As a novelist, Vidal was never better and very seldom so good. As historical fiction, 'Burr' is bulletproof. If the narrative isn't strictly faithful to events, that's why they call it fiction. A great read. ( )

Gore Vidal is very likely America's greatest living writer. Burr is romp through 1830's New York. Mr. Burr appears to be romping himself, recounting an excitng past, living his present with an eye to the future, even though he is @ seventy-seven years of age when Mr. Vidal introduces his Hero.

Or, Anti-Hero? This reader prefers the former title. American high schoolers do not meet Mr. Burr - the pleasure of his company is withheld more often than not from teenagers.

When reading this book, we understand that two men died that day in New Jersey - though it took one of them almost fifty more years to die.

Mr. Vidal is a genius. Both he and Mr. Burr are immortals.

This is my first Gore Vidal novel and I’m glad I finally got around to reading his work. This novel, as well as several others in a series (Lincoln, 1876 to name a couple) can best be described as historical fiction, somewhat disguised as biography. In selecting Burr as a subject, Vidal made an excellent choice, both from the standpoint of originality and due to the fact that Burr was a fascinating character.

Known primarily for his dual with bitter political rival Alexander Hamilton, many are not aware that Burr was a Revolutionary War hero and came within a hair’s breadth of becoming the third President, tying Thomas Jefferson in the Electoral College and throwing the election into the House of Representatives. Settling for the Vice-Presidency, Burr went West after his duel with Hamilton and sought to invade and conquer Mexico, leading to a politically motivated trial for treason in which he was exonerated by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall. Quite a life.

Told from the standpoint of a fictional aide to Burr (Charles Schuyler), the story is set during the Andrew Jackson presidency, but reverts to revolutionary America through reference to Burr’s memoirs. The individuals who make an appearance (all the usual suspects- Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton, etc.) are presented as normal human beings, warts and all. This is refreshing, as the Founding Fathers are frequently placed on a pedestal, immune from criticism and the foibles of everyday life.

In reality, the period was one of intense factional conflict (why do you think Burr dueled Hamilton?), the presidential races between Adams/Jefferson, and Jackson/Adams being perhaps the most bitter in American history. As a result, Burr has few good things to say about Washington (who Burr portrays as a military incompetent) or Jefferson (who Burr asserts was mentally ill during his second term), as you would expect.

American history from the first half of the 19th century is somewhat neglected in favor of the Revolutionary and Civil War eras, but this time of the nation’s establishment and growth is truly a fascinating period, both with respect to historical events and fascinating characters. Burr was an excellent prism through which to examine both and Vidal does an outstanding job in that respect. ( )

1531 Burr A Novel by Gore Vidal (read 7 Aug 1979) I started this back in 1974 and only finished it now. I despised the stupid brat who told the story, though the historical aspects of the book were of some interest. I am convinced Washington was not the boor the book portrayed him as, nor was Jefferson. Eight volumes of Freeman's biography and Malone's five or more on Jefferson must have left some residue in my sieve-like mind. ( )

Burr got me started on vidal's work. When he passes it will be a sad, sad, day. Along with Anthony Burgess, our 2 best Men of Letters in the 20th Century. BURR is a schoolroom for all budding writers. ( )