If you mention the name William Penn anywhere in America, he is immediately associated with the founding of Pennsylvania. For some, the iconic image of Penn treating with the Indians comes to mind; the story of his exemplary relationship with native peoples resonates with the public. For others, perhaps, Penn's political contributions to the founding of our democracy rise in their memory. His work in urban planning is still very much alive in the streets of his City of Brotherly Love. His political contributions are alive in our nation's constitution. His work as an author resounds even today as some of his works are still in print well over 300 years later. He left an exceptional legacy. Penn was a scholar, husband, father, champion of religious tolerance, developer, city planner, visionary and much more. Many books have been written about his life and contributions.What frequently is lost to many authors and students is the more complex side of Penn, the poor financial manager, the player in royal court games. There is Penn the governor who worked with pollical allies and in defense of political rivals. Always following a steadfast religious compass upon his conversion to the Society of Friends, Penn would become intimate with Quaker leaders such as Thomas Ellwood and founder George Fox. Penn's ability to write and orate helped spread the faith well beyond England to the continent and the colonies. His entrepreneurial edge (severely flawed) would continue to bring Quakers to the New World and his fledgling colony. Many books have been written on Friend Penn, few with the depth of research that anchors Andrew Murphy's new work, William Penn: A Life, in primary source materials. Penn is one of those historical figures that we all think of as a good guy. Murphy makes it clear he was complex and at times contradictory to the iconic image painted in rose-colored biographies.Andrew Murphy, a professor in political science at Rutgers–New Brunswick, spent years developing his first work on the political Penn, Liberty, Conscience and Toleration: The Political Thought of William Penn. In doing endless hours of primary research and chasing the original documents across oceans, Murphy began to know Penn the man, not just the religious and political theorist. Murphy also recognized that there has been no recent biographical look at William Penn for many decades. This prompted his drive, which has produced an extraordinary book. Far from being a shining refection on how we would wish Penn to be, William Penn: A Life examines Penn the human being with all his faults. Charismatic, conflicted, and at times contradictory, the man in this biography is presented without gold gilding but with excellent supporting documentation.Penn's early years are briefly touched upon, primarily because there remains little source material to document those formative years. Throughout this work the author does not shy away from noting what is missing and what we just don't know. He steps wide around conjecture and best guesses but remains rooted to what exists in period documents. He offers fresh treatment of the story of the naming of the new colony: Penn's request to the Crown of “New Wales” is rejected and his alternative suggestion of Sylvania is embellished by King Charles to honor his father, in spite of Penn's attempts to thwart it, fearing some would see it as vanity on his part.Dr. Murphy does note Penn's championing political and religious liberty as well as his slave ownership in this biographical demonstration of the contradictions that are William Penn. A recurring theme in Penn's life and in this book are his obvious and crippling shortcomings when it came to managing his money. A clear and unbiased explanation of the financial woes and fiscal intrigues involving his friend and subordinate Phillip Ford and Ford's widow are explained. Penn's desire to sell Pennsylvania back to the Crown and the intrigues that would ultimately block those efforts may surprise those who are not in-depth Penn scholars.This new biography offers no judgments but instead provides illumination in great depth of the complex man that would influence our nation. Dr. Murphy uses primary documents, most frequently the microfilm of the papers of William Penn at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, to paint a portrait carefully kept in context of the times and occurrences of Penn's age to give us an honest account of a truly extraordinary individual. The plague to conflagration, spiritual awakening to life conversions, religious struggles, and war-swept battles would influence Penn, a man of his age. He would be one of the few political theorists who would put his ideas into action. Perpetually striving to make the world better while spending himself into debt, William Penn: A Life explores one of our most beloved and misunderstood Founders. For all of us who revere Penn and his good works, this book is highly recommended for its accuracy and willingness to portray Penn the man as well as we can document him; a visionary and full of contradictions. His was truly an astounding life.