George Washington: A Life from Beginning to End (Biographies of US Presidents)

What a great find this series is! I was contacted about this book/Hourly History by the Director of the series, and asked if I'd be interested in doing a review. I'm a long-time fan of American History (thanks to my dad) and of biographies, and the idea of condensing a life like Washington's into a one-hour read was curiously compelling. I didn't quite know what to expect - I rather thought I knew a fair amount about our first President; turns out I was wrong, and an hour's worth of reading provided me with rather more new information than I imagined it would!With a larger emphasis on early life than I had previously experienced (relatively, that is, given the length of the book), I found myself lost in this one quickly. I suspect I read it in rather less than an hour; it certainly felt shorter. In a clear, concise voice, the book presents the life and accomplishments (which were many and varied) of Washington in a way that is informative, interesting and engaging.This is a marvelous idea for a series, and I'm pleased to report that there are a slew of titles on a very broad range of topics encompassing global history. I suspect will be a great way to develop a working knowledge base about a lot of subjects that have always interested me but that I've feared were too large or involved to do justice to without a major time commitment, like the actual, non-Starz, experience of the Vikings, the Renaissance, or the Middle Ages. There are also biographies of the famous and infamous and histories of world wars. It's a brilliant collection that seems to be ever-expanding, and I'm delighted to have been introduced to it!

It was a good read but i was expecting more with the title saying all.

Clear, concise and interesting reading! A good beginning to learn about our presidents. I highly recommend this book to people of all ages.

I'm a homeschool mother and a history lover. With that in mind I can say that I enjoyed this short book for a couple of reasons. First, it doesn't bog you down with minute details that most simply won't remember and simply don't care. Let's face it, most won't read a history book just for the fun of it. But you can this one. It's short but gives the necessary highlights of Washington's life for the average student without boring their socks off. I actually liked it. Read it in two nights. There wasn't a lot I didn't already know, but this is a great resource for homeschool families. And should be easy enough for the average 4th to 12th grader to read in no time. In fact, I'm wanting my youngest to try to CLEP out of history in college so I think I'll have her read several these Hourly History books. I notice many are free; others are only $2.99. When you have several kids you're homeschooling any free book is a great value if it's actually decent subject matter. Give it a try. You have nothing to lose but a few hours of reading. You will learn something you didn't already know.

The book was okay, I learned some more stuff bout George Washington N it was a short book so I will be looking for some more books bout George Washington

I have deliberated on what to score this book for a couple of days.What I didn't like:* no author* no citations - there are quotes, but no idea where they are from.* more of an encyclopedia post* the French and Indian War information is distorted to be excessively pro Washington.* too much with the "had done" instead of past tense verb itself (passive voice)What I liked:* fun to read* short and an overview of subject* interesting and informative* the author is obviously interested in the subject matter* a great introduction to Washington, although I would not suggest as a source for academia, but would recommend for someone who might be interested in Washington, etc.This book was supplied to me free of charge for an unbiased review.

This book is part of a large series that attempts to provide the key items of information on historical events and figures in books that can be read in one hour. When dealing with Washington, that is a tall order. The difficulties he faced and the sometimes unorthodox means he used to overcome them have inspired multi-volume series dealing with just the battles of the Revolutionary War alone, for instance, to say nothing of his years as the first President.One gets the impression that he was far more intelligent that many historians have given him credit for, and far more of a homebody who just wanted to grow tobacco and hunt foxes than the biographers who want to make him a secular saint want to alllow.This last point is the one on which the book is most successful -- we Washington as a real human being who never wanted fame or power, but accepted the burdens of both out of a sense of duty,Highly recommended. And yes, it CAN be read in just under an hour.

If you are looking for an in-depth biography of Washington this is not it. However it is a good thumbnail sketch of the man known as the father of our country. It does raise the question of what would have happened had Washington received a commission in the British Army early on. I just liked it.