TWILIGHT AT MONTICELLO The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson

TWILIGHT AT MONTICELLO is a breath of fresh air in the vast collection of Jeffersonian biographies. Crawford utilizes newly revealed personal letters and documents from the Library of Congress to create a notable picture of Jefferson's life after the presidency. Narrator James Boles convincingly presents the bleak drudgery of life at Monticello: endless weather reports, laborious plans for gardens, and growing debts. Unfortunately, Boles fails to vary his plodding delivery, even through the highlights of Jefferson's last 17 years of life: his triumph in founding the University of Virginia, his architectural endeavors, and his inspiring friendship with John Adams. Crawford's overarching theme is the great visionary's human imperfections, especially the discrepancies between his personal life and his celebrated idealism. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2008]