AMERICAN SPHINX The Character of Thomas Jefferson

"'If Jefferson was wrong, America is wrong. If America is right, Jefferson was right.'--James Parton 1874." With this quote, Ellis begins the biography that won him the 1996 National Book Award. As his myth has grown and prospered, our third president has become the darling of many, and often warring, interest groups. What would Jefferson say today about taxes, about civil rights, abortion? Nobody knows. Hence the title. Susan O'Malley's straight-forward reading is clear and forceful, if unexceptional. Why was a woman chosen to read a book by a man, about a man? This is unclear, but then it has often gone the other way. B.H.C. © AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/NOV 99]