I was inspired to read this book after watching 'Hamilton' on Disney+, as this is the book that inspired Lin-Manuel Miranda to write it in the first place. If you haven't seen it, you should; it's great! As you would expect, the show does take some dramatic and artistic licence with events, but that's why I wanted to read the book; to learn more about the man behind the musical. However, having the musical in my head really helped me keep track of what was what and who was who.

While this is a very chonky tome (did I mention? 800 pages!), overall it is written in a very accessible and clear way. For the most part, it's easy to follow, but there is a LOT of information to take in - it's almost like the author was channelling the subject with his copious amount of words! If you do pick it up, I would suggest you have caffeine handy - reading it a little at a time does make it a lot harder to follow. Also, with my very limited knowledge of the American War of Independence and the founding of the United States (read: none), I did find myself getting a bit lost in terminology and history that probably means a lot more to the US audience. I'm thinking perhaps some more general background reading might have helped me along with this.

As for the man himself, his story is fascinating; I'd say he's quite a good embodiment of the American Dream - an immigrant with a fairly tough childhood, who is sent to the US thanks to the kindness of various patrons. He works incredibly hard, climbs the ranks until he becomes one of the most respected (and reviled) men in the country. His brain worked at a million miles an hour and he seems to be a long way ahead of his time in many respects. The author does not hesitate to paint him as a devisive  figure and question some of his lapses in judgement, but at the same time it is clear the respect he has for his subject is boundless. My only concern is that this portrait does come across as quite partisan in places - Jefferson and Madison are both painted as pretty much outright villains. While this may be how Hamilton viewed them, I feel like there may have been a better way to contrast their viewpoints and provide a little more objectivity. 

It's also scary how much of what I read could have been about the last few years of US politics, rather that about events that took place over 200 years ago. An almost complete breakdown of the ability for the two parties to work together, the concern that one party of another would raise an army and inflict violence on the capital if a particular President wasn't elected... it made me question why we think politics has 'broken' recently - this book would lead me to believe that it's always been broken.

I'd say this was definitely worth reading, but it's not one I'll be rushing to reread without a lot more research. And as this isn't a period that particular 'speaks' to me, that probably isn't going to happen. 

To paraphrase my favourite review of this book; 'Good, but a lot less hip hop than I was expecting..."