Dear Companion: The Inner Life of Martha Jefferson

by Kelly Joyce Neff and Frank DeMarco

Book Overview

Martha (Patty) Jefferson is often seen as little more than a background figure overshadowed by her husband's political, literary, and scientific achievements. Dear Companion, by contrast, vividly... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1571740759
• ISBN13: 9781571740755
• Release Date: October 1997
• Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing Company
• Length: 632 Pages
• Weight: 1.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

The truth about Martha Jefferson

Martha Jefferson did not live long enough to see her husband enter the White House. Because of that, so little was known about her. Through Kelly's painstakingly detailed research, intuition, and clairvoyance, not to mention her memories of love for Thomas, she has retraced Martha's life, and earned the respect of her fellow Jefferson historians. Martha's life was not always joyful and she struggled with her health. Rather than being a romantisized view of a famous President's wife, this is a portrait of a real woman, with the backdrop of the reality of those times.

History first hand

This book gave me a better feel for Thomas Jefferson the living, breathing, feeling man than any biography of him that I had read, and gave me, too, a believable portrait of Martha Jefferson as plantation wife. It is a vivid, living description of colonial life, by an author who has made recognized scholarly contributions to our understanding of the time. I don't see how anyone interested in colonial and revolutionary America can fail to be interested in reading this gripping book.

A story of astounding magnitude

Kelly Joyce Neff's birthing of major historical information astounds me. Her writing style hauntingly evokes the distinctive vernacular of the times. My eyes hungrily devoured every word of her Dear Companion, and I was there with her in heart-beating technicolor. We became transported backwards through time hundreds of years, straight into Martha (Patty) Jefferson's expert housewifery, motherhood---even boudoir---into her heart full of joys and misfortune. Thomas Jefferson's feminine "other half" makes it plainly clear to us how precious and pivotal was their mortal life behind the scenes. I praise Kelly Joyce Neff for her courage in bringing this vital information forward for future generations to assimilate. Dear Companion will inspire all students of metaphysics and would be great required reading for high school and college students as well.

Engrossing, compelling read...

What a wonderful book! For anyone fascinated with life during the time of Thomas Jefferson. Lots of details on day to day life... enough to make us all thankful for our modern conveniences. Thomas Jefferson and his wife Martha comes to life in the pages of this book.

Thomas Jefferson like you've never seen him before!

This extraordinary book tells the real story of Thomas and Martha Jefferson in a fast-moving and incredibly detailed format that brings the period to LIFE! Supposedly written from the author's own past-life recall this is a must-read for anyone interested in metaphysics, American history or women's studies. Vibrantly alive, Neff's Patty Jefferson emerges as a compelling figure in TJ's life. This vivid portrayal brings up more questions than it answers.... namely HOW does the author know all this?!