Machiavelli - The Good Guy (New Biography - NY Times)

17th-century portrait.   Getty Images 

Machiavelli: Good Guy or Bad? This Biography Argues for the Former

By EDMUND FAWCET
NY Times
JUNE 16, 2017

"...The jacket copy misleadingly presents Benner as salvaging Machiavelli’s thoughts and opinions from demonization, as if they needed rescue. If anyone is keeping count, his historical defenders have probably outnumbered the calumniators. There are ample reasons besides age-old reputational disputes to be intrigued by this elusive figure with his enigmatic smile. Among them are the fortunes and misfortunes of a tumultuous life, which Benner tells with verve. Despite its odd typography, “Be Like the Fox” can be read with pleasure by anyone interested in the craft of politics and the life of ideas.' -  NY Times link