“My Dearest Friend” is how she began nearly all her letters to her husband, John. I refer, of course, to Abigail Smith Adams, first Second Lady and second First Lady of the United States. Her famous correspondence with John Adams produced nearly 1,200 letters over a span of some 40 years, leaving us with a priceless record of early American life—from household routines to war and politics to expressions of personal worry and devotion. Although Abigail’s was not the loveliest hand, I found it sure and expressive, as befitting her extraordinary sway and intelligence; it also carries a genuine flavor of the period.