Benjamin Franklin: An American Life cover art

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

By: Walter Isaacson
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $42.99

Buy Now for $42.99

About this listen

 In this authoritative and engrossing full-scale biography, Walter Isaacson, bestselling author of Einstein and Steve Jobs, shows how the most fascinating of America's founders helped define our national character.

Benjamin Franklin is the founding father who winks at us, the one who seems made of flesh rather than marble. In a sweeping narrative that follows Franklin’s life from Boston to Philadelphia to London and Paris and back, Walter Isaacson chronicles the adventures of the runaway apprentice who became, over the course of his eighty-four-year life, America’s best writer, inventor, media baron, scientist, diplomat, and business strategist, as well as one of its most practical and ingenious political leaders. He explores the wit behind Poor Richard’s Almanac and the wisdom behind the Declaration of Independence, the new nation’s alliance with France, the treaty that ended the Revolution, and the compromises that created a near-perfect Constitution.

In this colorful and intimate narrative, Isaacson provides the full sweep of Franklin’s amazing life, showing how he helped to forge the American national identity and why he has a particular resonance in the twenty-first century. Americas Historical Politicians Politics & Activism Revolution & Founding United States Witty Founding Fathers Royalty
All stars
Most relevant
A well researched, written @ narrated account of the life of a significant person of history.

Enjoyable & informative

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fascinating. Enlightening. Compelling. Well worth the time. He invented bi-focal glasses - who would have thunk it!

Benjamin Franklin

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fantastic Biography that gives a balanced approach to Franklin's life. my only complaint is some swallowing noises by the reader that get a bit annoying when using headphones.

My kind of American hero

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This was a great book. Isaacson is an amazing biographer. I because suite interested in American history during listening to this. The only downside is the narrator. Terrible voice chosen for reading narrating a 26 hour aduibook. Just felt the accent and the way he spoke was quite annoying to me. Would definitely recommend if you're interested in learning about an incredibly important individual who contributed greatly to humanity.

Excellent detailed description of Franklin's life

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great story. Very well told. Very well read. I enjoyed it. Three more words.

Great story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.