1856...a very busy year for Mr. Lincoln!
579834
While the title is a bit deceptive (the legal case doesn't figure as much as it would suggest), this is still a well-written book on a pivotal year in Lincoln's life. Ms. Fenster brings out quite a bit of information I'd never known and paints an engaging picture of life in Lincoln's Springfield. This is an enjoyable book that history buffs and Lincoln fans will enjoy equally.
1035975
There are thousands of books on President Abraham Lincoln. Many focus on his childhood, his early adulthood or his presidency. And even more focus his steering the nation through the civil war and the freeing of slaves via the Emancipation Proclamation.  But it is rare that a NY Times Bestselling author would tackle a subject such as Killing Lincoln. I applaud O'Reilly for his attempt to bring such an important series of historical events to the masses.
636772
In each of the years he served as President of the United

States (minus the 11 southern states which seceded launching the Civil War!) President Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary and family would journey to the Soldiers Retirement Home about 4 miles from the White House. Son Robert would visit on his trips home from Harvard. Youngest Lincoln son Tad enjoyed the Soldiers' Home where he had a menagerie of pets; got to know the guard troops from Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio stationed there. Wife Mary was often vacationing in New England or shopping in New York.

  In this atmosphere Lincoln enjoyed the camaraderie of soldiers; received visitors and enjoyed the company of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton living in a nearby cottage.

  It was in this location that the President agonized over his decision to issue the Emancipation Proclamation; decided to fire

George B. McClellan and help plan the 1864 presidential campaign.

  Every day Lincoln would ride a horse to the White House surrounded by mounted cavalryman. His wife Mary fell from her carriage in July, 1863 while traveling to the home. She was seriously injured .

  Pinsker tells us of plots against Lincoln's life. He may have even been fired upon by an unknown assassin according to a soldier who reported this incident in his postwar memoirs.

  Matthew Pinsker has written an outstanding book adding to our knowledge of the heretofore little known Lincoln residence at the Soldiers Home. The Home is now a National Landmark and is being renovated and opened for the public. One can imagine how awed poet Walt Whitman was as he saw Lincoln on his daily ride from the White House to the Soldiers Home.

  Pinsker draws on a vast array of first person accounts, letters,memoirs and can be complimented on adding to our knowledge of the Lincoln presidency.

  The book is well illustated with maps and is an outstanding addition to anyone interested in the Civil War and the Lincoln presidency. Well recommended!
4091963
Like other reviewers I was surprised when Abraham Lincoln by James M. McPherson arrived.  At only 77 pages, and that includes the notes and a bibliography (no index, sorry), this little volume packs a punch, however.  Having read Carl Sandburg's Abraham Lincoln years ago I was familiar with the amount of detail known by scholars regarding this President.  Team of Rivals, the excellent examination of Lincoln's political genius by Doris Kearns Goodwin in 2005, was also packed with information, much of it new to me.  When I found that McPherson had released a new book on Lincoln it is understandable that I was expecting something heftier.

At a mere 65 pages of actual text, don't underestimate the importance of McPherson's Abraham Lincoln.  Perhaps school children, middle and high school, might actually read this small work.  Small package or not, the basic information is present.

I've admired McPherson for a number of years and have always found his books to be well written and thorough.  His treatment of Abraham Lincoln doesn't include pictures, documents, and even refuses to wander off on tangents, relevant as they might be.  I agree with another reviewer that this might become an annual read for me.

As short as the book is, McPherson manages to let Lincoln's character shine through.

I recommend this book without reservation.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Peace to all.
423720
This was a wonderful, insightful book about the life and times of Mr Lincoln and very well written too! Interesting facts about his humble beginnings. Good pictures to accompany as you read along. Highly recommended.
1474169
Excellent biography of Lincoln by one of his best friends and business partner. Takes a little while in the book to understand the vernacular of a 19th century writer, but in the end it is well worth the time taken to understand some of the phrases used. A good look into an ordinary and extraordinary figure in the history of the United States.
1299035
Very interesting book on Lincoln that asks some very important questions about his upbringing, views and decisions that affect us all. From the basic question as to who was his grandfather (Thomas Jefferson? JC Calhoun? Jefferson Davis's dad?) to why did he allow the Constitution to be trampled? Why did he allow so many opposition leaders to be arrested? Did he have the legal authority to require conscripts? Paper money? Was the entry of Nevada as a state legal? Was West Virginia legal? Many more questions raised in each quick 5 page chapters by leading scholars.

