First published 2008
The sweltering summer of 1787 finds George Washington presiding over a room packed with passionate delegates in Philadelphia. James Madison takes careful notes while Benjamin Franklin injects wisdom and humor into heated exchanges. The delegates face impossible choices as they craft America's charter. Revolutionary ideals demand power for the people, but can ordinary citizens be trusted with it? A stronger federal government might crush state authority. Small states refuse to accept congressional representation based on population alone. The slavery question sparks the convention's most intense battles, producing both ingenious compromises and moral failures. Alexander Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris, and Edmund Randolph join other colorful figures in fierce debates. More than half the delegates threaten to abandon the proceedings at various points, and some actually leave. Washington's steady presence and the group's reluctant bargains keep the convention alive. The resulting document emerges flawed but flexible, designed to grow with the young nation.
Genres: historical-fiction, political-science, politics, american-history
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-figures, political-intrigue
Setting: Philadelphia
Period: 1787
368 pages · Paperback · Simon & Schuster