The Remarkable Education of John Quincy Adams

Few men in the nation’s history achieved as much or brought to his many offices the capacity of mind of John Quincy Adams. His life and achievements are worth revisiting, and this smoothly-written book from Levin (Abigail Adams) gets us part way. It’s a half-biography that abruptly stops in 1815, though why that year—or before or later—isn’t entirely clear. Adams’s formal education ended much earlier, and one’s education, we like to think, continues through life—in his case until his 1848 death. Also, while wisely using the expansive Adams family papers to bring her subject to life, Levin overlooks all but a very few books in the vast, serious literature about Adams, his times, and the context of the issues he addressed. The text is also clotted with unnecessary details, such as at what hour Adams arose and the Washington address at which he lodged before being sworn in as U.S. senator. Yet aside from these significant lapses, it’s also balanced, compelling, and wise. Levin brings Louisa Catherine Adams, Adams’s troubled wife, into the center of the picture, where she belongs, and the author is shrewd about family dynamics. A solid if flawed work. [em](Jan.) [/em]