Giving James Madison His Due

In the efforts to illuminate our nation’s beginnings either via epic cable series or expertly written biographies - it seems James Madison, proverbial “Father of the Constitution,” often gets pushed to the sidelines. Rarely is he given the attention of the other Founding Fathers: He lacked the vivacity of John Adams and failed to earn the reverence George Washington did. But as Richard Brookhiser’s new biography demonstrates, he contributed as much to America’s origins as his well-known peers, in similar and different ways.