Tuesday, May 25, 2004 | 12:00 AM
Ron Chernow, whom The New York Times has called "as elegant an architect of monumental histories as we've seen in decades," brings to startling life the man who was the principal designer of the federal government, the catalyst for the emergence of the two-party system, the patron saint of Wall Street, and the object of ardent idolatry as well as vehement loathing by his peers. Alexander Hamilton was arguably the most important figure in American history who never attained the presidency, but he had a far more lasting impact than many who did.