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first time Franklin reader
“In reading this modern adaptation of Benjamin Franklin's autobiography, I discovered that there is a lot more to him than someone who just flew a kite in a storm with a key tied to the string. Benjamin Franklin was an industrious and enterprising man who was self taught as a scientist, diplomat, military leader, linguist, entrepreneur, philanthropist and other things. What I was most fascinated by was reading about Ben's personal habits and characteristics which gives us a good profile of who he was and what made him that way. I enjoyed it mostly because there are character traits in him that I see in myself. Ben liked to read and study different things and ponder on them. He was never a member of organized religion, but was a very introspective man who always strived to better himself inside and out. There is a whole chapter on him discussing how he strived to attain moral perfection.
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-09-17.
This book is very inspirational in that here is a man who had very humble beginnings as a print shop worker and became one of the most well known Americans. Even though I believe it's inspirational, I think men like Ben are not made but born. He was in a position where he was able to capitalize on his strengths. If you read this book as a "what-to-do-to-become-rich-and-famous" manual, you probably won't get much out of it. Try to read this book simply to learn about Benjamin Franklin and if you discover that he shares some traits of you, that is a plus. When one discovers personal traits in themselves the same as great men of history, it gives us all the more reason to accentute those qualities. ” -
0 of 1 members found this review helpful.
Great common sense and history in one
“There are many forms of intelligence. Franklin's lessons from his younger years, may seem obvious to some. Reminds me of the lessons my dad passed down to me. Great book”
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-05-22. -
1 of 1 members found this review helpful.
Kindle users ...don't waste your money!
“ Unfortunately, the first page of every chapter is an image with text too small to read (and not adjustable). Download the free sample and check it out for yourself.”
An amazon user wrote this on 2008-09-26. -
Different spin...
“I was expecting a book that was translated into modern readability, and that is exactly what I got. Although the book is incomplete, it gives the reader the best part of Ben's writings in a no-nonsense format. This book also helped be get a very good grade in my History Final.”
An amazon user wrote this on 2007-11-02. -
The best Franklin book
“I've read about a dozen books on Franklin, but this one stands out as the one I would recommend the most. First and foremost the excellent rewriting of Ben's text create the wisdom of Franklin in it's most accessible form.
An amazon user wrote this on 2007-10-27.
Reading Franklin can often be challenging to sort out the entire meaning due to the antiquated language of his day. This book restates his thoughts and wisdom with updated syntax and language, so you can focus more on the wisdom, less on the translation.
The author (McCormick, not Franklin) did an outstanding job organizing both the time line of his life and his mastery of business, politics and science.
For those who have an interest in learning more about the greatest American, this is the book I would recommend most. For those passionate about Franklin this book feels fresh, rich and thoughtful.
--Cudo”
