John C. Calhoun: American Portrait

By: Margaret L. Coit

Narrated by: Charlton Griffin

Author Margaret Coit's Pulitzer Prize winning biography of John C. Calhoun is a towering accomplishment in the writing of American history, powerful in the fullest sense of the word. This is no bland recital of dates and events. It is a searing, blinding, cascading roller coaster of emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and above all, human, history. The listener lives through hot, sleepy days on the South Carolina frontier of Calhoun's youth; goes with him to Yale in 1802 where the scent of the sea wafted in through his rooms; to the stern, New England town of Litchfield, Connecticut and its law school to study under Federalist mentors, and where students were expected to wear buckled breeches and ruffled stocks.

Muddy, primitive Washington, D.C. comes to life in the terrible years when our national tragedy of disunion was unfolding, with Jackson, Benton, Randolph, Webster, Clay, and Calhoun each struggling in his own way to avert catastrophe. When you have known the great South Carolinian at all the stages of his life; when you have lived through the events which determined his views; and when you have followed the path of his relentless logic - then you will finally understand our Civil War as few of us have ever been able to understand it before. In Miss Coit's brilliant story of Calhoun's personal life we discover a man of human frailties and human magnificence, much different from the image in those brooding photographs. And for the first time we understand how John C. Calhoun held the passionate loyalty of his people.

©1950 Estate of Margaret L. Coit (P)2014 Audio Connoisseur

Critic reviews

"Provides far and away the most detailed, vivid, and convincing personal characterization of Calhoun we have." (Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., Nation)

Well, I guess at least we still have History

Life is just so weird. I was listening to this for research when a political movement happened to take Calhoun's name off of a hall or dorm in Yale. I don't agree with Calhoun, and maybe he doesn't deserve the honor. But it seems to me that if we rewrite history, we will revisit it. The take away from this book is how early on Calhoun realized the South's doom. Instead of figuring out a way to stop it at that moment, he perpetuated the doom by speaking for it. That's his great failing. We need to remember this failed legacy.

Perfect book on Calhoun

Not only did I know Calhoun but I felt I knew early America. Highly recommend!

An unusually gripping biography

Great narration, with a depth of feeling unusual for historical material. Certain aspects of this book feel dated, yes, but it’s a very compelling work nevertheless.

fantastic throughout

too bad modern historians so often obscure or blatantly lie about his true character, brilliant mind, and great love of liberty.

Wonderful if you like history.

The author did a great job of evoking vivid imagery of the times. At times very powerful and thought provoking. Very balanced. I enjoyed learning more about a very passionate, patriotic, and misunderstood man.

A true must-listen for the history buff.

A well done, evenly paced walk through the life of an American. Great story indeed.

What a magnificent and illuminating...

Biography on a well-known but little understood American statesman. The content of this lyrical work was only exceeded by the performance of the narrator whose resonate delivery augmented a truly monumental work. Politicians today could learn much from the statesman who was John C Calhoun and the eulogy of his opponent, Dan'l Webster who said: "Whatever his aspirations, they were high honorable and Noble. There was nothing mean, nor low, nor grovelingly selfish that came near the head or heart of John C Calhoun."

A portrait of the man and the politician

Would you consider the audio edition of John C. Calhoun: American Portrait to be better than the print version?

No

Who was your favorite character and why?

Calhoun

What does Charlton Griffin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

A voice

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The last chapter.

Any additional comments?

This is a masterpiece. It is a shame Calhoun has been forgotten (deliberately) by mainstream American culture. He embodied true and authentic American character - something you rarely see in government anymore.

A Prize-Winning Portrayal of Calhoun

Knowing very little of the man, other than what I have discovered in biographies of Jackson, and Henry Clay - I am quite impressed with John C. Calhoun as portrayed by Margaret Coit.

A man of insight who managed to be a friend of both his opponents and his followers, Calhoun's political theories are needed more than ever in a time where critical-thinking is hard to find and foreign interpretations of the Constitution are promulgated in the 21st-century public square.

It is clear to see why this book won a Pulitzer, yet I found the use of descriptive adjectives to be distracting at times, particularly in the first few chapters of the book. Coit is painting a picture of the man, but occasionally liberties taken to describe him made it hard to focus on how the man developed in his thinking.

I also found Charlton Griffin at times to be distracting as well in his narration (listening at 1.5-1.7 speed), but overall listening to him is much more enjoyable than other narrators I have come across.

Despite these few personal quibbles, I recommend this book as an excellent analysis on a controversial man for the 21st-century mind. Coit's undertaking and summation are a breath of fresh air in a time where everyone and everything is "politically incorrect." The book being written in a pre-civil rights era definitely helped prevent Coit from deconstructing a remarkable man's legacy to oblivion.

Something to be aware of is that J.F.K. believed Calhoun to be one of the five most important Senators in United States history - that he, "significantly shaped the role of the Senate and the destiny of the nation."

Wonderful subject, beautifully told and narrated

What made the experience of listening to John C. Calhoun: American Portrait the most enjoyable?

I knew little of John C. Calhoun and only had a superficial understanding of the old deep antebellum South apart from the lone issue of slavery. I found the subject extremely interesting and exotic. This is an excellent personal and cultural history. The writing style, which at first strikes one as archaic, takes on a life and character of its own and adds greatly to the experience. One of the finest political biographies I have encountered in years.