Synopses & Reviews
Julia Dent Grant wrote her reminiscences with the vivacity and charm she exhibited throughout her life, telling her story in the easy flow of an afternoon conversation with a close friend. Mrs. Grant was raised the pampered daughter of a Missouri planter, and she later remembered her girlhood as an idyll that she wished could have lasted.
Many of the anecdotes she relates give fascinating glimpses into a very troubled period of American history. A dramatic reminiscence recounts the night that Lincoln was assassinated. Mrs. Grant insisted that she and her husband turn down an invitation to the theater in favor of returning home. It saved her husbandand#8217;s life: he had also been marked for assassination.
Throughout these memoirs, which she ends with her husbandand#8217;s death, Mrs. Grant strives to correct the misconceptions she believed were being circulated about him. She wanted posterity to share her pride in this man, whom she saw as one of America's greatest heroes.
Review
"Certainly this book is a literary and hist
Review
"Certainly this book is a literary and historic find, an engrossing book that reaffirms what historians have long knownand#151;that Julia and her famous husband had a loving and richly supportive relationship."and#151;PublishersWeekly
About the Author
John Y. Simon has contributed more than 40 articles to scholarly journals and has written or edited four books in addition to the published volumes of the Grant Papers.