John Ferling, the award-winning historian, returns with his perceptive new look at a familiar figure, The Ascent of George Washington: The Hidden Political Genius of an American Icon. Hailed as a man who put country above politics and who served only for the best interest of his country, Washington is shown to be a great man in spite of his deep personal ambition and the decisions he made based on political considerations. This is Ferling's seventh book about our Founding Fathers. Others include A Leap in the Dark: the Struggle to Create the American Republic and Adams vs. Jefferson: The Tumultuous Election of 1800.