Leader by Destiny: George Washington, Man and Patriot

by Jeanette Eaton, Jack Manley Rose (Illustrator)

A children's biography of the first president of the United States of America.

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Juvenile

402 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1938

Reviews

[Thomas Bell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have only given it two stars, but the book was actually interesting.

The main problem I have with the book is that the writing style is as if it is non-fiction, and indeed much of the story is fact. However, the author takes far too many liberties as to saying exactly what George Washington was thinking and feeling.

Also, the author tried to make George Washington's life into some sort of tragic love affair. Yes, he did have a crush on Sally Fairfax at a young age while she was engaged, but his marriage to Martha Custis was a good one. When Washington was marching around New Jersey running away from the Brits, he was NOT thinking about Sally Fairfax in her youth. Sorry.

[Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

So long. So dry. And the thread throughout of his supposed lifelong yearning for Sally Fairfax. Glad this one is done. Less than 30 Newbery honor books left.

[Brian A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spoiler-free summary: A biography of George Washington, from his early life all the way through to his death. A dry, slow slog that is weirdly obsessed with Washington’s lifelong love of Sally Fairfax.

Discussion: The title of this one tripped alarms for me off the bat – the idea that George Washington was destined to be president made me think this would be a hagiography of the guy. It’s not quite that far over the top, luckily, but it also doesn’t get all that critical. George Washington was an important person and is deservedly respected for his time as president, but a modern biography would likely address his status as a slaveholder in more depth. This book does make mention of the slaves he owns here and there, but unforgivably, Eaton writes their dialog in full dialect – for example, “Lawsee, Gen’l, you’ll soon be ridin’ to houn’s agin same as befo’!” No other characters get this treatment, even though there would be a range of accents going on.

It seems like this book was well-researched – there’s a references section at the end – but there also must have been liberties taken to make this more of a story than a dry recitation of fact. There are conversations here that wouldn’t have been recorded, internal thoughts that must have been extrapolated. As I mentioned in the summary, there is a lot about Sally Fairfax. I haven’t read any other biography about Washington, but googling around, I think this must have been played up by the author in a speculative way, and I’m not fully sure why. I guess it’s romantic, in a way, but it undermines the relationship between him and Martha, making it a full-on settling. Again, maybe it was?

I’ve discussed in earlier reviews the types of books that have won Honors that you just don’t see anymore, and this might be another genre for the list, the in-depth biography. I feel like it’d take a very particular kind of nerdy kid to be into this. I’m not that far off of this type of nerdy adult – I’ve read Robert Caro’s Lyndon Johnson series so far and loved it – and while I think this book had some stretches that were interesting, it mostly felt like a chore to get through. I couldn’t find an e-book version of this, but doing estimating based on a few pages, I think the word count of this is probably a bit over 100,000 – maybe not quite as long as The Story of Mankind, but in the ballpark, and longer than all of the other winners. I cannot imagine trying to convince a 12 year old to read this.

I'm reading through all of the Newbery Honors, check out my other reviews or my blog, itsanhonor.net.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4 stars. This is a lengthy biography of the man who commanded colonial forces during the Revolutionary War and became the 1st President. Interestingly, much of the book deals with the earlier period of his life, i.e. his formative years. In many ways he was a study in contradictions. He was both modest and entitled, humble and aristocratic, etc. He felt he was lacking in educations, having not been sent abroad to school like his 2 elder brothers, and early in life was often uncertain about public correspondence and/debate. He was a man of his times, a Virginia planter, landholder, and a slave owner - while he had his slaves freed and provided for after his death, he didn't hesitate to work them or punish them. While a private man, he loved parties, dancing, and socializing. He was also something of a ladies man and seems to have had a "crush" on a older married woman which if the book is to be believed he carried all his life. Unsurprisingly for a public figure, his private familial life was plagued with troubles: financially incompetent relatives and many deaths. He and his wife, Martha, were childless, and the trouble seems to be his since she had 2 children from a previous marriage. Of particular interest to me was the time he spent in western VA surveying for Fairfax and then later leading a militia against the Indians and then acting as a colonial officer to the British General Braddock - it comes of being a West Virginian. I read this for my 2019 Reading Challenge and for my Newbery Challenge (Honor Book, 1939).

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up. I read the first couple of chapters to get a feel for the book, then skimmed. This is a long fictionalized biography of George Washington. If you hadn't read a biography of him yet, this covers it, but I found it boring. It also addresses the conflict over slavery in the founding of the country without really addressing Washington as a slaveholder himself. If I hadn't read Eaton's impassioned plea for an end to racism at the end of her book about Roger Williams, I would find no evidence for that belief in the way she talks about American Indians here.

[Amber Scaife · Rating 2 out of 5]

A biography of George Washington for kids, ostensibly. It's such a shame when biographies are dull and dry. People's lives aren't dull, so how is it that some accounts of those lives are so brain-numbing? And it's an especial tragedy when that biography is intended for kids. Tsk. TSK, I say! *And* this won a Newbery Honor! *Shakes head in dramatic disbelief*

[Desiree']

1939 Newbery honor book

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, I enjoyed learning things I never knew about George Washington. I also liked finally truly understanding the French Indian War.