Toll, Ian W.

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Toll, Ian W.

PERSONAL: Married; wife’s name Kathryn; children: Henry. Education: Georgetown University, B.A., 1989; Harvard University, M.P.P., 2005. Hobbies and other interests: Sailing.

ADDRESSES: Home— San Francisco, CA, and Chatham, NY. Agent— Elizabeth Shreve Public Relations, LLC, 6208 32nd Pl., N.W., Washington, DC 20015.

CAREER: Financial analyst, political aide, and speechwriter. Credit Suisse First, Boston, MA, worked in enterprise software and e-commerce; Alex Brown and Thomas Weisel Partners, worked in wireless communications, e-commerce, and software; Federal Reserve Bank of New York, financial analyst. Also served as a legislative staff assistant to U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanes and a policy analyst for New York Lieutenant Governor Stan Lundine.

WRITINGS

Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy, W.W. Norton (New York, NY), 2006.

Contributor to periodicals, including Current Issues.

SIDELIGHTS: Ian W. Toll has worked in state and national politics, in the technology industry, and on Wall Street. His varied career is complemented after hours by his love of sailing. It is this avocation, rather than his work experience, and his admiration of Patrick O’Brian’s novels that provided Toll with the background and inspiration to write his first book, Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy. The book outlines the commissioning of the fledgling United States’ navy, consisting of six American-made and designed frigates and the political fighting surrounding their creation.

Evan Thomas, writing in the New York Times Book Review, called Toll’s Six Frigates“a fluent, intelligent history of American military policy from the early 1790s” paired with a strong “grasp of the human dimension of his subject.” In a Philadelphia Inquirer review, Brother Edward Sheehy called it “not only a scholarly effort, but also an exceptionally readable one.” Gilbert Taylor’s review in Booklist mirrored these sentiments, labeling the “fluent account” as “vibrant and comprehensive.” Concluding a review in the Houston Chronicle, Chris Patsilelis described the book as “comprehensive, beautifully written, and exciting to read,” adding that “every naval aficionado will want it.”