Michael Koski

Dear Ben, The Secret Life of Benjamin Franklin

On his last night, the great man is compelled to tell the true story of his life
to his friend and manservant, Bobby, including the unsavory bits history books
will gloss over.
Franklin knows he has only one night to atone for his sins. He has come to
abhor slavery and offers to free Bobby, who hesitates, fearing the outside world.
Bobby wants to know how his master rose from obscurity to wealth and fame.
“Read my book,” (his autobiography) Franklin tells him. “What’s not in the book?”
Bobby asks, unleashing the story of the unknown Benjamin Franklin.
Franklin unfurls a sprawling saga of intrigue, romance, epic battles, love and
loss. Bobby learns why Franklin never married his common-law wife, Deborah, or
Margaret Stevenson, with whom he lived in London for fifteen years. Franklin
tells a story fraught with illegitimate offspring, fathered by himself, his son, and
his grandson. Who was the mother of his own bastard son, William? It is a
confidence Bobby will take to his grave.
Franklin’s late-hour tale foretells the demise of slavery and the rise of the
United States, promising a new world order. Bobby’s decision to accept Franklin’s
offer of freedom, only moments before Franklin succumbs, leads “Dear Ben” to a
surprising conclusion.

Book published (hardcover and paperback), Barnes & Noble, 2024