The hardcover is an aesthetically stunning book, full of gorgeous pictures and copies of historical documents. It's beautifully written and well organized. Oskar Eustis, artistic director of the Public Theater, where the show held its workshop run, lost his 16-year-old son in late 2014. Lost for what he should say, Lin sent Eustis and his wife a demo of the song "It's Quiet Uptown" in the hopes that it might offer comfort, and they listened to it every day. More sobs.I mean, really. How could you expect this to be anything but wonderful? Everything this man does is smart, thoughtful, and complex. Watch any interview out there with him (may I recommend the Charlie Rose piece that got chopped up for 60 Minutes), and you immediately realize that he is one of the most passionately enthusiastic people ever. His mind never stops going. He pours everything he has into everything he does. This book is no different. If you're a fan, this is a must. I inhaled this thing in a single sitting. No kidding. I haven't seen this show -listened to the music - but the hardcover is breathtaking....I don't own it ... nor have I read every detail of it...but it's really gorgeous.

Granted, I'm the sort of person who loves talking and reading about the process of creating art, and why certain words were chosen, and rhyme schemes, etcetera, so I'm always going to want as much of that as possible. There were lyrics and moments that I'm dying from curiosity to know how he came up with them, and why he wrote them a certain way, that nothing was said about. There's a note about how someone threw a shoe in fake disgust during the recording because Leslie Odom Jr. was so damn good while singing "Wait for It," then when the rest of the cast was supposed to go add in their harmonies, Okieriete Onaodowan responded, "I'm not singing shit right now." I think is difficult to overstate the importance of having a second generation Puerto Rican drawing attention to the story of Hamilton, himself an immigrant from the Caribbean. Perhaps Miranda's greatest achievement might be helping a new generation to see the history of America as part of an overarching narrative and these historical figures as fallible human beings that did something extraordinary.Lin-Manuel Miranda's groundbreaking musical Hamilton is as revolutionary as its subject, the poor kid from the Caribbean who fought the British, defended the Constitution, and helped to found the United States. Fusing hip-hop, pop, R&B, and the best traditions of theater, this once-in-a-generation show broadens the sound of Broadway, reveals the storytelling power of rap, and claims our country's origins for a diverse new generation. Hamilton: The Revolution, which tells the story of the musical from its inception through its current Broadway run, has just the kind of fun, conversational tone I was hoping for. It makes you feel like an insider, which is exactly what fans like me who aren't going to get within a thousand miles of New York City are clamoring for. You want to feel like Hamilton is your musical, too, even though you're limited to blasting the cast album and binging on #Ham4Ham videos on YouTube.

There's a chapter on the book that explores the impact the play is already having on kids, many of whom before seeing Hamilton had not interest in learning American history and are now, like my own kids, thoroughly engaged and fascinated by it. I opted for the audio on this one in an attempt to turn my frown upside down on my daily commute. I went in blind thinking Lin-Manuel himself would be doing all of the reading, but sadly he only did the footnotes (which, trust me, were well worth the price of admission). Mariska Hargitay wound up being the voice and while I realize she’s become some sort of pop culture icon I have to say . . . .In which a family of non-theater goers gets swept off their feet by the cultural phenomenon that is Hamilton Then on November 2009, a newly minted President Obama and First Lady Michele Obama welcomed Miranda and his collaborator Alex Lacamoire to the White House's "Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word". At the last minute Miranda decided to sing the first song from the Hamilton Mixtape, his performance that night is already on the history books. You can watch the video here. Edit:*This play is so relevant to our world right now. This country has been a place where "A place where even orphan immigrants can leave their fingerprints and rise up" since the day we've been founded. Why should that ever change? The fact that people are calling for a boycott of this play is complete idiocy. The only people who are calling for one are those who support the hate and the racism in the first place. How about we try our best to not let them EVER win?*

It is expected that in a few years, the musical will be licensed so high schools all over the country will be able produce the show. I believe that will be the lasting legacy of this play and Lin-Manuel Miranda. It is now less than 2 months until we see Hamilton. It will be about 1 year after they moved into the Rogers Theatre and most likely right after Hamilton cleans up at the Tony Awards. I bought this book which, btw, is beautifully made and organized and a sort of cheat-sheet, uber playbill for the musical. It is organized into 32 chapters and two acts. It roughly follows the Musical and history of the musical. It tells the story of the production. Each chapter contains a detail about the musical, written like a review or online article. One chapter discusses the choreography, another discusses the album, another discusses Daveed Diggs, another Ron Chernow. Each of these chapters gives a little bit more insight into the development of the Musical from one song played at the White House, to a Mix Tape of songs, to the Public Theatre, to the Richard Rogers Theatre. This is a book definitely for fans. As a few Goodread reviewers have stated, sometimes the right person tells the right story at the right moment.The reaction from the people on the audience that night should have given us a hint of what was to come.