Burstein employs the key events of Jefferson's life to probe the inner man to a degree no other biographer has attempted, and he succeeds brilliantly. This groundbreaking work should be considered critical reading as we celebrate the 250th anniversary of Jefferson's greatest achievement, the Declaration of Independence.

Peter Cozzens, Washington Independent Review of Books

Objective and fascinating... Thomas Jefferson was a unique study in contrasts, as brilliantly highlighted by Andrew Burstein in Being Thomas Jefferson. The meticulous record keeper who got swamped with crushing debt, a public figure with thin skin who firmly held onto grudges, a rogue who seduced his friend's girlfriends/wives, Burstein adeptly shows Jefferson to be a flawed, yet historically impactful figure.

Philip Zozzaro, Manhattan Book Review

Close-up portrait by a noted Jefferson scholar aimed at 'advancing historical knowledge without prescriptive politics.' . . . Burstein's psychological insights are impressively detailed and grounded in valuable historical context . . . A nuanced, warts-and-all examination of a complicated Founding Father.

Kirkus

Noted Jefferson scholar Andrew Burstein has produced an elegantly written exploration of our third president's inner life. Being Thomas Jefferson is a thought-provoking and timely addition to the literature on Jefferson.

Annette Gordon-Reed, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for THE HEMINGSES OF MONTICELLO: AN AMERICAN FAMILY

Most biographies of Thomas Jefferson are focused on his intellect. Andrew Burstein lays open his heart. He has answered a question that has always puzzled me: why was Jefferson so adroit at playing hide-and-seek inside himself.

Joseph J. Ellis, author AMERICAN SPHINX: THE CHARACTER OF THOMAS JEFFERSON

Andrew Burstein has written what promises to become the most acclaimed contemporary biography of Thomas Jefferson - appropriately for the 200th year after his death and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Burstein neither tries to promote or dethrone but succeeds in creating a revealing portrait of a complex individual, who had a great capacity for friendship and grudges, who sought privacy but also celebrity, who was pessimistic about human nature but optimistic about the possibilities for the future. Skillfully dissecting his use of language, the biography reminds us of why it is important to engage with a man who more than any other is part of the DNA of the United States.

Andrew O'Shaughnessy, author of THE ILLIMITABLE FREEDOM OF THE HUMAN MIND and THE MEN WHO LOST AMERICA