[Now, let me get one thing out of the way. There is an actual letter written by Franklin called "Fart Proudly," and this book isn't it. They could have put it in the collection, but weirdly they didn't. If I can find a copy of this letter, I'll do a separate review of it.]
As to what this book is, it is Benjamin's unfinished autobiography as well as a few extra writings tacked-on to the ending. None of this is bad, though. It all serves to help you understand who Benjamin Franklin was and what he had to go through mostly before we achieved our independence from Britain.
I learned things about Benjamin that I never knew. The autobiography was so telling that I am surprised more people don't talk about it. He was very clearly a progressive liberal, but he was far from being a radical. He worked very hard to uplift this country when we were struggling to form our own identity. He was also a man full of wisdom that he tried very hard to pass on to us, as long as we were willing to listen. The man constantly tried to perfect himself and his morals, and his autobiography goes into this very hotly. You'll learn exactly how he attempted this, and it's really kind of brilliant.
Did you know Benjamin Franklin led forces in our military? He did, and he worked very hard at it. He was also very humble about it, constantly stating that he was not really very good at it. I was still impressed by it, though. Remember also that this is all pre-independence. All this was in service to the king.
There is a lot more, but I would be writing forever if I tackled everything. Just understand that his autobiography is a very good way to learn about him on an intimate level. His writing is also very easy to read. He writes very plainly.
The extra content of the book involved various writings and letters. There isn't much of it, but what is there was very good. I especially loved his short story called "The Whistle," where he blew a lot of money on a whistle when he was a child. Now, whenever he saw someone who made bad investments in life, he would say, "They paid too much for their whistle." It seems that whenever Benjamin made a bad judgement in his life, he would learn a lesson from it and pass it on to help him in later decisions.
Even though I do recommend "Fart Proudly," I think you may be better off just finding a copy of his autobiography and reading it that way. Although, if you have some kid who doesn't care much about history, you might show them the title of this book. It might just catch his attention!
This blog was written on March 30, 2026.
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The wisdom of Benjamin Franklin was his curiosity first and foremost. He turned his mistakes into treasures he found along the way. He turned his successes into treasures. He lived his long life to the fullest.
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