His Excellency George Washington By: Joseph J. Ellis (Book Review Sample)

Instructions:

ASSIGNMENT
Your assignment is to read His Excellency George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis book and write a 1,000-word book review on the book. In essence, this is a compare-and-contrast essay – it is not a book report. An sample outline is included to show how to do your paper. In order to complete this assignment successfully, you will have to read additional books and other materials to evaluate the book and assess the book’s strengths and weaknesses.
FORMAT
Please make sure that your paper is formatted like the example paper accompanying this document. Your paper should be typed in a regular-style font (Times New Roman or Calibri) and the type should be no larger than 12-point. Margins should be no larger than one inch and indentations for paragraphs should not exceed one tab. Please single-space your papers.
Each paper should be properly cited and each paper is expected to include a properly-formatted works cited page. Both the paper and the works cited page should be included in the same document and that document should be uploaded to EagleWeb no later than the start of class on the due date. Late papers will not be accepted!
Each paper should have no fewer than six outside sources. All sources should be books, periodicals or online articles from scholarly journals or scholar-run websites. Sources from websites not affiliated with academic research will not count as a source and neither do encyclopedias, dictionaries or your textbook. In addition, the book you are reviewing does not count as an outside source.
All papers will be checked for plagiarism. Papers that have excessive amounts of unoriginal work (more than 50 percent according to turnitin.com) will be awarded a zero, even if the outside information is cited. The purpose of this assignment is for you to review the book, not someone else. Turning in a paper that consists of lengthy quotes from other sources does not meet the criteria and will result in a grade of zero!
SAMPLE BOOK REVIEW OUTLINE
I. Introduction
A. About The Author
1. Define His/Her Expertise, Etc. B. Main Points Made In The Book
1. Point 1 2. Point 2 3. Point 3 4. Point 4
II. What Other Sources Say A. Source 1
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
B. Source 2
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
C. Source 3
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
D. Source 4
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
E. Source 5
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
F. Source 6
1. Information on author of Source 1 2. Main Points Of Source 1
a. Compare with book b. Contrast with book
III. Conclusion
A. Evaluation
1. Compare, contrast
Sample Paper
EXAMPLE REVIEW
Joe Smith HIS 121-101 Spring, 2006
Niall Ferguson, The Ascent of Money
In this work, Niall Ferguson discusses the evolution of the use of money in human societies as well as the evolution of financial institutions, from banks to stock markets to bond markets to life insurance.
Ferguson, whose recent work, War of the World, sparked controversy among scholars of nationalism and the rise of the world wars (Berendon, Review, pp. 1-3), writes the book amid the current collapse of the world financial markets. His thesis is that collapses are often the result of unscrupulous business practices combined with government and business working hand-in-hand to game various financial systems, such as the housing market which collapsed following a spate of mortgage foreclosures. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 8-15) Needless to say, Ferguson’s assertions in the book have drawn fire from many quarters during the recent scandal yet his overall chronicle on the rise of money and financial institutions is clear unparalleled in the field of financial history, which is one of the less interesting fields of research in the entire discipline.
The author begins the book not by talking about money but by talking about mathematics, specifically the discovery of the concept of zero by Indian mathematicians in the fourth century. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 24-28) Ferguson said that, coupled by developments in algebra and in the computation of fractions led to the development of calculations of interest rates, which revolutionized financial activity around the world. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 110-124)
After these ideas made their way to Europe in the Renaissance, economies exploded from Italy to England as businesses began to develop new calculations for making money. Ferguson discusses how bonds arose as a result of this as did banks and other financial institutions, giving rise eventually to the development of the joint-stock company and the stock market. (Ferguson, Ascent, p. 200-375)
Most of what Ferguson writes about the development of money is not that controversial but when he begins his analysis of the Great Depression and the growth and development of the welfare state, he gets dinged, mostly by partisan writers of the right and left who are more interested in pushing an agenda rather than the truth or the history of money. (Bagration, “Depression,” p. 383-384; Donnelly, “Free Markets vs. Freefall” p. 987-989) Ferguson’s breakdown of the various financial strategies employed by governments not only to escape the Depression but also to deal with more pressing problems such as insurance and healthcare, is not skewed – instead, he backs up his assertions with data collected from demographers and economists from all parts of the political spectrum.
In conclusion, Niall Ferguson’s book, The Ascent of Money, is a historical look at how humans and money have co-existed from almost the start of recorded history. It is an examination of how money and finance work and the promise and perils inherent in the workings of these tools and institutions. Like all human institutions, money and financial institutions have their problems and many times those problems impact the lives of people. Despite the powerful grip money and finance has over our lives, we oftentimes do not understand what is happening until it’s too late, if at all. Ferguson’s book works to dispel how we think of money and it does a good job of showing how these forces operate to shape, maintain and stabilize the modern world. He also tells us of the flaws inherent in these systems and leaves it up to us to figure out how we, as individuals, can benefit or be hurt by changes in these institutions. It was a fascinating read and after finishing it, one can feel much better about having more knowledge of the world’s finance system.
WORKS CITED
Berendon, Piers. “Review of War Of The World.” www.historyalive.org Published January, 5, 2004
Ferguson, Niall. The Ascent of Money (2008) Penguin Books: New York. Ferguson, Niall. The War of the World (2003) Penguin Books: New York.
Bagration, Kate. “Depression: Government Foibles And The Great Slump.” The Economist. Vol. IX, No. 7, April, 2009.
Donnelly, K.J. “Free Markets Vs. Free Fall.” The Social Journal. Vol. MC, No. 9, May, 2008.

