This is a US History assigment.

Pick a historical figure born after 1800 (but must be dead) and read two biographies of that person by different authors (at least 150 pgs each). After reading each biography, write a critical review of the two books of 5-7 typed, double-spaced pages. In addition to evaluating each book for its own merits, you will also compare and contrast the two books. The papers must contain citations in CHICAGO STYLE, including footnotes or endnotes, and a complete bibliography. There will be significant penalty for papers handed in late – a full letter grade deduction. No Plagarism!

You can ´pick the two books (biographies) about the same figure. It can be powerful persons, politicians, People that is part of our US history.

These are to be CRITICAL book reviews, meaning that you will need to analyze each book carefully, and then weigh them against each other. Among the questions you should consider are:

Why did the author of each book choose to write a biography of this person?

What was the purpose of each book? Does the author state a purpose?

What are the main arguments of each book?

What is the thesis?

Would you characterize each biography as sympathetic to the subject or critical?

Are you convinced by the arguments/thesis of each author?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of each book?

Can you discern a bias in the authors work?

Which author does a better job explaining the life of the subject? Why?

How do the authors arguments compare?

Which author presents a more compelling or believable thesis?

Does it seem that the authors are purposing seeking to undermine the argument of the other?

If one of the biographies is written many years before the other, can you identify how historical events have shaped/changed the interpretation of the subject life as reflected in the other biography?