Washington Burning transports us in time to the very
founding of our nation and its capital. We learn that the
Washington we know might never have come to be had it not been for
the destruction of the young city by British troops in 1814, or for
Pierre Charles L''Enfant, the eccentric, passionate, difficult
architect who fell in love with his adopted country. L’Enfant’s
sweeping vision of a grand Federal City inspired President George
Washington but earned the enmity of Secretary of State Thomas
Jefferson, who hated the idea of an imperial city. So was the
capital born of feuding personalities, and located on the banks of
the Potomac only after great political struggle.
Master storyteller Les Standiford has once again written a
compelling, quintessentially American story of hubris and
achievement.
“Masterful…For the lover of U.S. history or Washingtonian
architecture or even basic political intrigue, this marvelous new
history, probably the best to date on L''Enfant and his troubled
life, is essential.” — Miami Herald
"Scrupulously researched…Standiford has a novelist''s gift for
engaging, briskly paced narration."
–Library Journal
關於作者:
LES STANDIFORD is the author of Last Train to Paradise,
Meet You in Hell, and the forthcoming The Man Who
Invented Christmas.