The first biography in nearly a century of the
legendary
Revolutionary War patriot and our country’s first spy.
Few
Americans know much more about Nathan Hale than his famous last
words: “I only regret that I have one life left to give for my
country.” But who was the real Nathan Hale?
M. William Phelps charts the life of this famed patriot and
Connecticut’s state hero, following Hale’s rural childhood, his
education at Yale, and his work as a schoolteacher. Even in his
brief career, he distinguished himself by offering formal
lessons to young women. Like many young Americans, he soon
became drawn into the colonies’ war for independence, becoming a
captain in Washington’s army. When the general was in need of a
spy, Hale willingly rose to the challenge, bravely sacrificing
his life for the sake of American liberty.
Using Hale’s own journals and letters as well as testimonies
from his friends and contemporaries, Phelps depicts the
Revolution as it was seen from the ground. From the
confrontation in Boston to the battle for New York City, readers
experience what life was like for an ordinary soldier in the
struggling Continental army.
In this impressive, well-researched biography, Phelps separates
historical fact from long-standing myth to reveal the life of
Nathan Hale, a young man who deserves to be remembered as an
original American patriot.
Praise for NATHAN HALE …
“… Phelps has written an informative, interesting biography of
Hale that effectively reveals the flesh-and-blood human behind
the iconic image. Clearly an admirer of Hale, he has written
nothing that detracts from Hale's reputation; instead, he has
provided a nuanced portrait … using Hale's own correspondence,
[Phelps] clears up some of the murky details surrounding Hale's
spying, arrest, and execution. This is a well-done, balanced
account of a short but interesting life.
- Booklist
“… M. William Phelps gives a new, fully documented life to this
romantic, long neglected American revolutionary.”
- R.A. Scotti, author of The Sudden Sea and Basilica
~
“Phelps has written a meticulously-researched biography …
[he] has well captured the excitement of Hale's joining the
Patriot cause in the American Revolution, giving us a fresh
narrative of those tumultuous years.”
- Joyce Appleby, author of Inheriting the Revolution
~
"… Phelps has written an absorbing, highly detailed biography
of the patriotic Hale. It is a work that at the same time tells
the story of young Hale, army life and the daily battles between
the American and British forces at the start of the war. He
weaves each story together to create a very colorful, emotional
and enjoyable book. …."
- Bruce Chadwick, author of George Washington’s War
~
“Phelps has brilliantly taken Nathan Hale from the faded
memory of history and reintroduced us … This book speaks to us
today. … Phelps has … given us the insight as to where Hale
found such strength and fortitude. Phelps’ book should be read
by anyone who is responsible for putting lives at risk for our
country. Phelps’ account of Hale’s death is a gut-wrenching
reminder of the consequences of failed leadership.”
- JOSEPH J. TRENTO, author of The Secret History of the CIA
NATHAN HALE: 
