The Adams family

The Adams Family, published in 1930 by Little, Brown and Company, is a seminal historical study by James Truslow Adams, the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian who famously coined the term 'the American Dream'. Written during a period of significant scholarly interest in the genealogy of the American political elite, the work provides an expansive chronicle of the Adams dynasty, tracking its trajectory from colonial Massachusetts through the early twentieth century.

Adams approached the subject with a focus on the intellectual and moral inheritance passed down through generations of the family, particularly the succession of leadership from John Adams to John Quincy Adams and their descendants. The book was well-received by contemporary critics for its narrative grace and depth of research, helping to solidify Adams's reputation as a premier biographer of American institutions and their foundational figures.