A thorough and sympathetic biography; Severance (Gandhi, 1997, etc.) focuses on the early education of Thomas Jefferson, especially on his sister Jane’s encouragement of his interest in music and books. As one of the most educated of the early colonists, Jefferson, at 33, was chosen to compose a declaration explaining the resolution that the US colonies ought to be “free and independent states.” The wonderful black-and-white archival prints throughout add scholarly and visual credibility to this work; the inclusion of many of Jefferson’s famous quotes further enhances this investigation of a man who was, in his time, a model American, as full of contradictions (a man against slavery who owned slaves, a former president who died bankrupt, a devoted family man who had a relationship with a married woman, a deeply private man who held political offices and led a public life) as the young country in which he lived. (b&w reproductions, maps, bibliography, index) (Biography. 10-14)
