Book review: ‘John Quincy Adams’ gives the sixth president’s life the scope it deserves

To be clear, “John Quincy Adams: A Man for the Whole People” by Randall Woods is not a leisurely read designed for the beach or airport. At more than 700 pages, Woods’ biography of the sixth president is enormous in length and scope.

But this is the kind of book Adams deserves for a life and a legacy that goes far beyond his time as commander in chief and includes his years as a diplomat, senator, and congressman. Readers could come away from the book feeling like it could easily have been a multi-volume series.

Woods, a history professor at the University of Arkansas, deftly profiles a president whose life was defined by contradictions. Like his father, Adams despised politics but spent his life entrenched in public service. His defense of the nation’s expansion came at the cost of allowing the spread of slavery.

The most compelling parts of the book, in fact, focus on the years he spent outside the White House. This includes his post-presidency years in Congress, where he became an ally – albeit tenuous – to abolitionists and an outspoken opponent of the House “gag rule” that prevented discussion of slavery.

It also shows the influence that Adams’ father, the nation’s second president, and the other Founding Fathers had on his vision of the country and public service.

The biography sheds light on Adams’ relationships with figures throughout history, from Andrew Jackson to Daniel Webster. But what’s even more enlightening are his personal relationships, especially with his family, as Woods demonstrates the strain his years of service took.

Woods also uses Adams’ life to tell the story of the country’s evolution, and his descriptions of life in the nation’s capital are some of his most entertaining. This includes Adams’ story as the president nearly drowning in the Potomac River, where he regularly swam.

In his later years, the book describes, Adams exchanged letters with a British actor about the merits of William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet.” As Woods writes, Adams “completely identified with Shakespeare’s fallen angel” and saw the play as a cautionary tale for the country.

Whether or not readers see Adams’s life as a cautionary tale, Woods’ biography is a comprehensive look not only at his life but also at the early years of the republic.

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