I am a big fan of the biographies written by Ron Chernow, and so I eagerly awaited the opportunity to read this book on President James Monroe, known as the last Founding Father. This very detailed book explains the influences, actions, and ideas behind Monroe's life, from beginning to end. It dives deeply into a wide range of primary source material on his life and synthesizes it effectively into a book that produces a clear picture of Monroe as statesman and revolutionary. Especially interesting to me were the periods of Monroe's life in which he worked closely with the French government, and of course, his two terms in office as president. The depth of material left me more than satisfied in gaining a newfound understanding of Monroe, who had been relatively unknown to me prior to reading this book.

A Deep Look into The Life and Mind of a Founder
This biography looks at the life of James Monroe from a seemingly unbiased view. It also seems to show no bias of the others who lived in the same period. The look into Mr. Monroe's mind is verified through fully footnoted documentation of his words and writings, as well as other written documentation from the times.
His opinions about the organization of our new country are just great to understand. Weaving into his life are the opinions and lives of his mentors and compatriots; Madison, Jefferson, Washington. The book gets into detail about the beginnings of what we see today; the 2 party system and what they stand for, the friction between the northern states and southern states that goes beyond slavery, and The Constitution as the law of the land. There is also no sugar-coating on his views and actions regarding slavery, physical punishment, imprisonment, and the poor house. I found it fascinating. There is more in common between 1795 and today than one would guess. I must state that I am a history lover and enjoy this stuff. If you enjoy American history, you will love this book. If you don't enjoy history, I would guess that you wouldn't give this book a glance, anyway. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from the publisher, Penguin Random House, through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I have read numerous Presidential biographies. I enjoyed McGrath’s writing style tremendously. He kept my interest throughout most of the book and covered Monroe’s personal and public life very well.

The book provides good insight into how a young, docile teenager becomes engaged in the patriotic cause with Monroe’s service in the Continental Army. He served as an aide for General Washington and worked extensively abroad representing the country. Monroe served his country in many capacities including Ambassador, Congressman and Secretary in Presidential Cabinet. His friendships with Jefferson and Madison are extraordinary and endured many challenges. He encountered numerous presidential challenges including Native Americans, slavery (and as a slaveholder) and issues with other countries. “Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe would call slavery evil all their lives, but the idea of emancipation was too bold politically to propose.” While president, Monroe “visited more than 120 cities, town, and settlements, many of which would not see another president for decades.” He was in tune with the American people.

Monroe was a good, reliable, discreet, and compassionate man. “… a new American government was not American without safeguarding the rights of its citizens. Politicians rarely thought this way… but Monroe did.” Monroe “could exhibit a stateman’s conciliatory nature while maintaining his political viewpoint.” He didn’t give up! “The last year of the eighteenth century saw Monroe awash with troubles: financial, political, and spiritual.”

As with most of our early presidents, Monroe suffered financial hardship from serving his country. While overseas, he incurred expenses which were not reimbursed until late in his life. “Monroe lacked money but not friends…”

The epilogue provides a summary of his descendants. Monroe was the last “founding father” to be President. At the end of the day, Monroe is a man I would have liked to know. I sure wish today’s politicians would take a lesson from Monroe.

A richly documented, insightful and thorough study of a fascinating politician and a fascinating moment in American history. Tim McGrath delivers a deep dive into the life and mind of a man instrumental in shaping a young country.

This a behemoth of a biography. Extremely detailed, and covering James Monroe's entire life and career, it's a daunting book to get through. Because the author went into asides and facts about Monroe's family, political allies and foes, as well as friends and acquaintances it became overwhelming at times. Being extremely picky I found the constant chronicling of certain persons illnesses using the phrase "at death's door" uninformative and inaccurate.
I can certainly appreciate the research involved in creating a work of this magnitude. I'm sure those that want to learn more about Monroe's prolific working life in service to this country will appreciate the details in this bio.

This was so well done! I have read many US presidential biographies but wanted to learn more about Monroe, This was an advance readers copy that I was allowed to read & review. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that is serious about learning more about a president that one does not hear about much about generally. This is terribly unfair as Monroe deserves better! This was very well researched and written. Will look for others by this author. The reader will be better for the experience. Will mention this to like-minded friends!

