Jill Lepore is the David Woods Kemper '41 Professor of American History at Harvard University and a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her books include New York Burning, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize; The Name of War, winner of the Bancroft Prize; and The Mansion of Happiness, which was short-listed for the 2013 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
**The New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2013**
**Barnes and Noble Best Books of 2013**
**Kirkus Best Books of 2013**
**Time Magazine Top 10 Nonfiction Books of 2013**
**The Week Best Nonfiction Books of 2013**
"By restoring Jane so vividly to the historical record, Lepore
provides a fresh, personal perspective on Benjamin. And so
extraordinarily demanding was her research, even the appendixes in
Lepore's vibrantly enlightening biography are dramatic....Lepore's
stature grows with each book, and this first telling of a
remarkable American story, supported by a national tour and
generous print run, is destined for an even greater readership."
--Donna Seaman, Booklist (starred review) "New Yorker writer Lepore
masterfully formulates the story of Benjamin Franklin's youngest
sister, who will be virtually unknown to many readers, using only a
few of her letters and a small archive of births and deaths....Jane
Franklin was an amazing woman who raised her children and
grandchildren while still having the time to read and think for
herself. We can only see into her mind because her correspondent
was famous and because a vastly talented biographer reassembled her
for us." --Kirkus (starred review) "This book is an important,
inspiring portrait of a determined and faith-filled woman who just
happened to be the sister of a big shot. It will be enjoyed by
all." --Library Journal (starred review) "Jane Franklin's
indomitable voice and hungry, searching intellect shine through
these pages; she will not be forgotten, and the world is richer for
it." --Time Magazine, Top 10 Nonfiction Books of the Year
"Luminous....Lepore gives us a woman in the flesh, with no hints
and hedges about what she must, or might, have felt....Jane emerges
as witty, curious, and resilient in the face of unimaginable grief,
yet she is not an unsung hero of the revolution, a forgotten
Abigail Adams. Her importance, as Lepore's portrait memorably
shows, lies in her ordinariness--her learning thwarted by
circumstance, but her intelligence shaped by her uniquely female
experience. We may know about Jane Franklin only because of her
famous brother, but he is not why she matters." --Joanna Scutts,
Washington Post
"As she stitches together Jane's story, Lepore gives us a side of
Benjamin Franklin we have never seen--an evocative look at what
life was like for most 18th-century women." --Tina Jordan,
Entertainment Weekly "Book of Ages is the name of Lepore's
extraordinary new book about Jane Franklin, but to call it simply a
biography would be like calling Ben's experiments with electricity
mere kite flying....The end product is thrilling--an example of how
a gifted scholar and writer can lift the obscure out of silence. In
so doing, Lepore enriches our sense of everyday life and
relationships and conversational styles in Colonial America....The
brilliance of Lepore's book is that plain Jane's story becomes
every bit as gripping--and, in its own way, important--as Big Ben's
public triumphs." --Maureen Corrigan, NPR "In this beautifully
written double biography, Lepore brings into focus not just the
life of Jane Franklin Mecom, alongside that of her brother, but
illuminates the dynamic era through which they lived and gives us a
birds'-eye view of history from the vantage point of a powerless
woman who grew up in a Boston family alongside one of the 18th
century's greatest authors, entrepreneurs, scientists and
statesmen....Remarkably, in the end Jane's story comes to life; we
know her or at least about her. But, in fact, we know her because
her life is one that we recognize, perhaps better than that of her
familiar brother. That is the brilliance of this book....This
lyrical and meditative book ranks familiarly as a history or
biography, but is more than either....It descends
historiographically from Laurel Thatcher Ulrich's "A Midwife's
Tale" as a classic and enduring tribute to an obscure woman, only
this one also had a famous brother." --Edith B. Gelles, San
Francisco Chronicle "Ms. Lepore is a fantastic historian, and
meticulous research brings this portrait to life....In the hands of
a less accomplished writer, Jane Franklin might have appeared
merely a pale shadow in contrast to her brother's accomplishments.
But the portrait that emerges here is both frank and astute, an
observant witness to the time." --Madeleine Schwartz, Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette "To stare at these siblings is to stare at sun and
moon. But in Jill Lepore's meticulously constructed biography, Book
of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin, recently placed on
the long list of nominees for the National Book Award in
nonfiction, this moon casts a beguiling glow....Consistently first
rate." --Dwight Garner, The New York Times
"This book is a tour de force that can only evoke admiration."
--Priscilla S. Taylor, The Washington Times "Go read Jill Lepore's
Book of Ages. A biography of Jane Franklin, Benjamin's sister, it
is simultaneously a fascinating look at early America, a meditation
on one remarkable mind by another, and, implicitly, a biography of
all the other Janes--history's anonymous and overlooked women."
--Kathryn Schulz, New York Magazine "It is uncanny how vividly
personal, how vibrantly colored, Jane's voice sounds from these
pages....let's call it genius." --Melissa H. Pierson, The Barnes &
Noble Review "Book of Ages is an artful, serious, marvelous book.
Lepore brings to it focus, intensity, and proud delight in her
subject." --Bob Blaisdell, The Christian Science Monitor
"Eloquent....deeply sensitive to language." --Susan Dunn, The New
York Review "Astonishing....This is a work of meticulous
reconstruction and high ambition....In Book of Ages, Lepore has
lovingly resurrected [Jane Franklin]." --Julia M. Klein, The Boston
Globe "A thoughtful and illuminating biography." --O Magazine, "Ten
Titles to Pick Up Now" "This is a brilliant and delightful book! By
weaving together the tales of Benjamin Franklin and his beloved
little sister, Jill Lepore creates a richly-textured tapestry of
life in early America. Deeply researched and passionately written,
it brings us inside a poignant relationship between two lovable
people who seemed so different but were also so connected. I
devoured this book and will treasure it." --Walter Isaacson, author
of Steve Jobs
"Book of Ages is an ardently told life story, brimming with love
and loss against a background of political strife and war. Jill
Lepore opens a smeared casement on the life of Jane, Benjamin
Franklin's gifted sister, confidante and life-long correspondent.
While Benjamin was able to forge a path to greatness from his
obscure beginnings, Jane, trapped by gender, starved of education,
was not. The contrast between the two destinies is by turns
captivating, enraging and profoundly moving. As Lepore sheds light
on this one, unsung life, she brilliantly illuminates an entire
era." --Geraldine Brooks, author of March "From scraps and
whispers, Jill Lepore has resurrected Ben Franklin's youngest
sister, the only relative who could truthfully say, "Every line
from him was a pleasure." The subject is tailor-made for Lepore, as
artful a writer as she is exact a scholar. She delivers two marvels
at once: An authentic 18th century female voice, cheerful,
inquisitive, and saucy, as well as an intimate portrait of Jane
Franklin's revered brother himself." --Stacy Schiff, author of
Cleopatra "This poetic and powerful diptych takes readers on a
fascinating journey. With consummate skill, Lepore moves us beyond
the story of a famous brother and his woebegone sister, instead
bringing both Benny and Jenny--and the relationship between
them--to life. A book to ponder and prose to savor."--Laurel
Thatcher Ulrich, author of A Midwife's Tale "With careful and
ingenious research, Jill Lepore uncovers the surprising life of the
obscure sister to a very famous man. This eloquent book reveals two
remarkable siblings and their intertwined and revolutionary lives."
--Alan Taylor, author of The Civil War of 1812
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