Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton

Written by Tilar J. Mazzeo

Narrated by January LaVoy

From the New York Times bestselling author of Irena’s Children comes a “vivid, compelling, and unputdownable…biography” (Christopher Andersen, #1 New York Times bestselling author) about the extraordinary life and times of Eliza Hamilton—trailblazing philanthropist, devoted wife of founding father Alexander Hamilton, and a powerful, unsung hero in America’s founding story.

Fans of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit musical Hamilton may know Eliza Hamilton only as the loyal partner of the nation’s founding father, but this biography reveals her full, dynamic story. Born into the elite Schuyler family in New York, Eliza Schuyler carved a path as a caring sister, devoted mother, and later a daring pioneer in philanthropy and legacy-building.

This expertly told historical biography follows her early years, the ups and downs of her married life with Alexander Hamilton—including the scandal and his tragic death—and then her courageous decades of preserving his legacy and launching one of New York’s first orphan asylums. Through a deeply researched narrative and vivid portraiture, discover a story that cemented her legacy as one of the unsung heroes of our nation’s early days.

Perfect for fans of Ron Chernow’s sweeping biographies, the Hamilton musical audience, or anyone passionate about women in the early United States, this book brings to life the woman behind the myth and honors her philanthropic achievements in the founding era.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Sep 18, 2018
• ISBN: 9781508265757

Tilar J. Mazzeo

Tilar J. Mazzeo is the author of numerous works of cultural history and biography, including the New York Times bestselling The Widow Clicquot, The Secret of Chanel No. 5, and nearly two dozen other books, articles, essays, and reviews on wine, travel, and the history of luxury. The Clara C. Piper Associate Professor of English at Colby College, she divides her time between coastal Maine, New York City, and Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

Reviews for Eliza Hamilton

[hellokeely1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The author does a beautiful job of telling Eliza's story. As she writes in the author's notes, she felt like she actually spent time with Eliza while researching for this book, and after reading/listening to it, I feel the same way. This is the first book I've ever cried from. Aside from math texts lol!

[kmbrwhit · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What an interesting woman! I loved this book and even though I don’t read a lot of biographies, I so enjoyed this book.

[Danette Riley · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely wonderful book! Great narration! I could not stop listening. I WILL listen again. Eliza Hamilton was an amazing woman!

[Stacie Godwin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow! Amazing true story!! A must read or listen too !

[Desander Más · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful, well written, thoughtful. Read beautifully. Eliza would have loved it.

[wagner5sarah35 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I'm not exactly certain what to make of this book, other than my strong feelings that it should not be classified as biography or history, despite containing elements of both. Throughout this book, the author discusses Eliza's feelings and writes some events as though she was describing a scene in a novel. This would be great - if this book was a novel. But it's not, and the author provides no sources for these portions of the book. While this book does more to cover the entire span of Eliza Hamilton's life than others I've encountered, I cannot help but say to approach it with extreme caution.

[briandrewz · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I'm not sure how to start this review. On one hand, I enjoyed the story. On the other, I didn't. I don't like books that claim to be biographies to give voice to the subjects' feelings. Example: "Eliza blushed. It was a beautiful letter." How do you know she blushed? Were you there? These are questions I want to ask the author. I also object to there being no bibliography. There is a notes section, but this only pertains to letters or direct sources where things were quoted. I feel like this is more historical fiction than biography.

However, I did enjoy reading a story that I had previously been unaware of. In all honesty, before reading this book the only things I knew about Alexander Hamilton were that he was killed in a duel and his likeness appears on the $10 bill. This book brought the characters of Eliza and Alexander to life.

A good read, but I would caution those seeking a straight "biography". The author herself states "this book is not a scholarly dissertation". Maybe if it had been, it would've been better.

[scottjpearson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Like many, I fell in love with the protagonist of Broadway's biggest hit in recent years Hamilton. The true protagonist of that story is not Alexander Hamilton but his wife Eliza Hamilton. Her life as one of our country's founding mothers brings accolades that stack up well alongside her husband's.

She bore seven children. Mindful of her husband's past and her children's present, she helped found the country's first private orphanage. She helped raise money to fund the Washington Monument. She was close personal friends with Martha and George Washington. She was a noble "Roman wife" whose work directly helped found the United States of America. She loved her family and tolerated her enemies.

Eliza was not brilliant. That was Alexander's part. She had heart, though, and loved Alexander and her family deeply.

Most interesting is Mazzeo's take of the Reynolds affair. The way this tale is traditionally told is that Alexander, while Treasury Secretary, had a sexual tryst with a Maria Reynolds with Maria's husband's full knowledge in Eliza's bed. A love note supposedly corroborated the affair. James Reynolds, Maria's husband, supposedly blackmailed Alexander for money with the threat of telling Eliza.

But Eliza never divorced Alexander and defended him with passion for the rest of her life. Why? Mazzeo contends that Alexander falsified the Reynolds pamphlet to cover up for insider trading. She contends that politicians of his time and enemies of Hamilton's political party (including future presidents James Monroe and Thomas Jefferson) knew this and forced the brilliant Alexander out of politics. Mazzeo even outlines her theory in a closing Author's Note within the book.

Well-written and an interesting profile of one of our founding mothers, Eliza Hamilton tells a story not of a saint but of someone's interesting angle on life.

[bah195 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm not a big history buff but this book peaked my interest when I entered the contest to win a copy of this book.
I found the book well researched and the story flowed from the first page. The one thing I didn't like was that two thirds of the book was devoted to Eliza and Alexander. The other third of the was about the approximately 55 years she lived after his death.
This book would be a good read for those who love history or even those who are into the "Hamilton" craze.