James Monroe is one of those presidents you can usually name, but otherwise probably don't know too much about. That was the case for me at least. Tim McGrath's new biography on Monroe is a brilliant introduction to the man, the politician, and the world he lived and worked in. Monroe's early life is covered without getting into the minutiae that some biographers enjoy- McGrath knows that in Monroe's case at least, the man Monroe would become formed not in his childhood, but as a young lawyer studying under Thomas Jefferson and as a soldier crossing the Delaware with General Washington.

Monroe is pictured from the beginning as a man who believes in doing his duty by his country, despite what that may cost him personally and financially. The intricacies of politics might not have come as naturally as the job of soldiering, but Monroe learns as he goes, not only from friends like Jefferson and Madison but from opponents, even enemies, and never forgets the lessons that he learned.

McGrath does a brilliant job showing Monroe's development as a politician- from highly partisan to trying to follow in Washington's steps and erase the two-party system. He brings to life the partisan and highly personal fights in Congress as Monroe's enemies work to prevent Monroe and his Cabinet from accomplishing anything, and brings the reader behind the scenes into Cabinet meetings where Monroe takes the slightly unusual approach of listening to all of his Cabinet members and letting free speech and debate fly across the table before asking questions, and allowing himself to have his mind and policies changed if he truly hears convincing arguments.

James Monroe was not a perfect man, and McGrath doesn't try to convince us that he was. Apologies are not made, although by understanding the world and time he lived in, maybe some of what today we would call his mistakes are more understandable. Modern readers will cringe at Monroe's thoughts on slavery and Native American policy- but McGrath reminds us that for his time Monroe was considered progressive, especially compared with someone like the up and coming Andrew Jackson.

This is a well-written, well-researched, and thorough biography of a little known president. Despite the seemingly daunting length of the book (750 pages) the pace flows well and doesn't get bogged down with extraneous details and lectures. Although McGrath does fall into the trap of foreshadowing-especially at the end of chapters- his "of only Monroe knew then" approach doesn't happen often enough to get truly aggravating.

A definite win for history lovers seeking to learn more about the founding of America and James Monroe, one of the often overlooked founding fathers.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Growing up in Britain meant I didn’t really know much about American history prior to World War Two. Whereas I could recite all the kings and queens of England from 1066 onwards (I can still recall half od them today), I couldn’t have done similar with the American presidents, and probably still can’t today. What I knew about James Monroe before reading this new biography of his life could fit on the proverbial back of a postage stamp. I’d heard of the Monroe Doctrine, but couldn’t tell you what it was and, if pressed, I could probably tell you that of course he must have something to do with the capital of Liberia since it was named after him but nothing more.

James Monroe: A Life is not a book you can sail through, not when it contains over 700 pages. Which is a detail I’d overlooked when starting my read and review process. It starts, not at the beginning of Monroe’s life, but approximately three centuries previously and a couple of thousand miles away in a country to which I also have a connection: Scotland. This is where the story of the Munro/Monroe family first forges a relationship with rebellion against tyrants. The reader moves quickly to the New World and charts the first years of the future president, his early brush with the rebellion, and eventually to the pivotal Battle of Trenton. Here, McGrath gives an engaging description of the fight; one that almost ended Monroe’s life before it had barely begun.

When it comes to American politics, this book showed me that today’s disfunction is absolutely nothing new. It appears division wasn’t just along party lines, such as the parties were back then when the Federalists wanted heavy central government and the Republicans strongly favored states’ rights. Self-interest and cronyism played huge roles, and Gerrymandering existed long before the events that gave the process its name. Monroe wanted to be bipartisan, but McGrath also sees him as one of the originators of partisan politics. He wanted transparency, but occasionally went to great lengths to ensure certain texts were not made public.

The division between northern and southern states wasn’t only about slavery; what was in the best interests of the north wasn’t necessarily in the interest of the south, and vice versa. Given the era, slavery does feature heavily. This is the era of the Missouri Compromise, when northern abolitionists wanted to prohibit slavery in newly created states and southern politicians protested the idea. Monroe, like many in his day, disliked the concept of slavery but owned slaves and relied on the practice. He made moves to stop the import of slaves but did nothing to prohibit human trade within the country. Nor did he care for the idea of freed slaves being a full part of society. Instead, he liked the idea of returning them to Africa. Hence: the founding of Liberia and the capital Monrovia being named for him.

