The Family Legacy of Henry Clay

"Readers will discover that this great politician faced not only major public disappointments but also demons of his own making. The successes and ruined lives of so many members of Clay's immediate family did not end with his death. We need more family histories of this extraordinary caliber."—Bertram Wyatt-Brown, author Southern Honor: Ethics and Behavior in the Old South

"Apple's book is more than just a biography . . . as he delves into the Clay family in Kentucky and its descendants. In focusing on Clay's family members, Apple reveals the untold back story of an American Family and the struggle that some of its members had with success, fame, depression, alcoholism, and mental illness." — The Tucson Citizen

"Apple's writing is smooth and easy, and he handles Clay's nearly 100 descendants in a conversational style."—Bowling Green Daily News

"Reveals the family's struggles, including those shared by many Lexington and Kentucky families with differing views of the Civil War."—Kentucky Monthly

"Apple's book is at its best when it shows how generations of Clays struggled to reconcile the family image of Henry with changing times."—Ohio Valley History

"A long overdue (and wonderfully readable) family biography."—H-Net Reviews

"Apple . . . offers a long overdue (and wonderfully readable) family biography." —H-Kentucky

"apple's captivating and exhaustive account of a prominent but troubled American political family stands as an important contribution to the history of nineteenth-century America and sugggests ways future biographers of important politicians might approach their families and legacies." — Anne E. Marshall, Mississippi State University, The Journal of Southern History

"The book was a fascinating, in depth look at a family dealing with their demons as well as those of their ancestors. [. . .] Overall, the book was very enjoyable and an interesting study in family histories."—Georgia Library Quarterly