In these pages, Alexander Hamilton sheds his skewed image as the "brat of a Scotch peddler" and notoriously doomed duelist with Aaron Burr; and, at last, emerges from Jefferson's shadow to rival him as the most crucial figure of their time.

Unique among the founding fathers, Hamilton was an impoverished immigrant when he first came to America at age 10. But he grasped the opportunities available and through hard work and will he rapidly rose, becoming a patriot, war hero, prominent lawyer, and author of two thirds of the Federalist papers. As Secretary of the Treasury he mapped a system of law and finance that still impacts us today.

Brookhiser reveals both the passionate man and the brilliant leader, whose broad vision of the future helped shape America. With plans under way to commemorate this quintessential New Yorker and founder of the New York Evening Post, Brookhiser's portrait of our first true nationalist could not be more timely.