Monroe doesn’t come out smelling like a rose in this book, which I appreciate, and not just when it comes to slavery. I was astounded by how much debt he accumulated. On the one hand, the new country was broke thanks to the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. But much of James and Elizabeth Monroe’s expenses appeared to go on home furnishings and décor. Again, I understood that the country couldn’t provide much in the way of ambassadorial residences but I felt like the couple had a desire to “keep up with the Joneses” even when the Joneses were members of long-established families in the Old World. Readers also get to see the fallibilities of Washington, Hamilton, and several others of their time.

A good book relies on extensive research, and McGrath has done that. Over one third of the book is devoted to his acknowledgments and notes, providing plenty of fodder for additional reading. How wonderful it is to have the words from our founding fathers and their contemporaries, kept for so many years in the form of handwritten letters. Will emails have the same impact on history as these?

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. Yes, it took longer than I expected to finish it. But part of that was down to me going off on tangents and researching the lives of almost everyone else who appears in it. Monroe worked with a LOT of people during his life, both at home and abroad. I could’ve done with a cheat sheet to keep track of everyone! But I found it informative and easy to read. It was difficult to put down. I now want to visit Trenton, and Monroe’s main home of Ashlawn-Highland. I wish another of his homes, Oak Hill, was also open to the public. Thanks to this book, I know a lot more now about our fifth president than I did previously. Oh, and the Monroe Doctrine? Turns out it’s a policy opposed to European colonialism in the Americas, first issued at a time when states in South America were seeking their own independence from countries such as Spain and France.

Disclaimer: Although I received an electronic Uncorrected Proof of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, the words and opinions below are my own.

When the average person who is of high school graduate is ask about Monroe the first response is the Monroe Doctrine.
In this exhaustive biography by Tim McGrath the James Monroe comes across as more than the doctrine that still to this day is used by Presidents when they want to dictate foreign policy.
The biography shows Monroe character both good and the bad. The good as Monroe was constantly putting the young nation first. From the charge at the battle of Trenton to his diplomatic venture in securing from France the pact know as the Louisiana Purchase in which Monroe is not giving credit by historians. His battle to try to have a standing army and forts built which frustrated his entire life as the war of 1812 proved him correct. Minister to France which he learned later on was a move on the Federalist group to rid him out of the Senate.
His becoming Governor of Virginia becoming friends with Thomas Jefferson early on. Becoming Secretary of State under Madison a Federalist then Secretary of War and then finally President for two terms.
In politics one has both friends and enemies. Monroe wasn't the exception. Being an Anti-Federalists in a room with Federalist the odds of becoming enemies increases. There was also the southern Bloc in the United States Senate when Monroe was President. As the Missouri Compromise proved that Monroe knew how to compromise in dealings with the opposition one of the requirements needed for any President

There are a few minor problems.
The first is that the author keeps referring to Monroe as a Republican. As in the Republican Monroe without any explanation as to why the author would use a title of a political party that wouldn't be founded until Abraham Lincoln.
The second is the issue of slavery.
Slavery is one that is a blight on the nation. But the author uses the issue of slavery in a way that seems to be illogical.
One instance where a person named Gabriel has gotten a group slaves together to kill all white people. He is caught and then hanged. The author praises Gabriel and says that James Monroe's infant boy dying at the same time is a result of the slaves not being free.
Another instance had to do with the chapter on the Missouri Compromise in which the author states that this is bigger than the panic of 1819, and the war of 1812. In other words, the money you had in the bank and now is wiped out and your left with nothing not even your cotton fields are worth anything. The burning of Washington DC causing extensive damage and hundreds of thousands of lives is not important.

I'll be honest - I'm very particular about biographies. If I'm not immediately pulled into it, I have a hard time with it. I just wasn't a fan of this author's writing style. I'm interested in the time period and haven't read much about Monroe, so I think it's good a topic to cover and I think other fans of biographies will enjoy it.

This was an enjoyable read. It brings to light the least known of the Virginia Quartet. Always referred to as the lesser of the four, it illuminated Monroe's strong points. Well researched and very readable I found it one of the best I have read on the 5th President