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Travels with George
Travels with George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy | Nathaniel Philbrick
8 posts | 9 read | 2 to read
"Does George Washington still matter? The bestselling author argues for his unique contribution to the forging of America by retracing his journey as a new President through the former colonies, now an unsure nation. A new first-person voice for Philbrick, weaving history and personal reflection into one narrative. When George Washington became president in 1798, the United States of America was still a loose and quarrelsome confederation and a tentative political experiment. Washington undertook a tour of the ex-colonies to talk to ordinary citizens about their lives and their feelings about his new government, and to imbue in them the idea of being one thing--Americans. Nathaniel Philbrick embarked on his own journey into what Washington called "the infant woody country"--and to see for himself what it had become in the 230 years since. Writing in a thoughtful first person about his own adventures with his travel companions (wife and puppy), Philbrick follows the tour of America that Washington went on after becoming President--an almost 2,000-mile journey from Mount Vernon to the new capital in New York, a tour of New England, a venture out across Long Island, and into the hinterlands of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The narrative moves smoothly back and forth from the eighteenth to twenty-first centuries, so we see the country through Washington's eyes as well as Philbrick's. Written at a moment when America's foundational ideals--or claims to them--are under scrutiny, Travels with George grapples bluntly and honestly with George Washington's legacy as a man of the people, a mythical figure of the early republic, a reluctant President, and a plantation owner who held people in slavery. At historic houses and landmarks, Philbrick reports on the reinterpretations at work, as well as meeting reenactors and other keepers of the flame. He paints a picture of 18th century America as divided and fraught as it is today, and he comes to understand how Washington entranced, compelled, enticed, and stood up to the many different kinds of citizens he met on this journey--and how through belief, vision, and sheer will he convinced them that they were now all Americans, creating a sense of national solidarity that had never existed before"--
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Scfreads
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Pickpick

Enjoyed this! Such a “me” type of book.

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maggiereads
Pickpick

George Washington has just been elected president of the US! He is a household name and many new federalist feel he may try to turn the newly formed republic into a monarchy. He sets out on three separate tours of the country to ease his countrymen‘s minds. Follow the author, wife, and young hound as they travel the roads of early America. You just might find yourself quoting passages along the way.

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keys_on_fire
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Pickpick

Spending time on the road with his wife and dog, the author travels the post-election tours of George Washington. I learned a lot about our 1st president, and highly recommend. So much of what he encountered is relevant today, and I feel like the only downside is that some sections felt slow because we talk differently now than 200 years ago.
#doublespin - April @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks This one sounds so interesting!!! 3y
34 likes1 comment
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Jnnlb
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Pickpick

Loved it!!!

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RamsFan1963
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Pickpick

Part travelogue, part history book, part personal history of the author, Philbrick (plus wife & dog) travels the route Washington took through New England and the southern states after being elected president. Interesting and educational, Philbrick is a fine narrator. 4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
1st book for #LittenListen @aperfectmjk
2nd book for #AVeryMerryReadathon @TheSpineView #WinterCosy @PuddleJumper #WrapItUpReadathon @keys_on_fire #Adventathon @ozma.of.oz

BookmarkTavern Well this definitely sounds like something I need to recommend to my dad! 😁 3y
RamsFan1963 @ozma.of.oz I find a lot of books about Washington to be fawning, but Philbrick gives us Washington warts and all, from his stand on upholding slavery to him having a rather harsh vindictive streak when crossed. 3y
BookmarkTavern That absolutely sounds like something I need to get him! He has a lifetime goal of visiting every presidential library. 😆 3y
keys_on_fire Awesome read! I didn‘t quite finish it on Overdrive before it went back to the library, so now I‘m waiting on my next hold to come available 🤣 3y
TheSpineView Sounds interesting 3y
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keys_on_fire
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I like to probe the darkness at the edges of our nation‘s history.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

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Schlinkles
Pickpick

This is the type of history book that I love. It's easy to digest, written in an anecdotal style and I learned several things I didn't know. In a homage to Travels with Charley, Philbrick takes his dog, Dora, (and his wife, Melissa) along for his recreation of Washington's tour of the country. He paints a full picture of Washington and the founding fathers, not glossing over their flaws but instead portraying them as men doing the best they could.

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Just_reading

I don‘t generally like contemporary books and certainly not travelogues but, man, can this Nathaniel Philbrick tell a story!