Their elegiac letters carry an almost unbearable beauty. Even the act of writing could be difficult: in one letter, Abigail talks about a winter so cold, the ink freezes in her pen.While they are apart, they endure the deaths of parents, friends, and, most heartbreaking, an infant daughter. You can't help but feel a little guilty reading these rich exchanges, since they were borne of long separations, with mail delivery that was slow at best, and during wartime, unreliable. 'My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams is an extraordinary set of 289 of their personal letters.There are many books on these two that provide context and background this one, in which John and Abigail's voices soar unencumbered over the pages, is a lovely addition to the Adams shelf. My Dearest Friend, should I draw you the picture of my Heart, it would be what I hope you still would Love tho it contained nothing new the early possession you obtained there and the absolute power you have ever maintained over it leaves not the smallest space unoccupied. Mary Beth Norton, New York Times Book Review Their courtship letters are especially delightful.' Intermingled with comments on the great events of the day-the Battle of Bunker Hill, the vote for independence, the inauguration of Washington as president-are discussions of daily life, stories of neighbors and relatives, complaints about the high cost of living and laments over such family tragedies as a stillborn daughter and the deaths of parents. Separated more often than they were together during this founding era, John and Abigail shared their lives through letters that each addressed to My Dearest Friend, debating ideas and. ' provide valuable insights into the early days of partisan politics.The Adamses' correspondence gives modern Americans an extraordinarily personal view of our country's founding.

'My Dearest Friend deserves a special place in the literary canon of the founding fathers, not only for recording the amazing relationship between John and Abigail, but also because of the rarity of the survival of such a correspondence.The Adamses' letters are so enjoyable because they offer a wonderful breadth of topics, breathlessly jumping between flirtatious teasing, gossip about friends and family, and philosophical and political argument.'

My Dearest Friend by Abigail Adams