When Washington’s term was over, Adams was elected as the second President of the United States.Ībigail supported John in all he did. He was vice president during George Washington’s eight years as president and worked closely with him. Adams helped inspire Congress to form a republic with a balance of power between the Senate, House of Representatives and the President of the United States. During the war, he was an ambassador in France working with Benjamin Franklin. He was instrumental to the Americans gaining freedom through his writings. John Adams was a lawyer who studied the history of government and republics. People in the colonies wanted the same rights as people in England. England wanted the American colonies to pay for the French and Indian War and decided to tax them without representation. Through John and Abigail’s story, Stone explains all the events that led up to the American colonies rebelling against England. The Adams also knew many of the important people that were part of history, such as Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Boston is where many famous events took place, such as the Boston Tea Party, and where the Revolution began. They had a house in Boston and a farm close by. I found the book fascinating because John and Abigail were at the heart of all the events that led up to the Revolution and setting up a republic. It also tells of the great sacrifices they made for this nation.

The novel is a love story about two people who had the same goals during an important time in history. It begins when Abigail and Adams first became involved and ends many years later after Adams finishes his term as the second president of the United States of America. Those Who Love: A Biographical Novel of Abigail and John Adams is written in much the same tone as those other wonderful books. I always found the books well-researched and told in a way that brought insight about the personal lives and personalities of the characters. I’ve read other books by Irving Stone: The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo Lust for Life (a fictionalized biography of Vincent Van Gogh) and Love Is Eternal about Mary and Abraham Lincoln. Those Who Love by Irving Stone was one of those books.

When determining if I want to give away a book, I read some of the beginning and sometimes found myself sucked into the story. I started leafing through them to see what I wanted to keep or give away. I came across boxes of books I’d read and loved, wanted to read, or those that merely accumulated over the years. After a pipe burst in the basement, I started sorting through things in storage to see what could be salvaged.

They Also Ran by Irving Stone