Prof. Ed Larson's Latest Book Reaches New York Times Bestseller List

Pepperdine School of Law professor Edward J. Larson's most recent book, The Return of George Washington: 1783-1789, has reached the New York Times bestseller list. Larson, University Professor and Hugh & Hazel Darling Chair in Law, has received extremely positive reviews from observers for his book's insightful analysis of a little-known period of Washington's life: the gap between his retirement from the Continental Army and his return to preside over the Constitutional Convention.

“A fascinating account. ... This is an important book, elegantly written, which adds greatly to our understanding of the way in which one man’s personality and popularity helped create a strong new country out of the fragments of the old colonial system.” —Lawrence M. Friedman, Marion Rice Kirkwood Professor of Law at Stanford University and author of A History of American Law

“A fresh and elegant portrait of the hero we thought we knew, but didn’t, quite. ... An indispensable book about America’s ‘indispensable man.’” —Akhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science, Yale University, and author of America's Constitution: A Biography

“Illuminating. ... Profound, even affectionate, scholarship infuses every graceful sentence.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Larson’s compulsively readable history shines new light on a little-discussed period of Washington’s life, illustrating his role as the indispensable American.” —Publishers Weekly

Larson is the author of nine books and nearly one hundred published articles, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate Over Science and Religion (1997). He teaches, lectures, and writes about issues of law, politics, science, and medicine from an historical perspective. Larson has taught courses in first-year property and health-care law for over twenty years at the University of Georgia and Pepperdine University, and is the recipient of several awards for excellence in teaching.

Learn more:

Professor Edward J. Larson faculty biography

The Return of George Washington: 1783-1789 on Amazon.com