Valiant Ambition: Tracing the Rise and Fall of George Washington and Benedict Arnold During the American Revolution

Kindle Customer: Very well written and enjoyable. I wish the ending had been more complete I would recommend it to a history buff

United States on Sep 28, 2023

Paul Warren: I'm a fan of Nathaniel Philbrick's books. His "Last Stand" in my opinion is the best narrative of G.A. Custer and his 7th Calvary Regiments infamous defeat at the Battle of the Little Big Horn 6-25-1876 yet written. "Valiant Ambition" is in the same breadth and depth as "Last Stand" and it reads well and smoothly. It should provide most readers with Historical detail that's hard to find.. Another aspect of Philbrick's books are the quality maps and illustrations he includes. ,positioned conveniently to readily support the text you are reading. The Book is a 10. Nice looking Hard Cover for your bookcase.

United States on May 21, 2023

greasey: This book was too dry and boring for me. There is hardly anything about the battles. Most of it is political about George Washington and Benedict Arnold. Don't waste your money.

United Kingdom on Aug 22, 2022

B. Wilfong: For me, the best thing about VALIANT AMBITION is that it was better than its predecessor in Mr. Philbrick’s trilogy about the American Revolution, BUNKER HILL. Much more objective in it examination of its subjects. I will also add that reading so soon after BUNKER HILL enhanced the experience for me. Knowledge I retained from that book was put to good use in reading this one. This text is a great overview of the Revolution in the “northern” sector of the war (NY, PA, VT, Maine, Canada, etc.) from about 1777 to 1780.

First, the quibbles. There are many abrupt transitions of topic without any explanations. If someone did not have a basic familiarity with the subject matter I think it could confuse. Also, in this book Philbrick makes assumptions about people’s motives. He did it in BUNKER HILL as well. I guess it is hard not to. At least in this text he made an effort to base most assumptions on some evidence

Some highlights include many nice examinations of key moments in the Revolution that I knew only a little about: the Battle of Valcour Bay, the Siege of Fort Mifflin & Mud Island, the machinations of the so called “Conway Cabal”, and others. Many...

United States on Jul 23, 2022

Amazon Customer: Outstandingly readable, wonderfully-researched, but with all the readability of a well-written novel that truly brings characters and motivations to life.

I spent a week taking my time and savoring this book.

In a way, I wish I had realised that there were so many good portraits at the end of the book - but it was good to take my time going through the supporting notes as well.

Highly, highly recommended!

Nadine in Scotland

United Kingdom on Mar 23, 2021

R Helen: This idea of this book was to trace Benedict Arnold's role as one of the leading generals of the Revolutionary War to his descent into treason. As that story goes, it's pretty interesting. As a child I obviously knew of Arnold as America's most famous traitor, but here is his full story in all its complexities and Arnold comes out as not entirely unsympathetic. He wasn't treated well by the Continental Congress, and while that shouldn't excuse his behavior, it certainly explains why he might want to change sides. He just should have been open about it. Plenty of Americans were loyalists and for good reason and the black and white version of America's birth we learn in Elementary School is obviously simplistic.

But the main thrust of this book is the War and it's battles. I personally prefer social and political history; war doesn't interest me much. So, I don't enjoy reading about battles. But if you like this sort of thing, than Philbrick's book is well written and informative. There is a bit of a cliff-hanger ending, too. As I know we won in the end, that is obviously not a surprise, but i don't know the particulars. The book ends with Nethanael Greene writing a letter to...

United Kingdom on May 24, 2018

Jack D. Morris: This is an honest and interesting treatment of the American Revolution from the perspective of its most famous person, George Washington, and it's most infamous person, Benedict Arnold. What the author does is provide a very good portrait of Arnold as a brave and brilliant, if brash, military officer and strategist, along with his ignoble traits of vanity and self interest. This is contrasted with Washington, who is portrayed as a not so brilliant strategist, and learning through mistakes to become a great military leader. But the author confirms what we believe, that Washington is not a vain person and exhibits through his actions and writings a purpose that is in the best interests of the people and our country.
Besides the British, the greatest problem for Washington is the incessant meddling in his affairs by the Continental Congress, which for the most part appears to be acting on behalf of the special interests of the various state factions that form the government. This also creates major problems for Arnold, who is passed over many times for legitimate promotions in rank, by a disapproving Congress. It is possible that his treason would not have occurred had Congress...

United States on Feb 17, 2018

Rule 62 Ken: Valiant Ambition is a fascinating tale of the American Revolution told with the infamous Benedict Arnold at the center of the story. Arnold, formerly a wealthy Connecticut merchant, had initially distinguished himself as a very brave and fearless wartime commander, who defended his country at considerable personal sacrifice, both physically and financially. Philbrick tells the story of how Arnold changed from a steadfast patriot into a selfish, greedy and resentful traitor, willing to sacrifice the lives of his countrymen for personal gain.

But there is much more to this story than Arnold's personal transformation. In what is clearly a labour of love, Philbrick tells the story of the American Revolution, and of how George Washington also evolved from a someone who, the author asserts, was in over his head as a military commander, into the leader that he is known to be today. Philbrick also describes the political climate of the Revolutionary era, filled with tension between loyalists and revolutionaries, as well as the political dysfunction that resulted from a legislative body that was supposed to be united, but was really just a collection of thirteen self-interested...

Canada on Aug 03, 2016

Argyrios Pisiotis: Yet another thoroughly researched and majestically presented piece of American history by Philbrick. What makes reading this as well as his other books so fascinating is the masterful way in which he combines traditional kinds of historiography, such as political and diplomatic, with material history and biography -in other words his ability to literally resurrect the past and its characters in a most vivid manner.

United Kingdom on Jul 27, 2016