James Madison: Writings (Library of America) FROM THE PUBLISHER
America's greatest political thinker, in the most comprehensive one-volume collection ever published
Over 200 years after the founding of the federal republic, James Madison remains the most important political thinker in American history. The prime framer of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, Madison was also a brilliant expositor of the new republican government and its underlying principles. His eloquent and insightful writing on freedom of religion, freedom of speech and the press, the rights of minorities under majority rule, the role of the states in the federal system, and the separation of powers are central to American political thought and speak to the controversies of the present day.
James Madison: Writings is the most comprehensive one-volume selection ever published. Arranged chronologically, it contains almost 200 documents written between 1772 and 1836. Included are all 29 of Madison's contributions to The Federalist, as well as speeches and letters that illuminate his central role in framing and ratifying the Constitution and in the adoption of the Bill of Rights; early writings on religious freedom; revealing correspondence with Jefferson, Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and James Monroe; his eloquent denunciations of the Alien and Sedition Acts; influential writings on republican government and constitutional interpretation; and candid private appraisals of the personalities and events he witnessed in four decades of public life. Writings from Madison's terms as secretary of state and president record his determination to uphold American independence during the conflicts of the Napoleonic era and his conscientious leadership of the nation during the fiercely controversial War of 1812. Letters and essays from his retirement reveal his deepening concern over the sectional threat to the federal union he loved.
James Madison: Writings includes explanatory notes, a chronology of Madison's life, and an index.
FROM THE CRITICS
Library Journal
James Madison (1751-1836) was a prominent participant in the American Revolution and the framing of the U.S. Constitution and also served as Secretary of State and President of the United States. Rakove, Coe Professor of History and American Studies at Stanford University and a Pulitizer Prize-winning historian, offers an extensive volume of Madison's essays, speeches, and private memoranda from the Revolution and Articles of Confederation through his post-Presidential activities. The book's scope distinguishes it from similar one-volume efforts and allows us a broader view of Madison's thinking than presented in The Federalist. The chronological order helps readers examine different periods of Madison's thought, e.g., his Federalist Papers expound a theory of an extended republic and a general theory of separation of powers. Larger public and academic libraries will find Rakove's presentation useful for readers' understanding of Madison, whose writings are significant in advancing key ideas central to the American Republic.--Steven Puro, St. Louis Univ. Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.
Booknews
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Rakove (history and American studies, Stanford U.) made the selections and supplies notes for this one-volume collection of Madison's works. Arranged chronologically, it contains almost 200 documents written between 1772, the year after Madison's graduation from Princeton, and his death in 1836. Included are all 29 of Madison's contributions to as well as speeches and letters that illuminate his role in framing and ratifying the Constitution. Also represented are early writings on religious freedom; correspondence with figures such as Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton, and Monroe; writings from his terms as secretary of state and president; and letters and essays written during retirement. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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