AMERICA'S FIRST DYNASTY The Adamses, 1735-1918

In this smoothly written work, Brookhiser gives listeners a biography of a complex family, the Adamses. Since John Adams was the second U.S. president, and his son John Quincy Adams the sixth, their story interweaves with the nation's. Brookhiser quotes from letters, memoirs, and many other sources, Dan Cashman's narration guides listeners through this potential maze. Switching tones to distinguish between writing taken from private journals and that intended for public speech, Cashman adds clarity to this subtle work. At other times, he shifts pace and emotional urgency to distinguish between father and son writing on the same subject with the same vocabulary. The result is an intimate family portrait for the ear. G.T.B. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 02]