues and rabble-rousers—she paints equally fresh, intimate portraits of both John Quincy and Louisa Adams. Cook artfully reveals John Quincy’s devastation after losing the job of his dreams, battle for America’s need to thrive economically, and sojourn to secure his homeland’s survival as a sovereign nation. She reserves her most detailed brushstrokes for the inner struggles of Louisa, using this quietly inspirational woman’s own words to amplify her fears, faith, and fortitude along a deeply personal, often heart-rending journey. Cook’s close-up perspective shows how this American couple’s Russian destination changed US destiny.

     

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThomas Nelson
    Release dateMay 6, 2013
    ISBN9781595555427
    Author

    Jane Hampton Cook

    Jane Hampton Cook's passion is igniting patriotism and making American history relevant to modern life, news, current events, politics and faith. She is an award-winning screenwriter and author of 13 books, including War of Lies: When George Washington Was the Target & Propaganda Was the Crime and Stories of Faith & Courage from the Revolutionary War. She has written award-winning screenplay adaptations for two of her books. SAVING WASHINGTON placed third in ScreenCraft's drama 2018 screenwriting competition and AMERICAN PHOENIX was a top ten winner in ISA's Emerging Screenwriters contest in 2020. A national media commentator and former White House webmaster, Jane has been a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel, SKY News, C-SPAN, BBC, CD Media, WMAL, and other outlets. She has been a cast member and an on-camera storyteller for several documentaries, including Fox Nation's WHAT MADE AMERICA GREAT hosted by Brian Kilmeade, and THE FIRST AMERICAN, a film about George Washington produced by Gingrich Productions. Jane received a bachelor's degree from Baylor University and a master's degree from Texas A&M University. Jane lives with her husband and their sons in Centreville, Virginia. www.janecook.com.

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    Reviews for American Phoenix

    3.5/5

    7 ratings2 reviews

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    • 3/5
      This book had many flaws: (1) The writing was often atrocious. For example, Why didn't he ask Madison to hold the seat open until he could return the following year? The possibility squeezed his principles as tightly as Louisa's preterm contractions wrenched her womb. (2) The timeline in the last section was completely fractured, repeatedly jumping forward and backward in time and place for both Louisa and John, so that it was too tedious and annoying to track what was really going on. (3) Charles and Kitty were basically MIA from most of the narrative, even though I think they were there every day.However, with the exception of the absence of Charles and Kitty, the story was told in just the right amount of detail, with just the right amount of context. I liked how the author stopped to briefly explain the historical context (e.g., the Orders of Council), I liked how she gave a feel for their day-to-day life in St. Petersburg, I liked the detailed sourcing. I have a much better feel for why Monroe and Jefferson got into so much debt while serving as foreign ministers, now that I see the pressure the Adams had to resist to do the same. And I have a much, much better feel for how the wars of Napoleon were related to the War of 1812. The book was definitely worth my time, but I wish it had been better written/edited.
    • 5/5
      The American Phoenix is a book about John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812,and the Exile that saved American Independence. The story includes many excerpts from the diaries and letters of John and Louisa Adams. It gives a unique perspective from a woman's viewpoint during an important time in our country's history. Louisa Adams sacrificed just as much, if not more for our country than her husband. Jane Hampton Cook makes the story and the period of history it entails come alive for the reader. You can almost feel the raw emotions of John and Louisa Adams during each of their experiences, whether exuberant or melancholy. Cook artfully describes the weather in Russia, the struggles of sailing from Boston to Russia, and even the fear that each character must overcome in order to survive the long years in Russia and away from their beloved family. The plight of John Quincy and Louisa Adams as they with very limited financial assets and means co-mingled and represented the newly independent nation, America, amongst the wealthy and aristocratic societies of Russia and France and their struggle to appear to have more financial means to spend on clothes and entertainment. The War of 1812 is presented as crucial to our nation's gaining recognition among the nations of the world as a force capable of defending itself and as an international trade entity. American Phoenix is a must read! (rev. M.Godley and. V.Godley)DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile that Saved American Independence for the purpose of review from BookSneeze

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    American Phoenix - Jane Hampton Cook

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