Being So Gentle

PATRICIA BRADY social and cultural historian who has served as director of publications at the Historic New Orleans Collection for twenty years. Her books include Martha Washington: A Life and George Washington's Beautiful Nelly. She lives in New Orleans.

"A fast-paced political drama combined with a controversial love story that was shocking in its day. Patricia Brady's A Being So Gentle is, frankly, irresistible." - John Berendt, bestselling author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil 'No picture of the charismatic and compelling Andrew Jackson is complete without an understanding of his utter devotion to his 'dearest heart,' his wife Rachel. Jackson's fury at the political attacks on his wife as an unsavory adulteress affected everything he did as president. But Patricia Brady reveals that Jackson spent a lifetime in defense of the beauty he eloped with while she was married to another man. Here finally we have a book that looks at the relationship between the general and his wife from both of their perspectives and puts it in the context of the world they lived in - the rough and daring eighteenth century American frontier.' - Cokie Roberts, bestselling author of Founding Mothers and Ladies of Liberty 'Rachel Donelson was truly a child of wilderness America and her second husband, Andrew Jackson, a force of nature. Their story, a compelling one, is told here with passion and zest.' - Andrew Burstein, author of The Passions of Andrew Jackson "Patricia Brady's lively and engaging account of the Jackson marriage shows her zest for history and for bringing forgotten founding women into the historical spotlight. Rendered with delicate strokes, Rachel Robards Jackson emerges as a loving wife and gentle presence, the lamb to the American lion." - Catherine Allgor, author of A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation "A lively and eminently readable account of the relationship between Andrew Jackson and his wife Rachel. Brady demonstrates that, despite the scandal for which it is most frequently remembered, theirs was a marriage of great duration and affection. While Andrew Jackson's activities form the backbone of the story, Brady breathes life into the lesser-known figure of Rachel, who steadfastly supported her husband throughout his improbable rise to prominence. Dying on the cusp of her husband's inauguration as president, Rachel missed out on the opportunity of serving as the nation's First Lady and never had the chance to restore her reputation. This book does that for her." - Margaret A. Hogan, The Adams Papers, Massachusetts Historical Society and Co-Editor, My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams "A Being So Gentle is a true love story--in which love triumphs over quite daunting odds--which requires no romantic embellishment, just the simple facts. Moreover, by looking at Andrew Jackson mostly through the eyes of Rachel, Patricia Brady has got his extravagant career down to a manageable size." - Madison Smartt Bell, author of All Souls' Rising "Although Rachel Jackson died before her husband's inauguration, no history of the job of first lady can ignore her. She cast a long shadow over her husband's presidency. Patricia Brady uncovers the mystery behind the woman and gives a lively account of the Jackson love story. It is a frontier romance, with a botched divorce and a duel to protect Rachel's honor, but rumors about it played out on a national stage, causing rifts in Washington's social cliques and political realignments." - Betty Boyd Caroli, author of First Ladies: From Martha Washington to Michelle Obama "On the very eve of his presidency, after thirty-seven years of marriage, General Andrew Jackson buried his beloved Rachel in the dress she planned to wear for his inauguration. A Being So Gentle is a brilliant story of triumph and tragedy. It brings the Jacksons' poignant love story to life against the backdrop of antebellum America's bustling expansion and political intrigue -- and it demonstrates once again that Patricia Brady is a historian who writes beautifully!" - Jon Kukla, author of Mr. Jefferson's Women and A Wilderness So Immense