Mount Vernon’s very own book buyer is recommending several books for summer reading; first recommendation is this title from acclaimed author and historian Nathan Philbrick: Travels With George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy. The author embarked on his own journey into what Washington called “the infant woody country” to see for himself what America had become in the 229 years since Washington traveled though the new nation.

Our book buyer explains why she recommends this particular book: "I liked this book because it made me see and imagine the United States then and now – a little bit like time travel. It shows not only who we are now as a Nation, but who we were in the 18^th century, and who Washington hoped we would become. Also, this book is totally different from any other book I have ever read about George Washington because of this fascinating construct, and yet – even as we travel through the ages –  we see that our Founding Father is timeless."

Writing in a thoughtful first person style about his own adventures with his wife Melissa and Dora their dog, the author retraced George Washington’s presidential journey, from Mount Vernon to New England and eventually across the southern states. Philbrick blends 18^th century history with 21^st century interpretation. This enlightening and enjoyable journey is the perfect back story for summer reading!

Written at a moment when America’s founding figures are under increasing scrutiny, Travels with George grapples bluntly and honestly with Washington’s legacy as a man of the people, a reluctant president, and a plantation owner who held people in slavery. At historic houses and landmarks, Philbrick reports on the reinterpretations at work as he meets reenactors, tour guides, and other keepers of history’s flame. He paints a picture of eighteenth-century America as divided and fraught as it is today, and he comes to understand how Washington compelled, enticed, stood up to, and listened to the many different people he met along the way—and how his all-consuming belief in the union helped forge a nation.

A Mount Vernon bookplate, signed by the author, is included with your purchase of this FIRST EDITION.