You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington

A new biography published about George Washington is unlike any other. Described as “form-shattering and myth-crushing,” “keen and savage,” as well as “spirited and engaging,” historian Alexis Coe’s “You Never Forget Your First” chronicles the life of our first president from a 21st century and “decidedly feminist” perspective. Coe says, “I set out to write a book that was true, and different, and that added any kind of diversity in approach, perspective, and, of course, author. I set out to take a giant leap away from hagiography and great man history—and really mean it.”

This conversation will be moderated by Professor Jeffrey Engel.

Alexis Coe has frequently appeared on CNN and the History Channel, and in the New York Times and many other publications. She is a host of Audible’s “Presidents Are People Too!” and “No Man’s Land.” Coe holds an MA in history from Sarah Lawrence College and graduated from the honors college at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She was a research curator at the New York Public Library and her first book, “Alice + Freda Forever,” is set to become a motion picture.

Jeffrey A. Engel is the founding director of the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University and professor in the Clements Department of History. He graduated magna cum laude from Cornell University. Engel also studied at St. Catherine’s College, Oxford University, and received his M.A. and Ph.D. in American history from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He taught American history, international relations, and grand strategy at the University of Wisconsin, Yale University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Haverford College. At Texas A&M’s Bush School of Government & Public Service, he was a professor and director of programming for the Scowcroft Institute for International Affairs.

Alexis Coe is the award-winning author of Alice + Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis (soon to be a major motion picture). Coe has frequently appeared on CNN and the History Channel, and has contributed to The New York Times, The New Yorker, and many other publications. She is a host of Audible’s Presidents Are People Too! and No Man’s Land. Coe holds a graduate degree in American history and was a research curator at the New York Public Library. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

This event is cosponsored by the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth.

Further Reading

Here, you’ll find more resources to feed your interest in the topics covered at this event.

Coe, A. (2021). George Washinton Foresaw the Capitol Riot. It’s Why He Hated Political Parties. The Washington Post. Retrieved February 12, 2021 from https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/01/08/trump-capitol-mob-republicans-george-washington/

Knowledge@Wharton (Host). (2016). George Washington: America’s First Entrepreneur [Audio podcast transcript]. In Knowledge@Whartonshow. Wharton Business Radio. https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/ed-lengel-george-washington-myths-book/

Lepore, J. (2010). His Highness: George Washington Scales New Heights. The New Yorker Magazine. Retrieved February 12, 2021 from https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/09/27/his-highness

Mullen, M. (2019). How George Washington’s Iron-Willed Single Mom Taught Him Honor. History.com. Retrieved February 12, 2021 from https://www.history.com/news/george-washington-mother-mary-character-upbringing