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Biographies
Over the years, there have been a lot of literature materials that have surfaced in relation to the American history. More so, there have been quite a number of books written bibliographies of some of the founding fathers of the American nation. Each of the material captures the struggle of the entire nations and also brings out the various aspects of the founding fathers and the major roles they played in the liberation of the nation, civilization and industry. The character of the founding father also takes the central stage in the bibliographies along with their strengths and weaknesses that shaped their personalities and the nations as well. These are books that give the American history the heritage it deserves. Joseph J. Ellis is one of the authors that have taken to task his ability and experience in the historical recounts of the American history and that of the various founding fathers. A professor in history, Ellis brings to light one of the most intriguing pieces about the first president of the American nation, George Washington. In his book, His Excellency George Washington, which launched in 2004, gives the full account of George Washington as the president who shaped the nation at the roots (Ellis, 266).
Born in the year 1943 in Washington DC, Joseph Ellis grew up to become one of the professors of history in the nation. Much of his work and study revolved around the founding fathers of the nation, and published books about them, some of which ended up being the best selling at the time. His historical accounts as elaborated in the books have been profound and have even won him a Pulitzer Prize. Some of the most famous accounts were in his recounts of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and George Washington as discussed in the paper.
In his personal quest with this book, Ellis did not want to create another epic, but wanted to bring out another fresh and focused recount of Washington and his influence on the nation. Suffice to say that Ellis succeeded in creating a better account of Washington with a better focus that other material that have come before it. He seeks to bring out the man behind the stature and all the facts that exists in literally history (Isaacson, 93). Previously, Washington has been painted as a man that was strict and practiced strict self control at all times; however, Ellis brings a different face of the man that he shows was also passionate. He brings back the experiences that Washington had as a young soldier. The horrors and the experiences of war, with men dying at war, screaming as they are scalped and the element of learning that Washington put to his experiences with reference to guerilla warfare.
There is a close relation between what Ellis writes in his book and what Walter Isaacson wrote in Benjamin Franklin: An American Life. They both draw from the young life of the president in discussion and build on their experiences that shaped the nation and person. At the same time, there is some crucial similarity in the fact that the two authors also point out on the weaknesses that the presidents had as well as their strengths. For example, Ellis states in his book that Washington was overly concerned with his property and issues related to self control. At the same time, the book by HYPERLINK "/c/walter-isaacson/997150" Walter Isaacson also sites the fact that Franklin had issues with his friendships with women as most of them seemed to take a mistress-like form. As such, the two books give quality recounts of the social and political lives that the president lived. However, in HYPERLINK "/c/walter-isaacson/997150" Walter Isaacson’s book, he chides Franklin citing that if he had attended Harvard much like his father had originally planned; his life would not have taken quite a beating.
In another account of George Washington, Brian Kilmeada and Don Yaeger bring out some crucial pointers in George Washington’s secret six: the spy ring that saved the American Revolution. Unlike the account by Ellis, this book concentrates on the elements of the American Revolution (Kilmeade , 100). The book brings out details of the American Revolution with reference to the formation and operations of a ring of six spies that shaped the war as Washington worked to have control of Manhattan and the boroughs neighboring. Other than those characteristics exhibited by Washington, the characters of the six persons are also discussed in depth. This creates an elevated status of the ring members as part of the American Revolution and the legacy by George Washington.
The account by Mr. Beck in Being George Washington: The Indispensable Man, As You've Never Seen Him. The book builds on the characteristics of George Washington and tries to put the readers in the shoes of the first president. According to this account, much like Ellis, the author also brings to the attention of the readers the fact that Washington was struggling with the self control. At one point, the book relates to the fact that Washington had a problem with anger management. Most of his staffs were weary of the temper issues that the president faced and the level of control that he tried to exercise (Beck, 88). According to Ellis, Washington was weary of the fact that he may loose his property. Ellis reckons that this is a common problem among the rich as they fear that their staffs are either too careless or they a...

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His Excellency George Washington By: Joseph J. Ellis (Book Review Sample)

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