Description: John Dickinson of Pennsylvania and Delaware was an early leader of the resistance to British rule in the American colonies. In fact, to many, he was the most prominent figure in the struggle for independence, though his Quaker-influenced opposition to violence kept him from signing one of its most famous documents in July 1776. Still, Dickinson, one of the wealthiest men in the colonies, did more to promote the cause behind it than almost anyone else, not only as the lead draftsman in all the national Congresses, but in his popular writing. His hugely influential Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania educated colonists about their rights and instructed them in how to defend those rights in non-violent ways. In essence he taught the colonists to think of themselves as Americans, united in a common cause.
Despite the key part he played in the country's founding, few Americans today have heard of John Dickinson. Early chroniclers and historians, seeking to create a patriotic narrative and taking their cues from his political enemies, cast him as a coward and Loyalist for not signing the Declaration. Many later historians have simply accepted and echoed this distorted and dismissive view. Jane Calvert's fascinating, authoritative, and accessible biography restores him to a place of prominence in the nation's formative years.Brief description: Kitty Hendrix has been an actor/singer nearly all of her life, appearing on stage, in film and television, and on concert stages on both the East and West coasts. She has originated nearly thirty leading roles and sung on stages such as Carnegie Hall and Symphony Hall, Boston. She has been an owner/producer of two theater companies and also owned a successful interior design firm. In 2013 Kitty recorded her first audiobook. She was hooked. With wide vocal and emotional range, she is known to have a voice with "gravitas" and can express deep emotional power. She enjoys immersing herself in the POV of the author and the many diverse characters she has portrayed. She is as comfortable performing historical biographies as she is cozy mysteries and thrillers. Kitty has recorded over 100 audiobooks, mostly with major publishers and in nearly every genre. She has won several AudioFile Earphones Awards, been nominated for an Audie (with a title that she self-produced) and been recognized for her narration by Jo Reed of Behind The Mic, AudioFile Magazine, and Library Journal.