Each chapter by themselves is quick and easy reading and very interesting.
1341166
I enjoy history.  Lincoln, is a very  interesting, n complex.
2250798
I bought this book for my son's 11th birthday. He's always been interested in President Lincoln because they have the same birthday (albeit different years!). This book was the last present he opened - after the gameboy, the new game, and several other books. The gameboy went on the table and the book came out. He read for nearly an hour, occasionally stopping to fill me in on tidbits from the book. The book is very interesting reading, even for adults, and is written in such a way to capture the reader's interest from the beginning. I would highly recommend it!
713496
This was my first Kindle book. What a great choice it was! I've read some Lincoln biographies over the years. None came close to this. I learned so much. Many, many interesting facts. Mr. Lincoln was an amazing man. It was truly divine intervention that he served his country at that time. I can't imagine what would have happened if he wasn't elected. I'm eager to learn more about Mr. Seward. I think it was a blessing that he too served in his capacity. Awesome book!
226957
I like it...wish we could have more leaders like Lincoln. First or country was founded on freedom. Slavery took that freedom away and Lincoln fought to get freedom back.
468267
Very, very interesting.  I learned so much about Mrs. Lincoln and what happened to her after the president was shot!
1352266
I'll admit Andrew Johnson was never on the top of my "must read" presidents list.  But he actually had a fascinating political career.  It makes you wonder what would have happened had Lincoln lived and been able to guide him into reconstruction.  Highly entertaining look at our 17th president.
2334817
I am a big fan of Lincoln, and had the opportunity to meet Burlingame when this book was first published, but didn't want to spend the money on it until now.  Kindle edition is definitely affordable.  Burlingame has thoroughly researched his subject, and writes about it well.  Not sure I entirely agree with some of his opinions on Mary Lincoln, but that is to be expected on works of this nature.  This volume covers the period of Lincoln's early years (and some info on his ancestors) up to his inauguration.  I learned some new things about Abraham, and got a different take on some information I already had.  Going to take a rest before tackling the second volume.
1753355
I downloaded this e-reader edition of Abraham Lincoln after reading the authors history of the Civil War, Battle Cry of Freedom. McPherson says that only after years of studying the history of the Civil War and the political and military pressures on Lincoln did I come to appreciate the skill with which he steered between the numerous shoals of conservatism and radicalism, free states and slave states, abolitionists, Republicans, Democrats, and border-state Unionists to maintain a steady course that brought the nation to victory---and the abolition of slavery---in the end. (p. x) Of course, neither of these two goals seemed likely to be achieved, even as late as August 1864, when Lincoln became resigned to the idea that he and his party were to be swept out of office in the coming November election. He was near despair as he realized that, if the Democrats and their candidate General George McClellan won the election, it would be on the basis of their promise of signing an armistice of peace with the Confederacy. This would be a peace treaty that would, in effect, recognize the independence of the Confederate states and the dissolution of the Union. It would be the end of the United States and the experiment in democracy. It would also end all hope of the end of slavery in America. No wonder Old Abe was in despair.

This nutshell biography of Abraham Lincoln tries to provide a brief sketch of the life of this man who arrived on the national stage at the precise moment in his nations history when it needed his talents most. These talents included political genius combined with a matchless dexterity with the written and spoken word, love and respect for the law, and a hatred of slavery and cruelty in general. The outlines of Lincolns life are well known to every American student: born in poverty on the frontier, almost no formal schooling, self-educated (he treasured any book he could put his hands on), a youth of hard labor (splitting rails and other manual labors), and then the slow rise from local to state and then national politics. But this short book attempts to flesh out those bare bones with details that explain Lincolns rise and why his election caused the United States to split apart. (It was his partys principal plank to exclude slavery from the territories. But the country had been headed for this showdown long before Lincoln came on the scene.)

This book is not the place to find a thorough understanding of Lincoln and his times, but it is not a bad place to start. McPhersons little book gives the reader a good overview of the man and his times. The motivated reader can then delve in deeper with any one of hundreds of more thorough biographies. A bibliography at the end of this book gives the reader some guidance for further reading.
3814463
Most historians concur that Abraham Lincoln was our nations greatest president.  Most non-historians would agree.  If you were alive, however, in 1862, odds are you hated the man.  You certainly didn't think he was that capable of a president.  Yet hard times and suffering breed character, and there was no more dangerous of a time in the history of the United States than when approximately half the states committed treason, tried to secede from the Union, and caused the bloodiest conflict in the history of the nation.

Lincoln began his term in 1861, just as the tinderbox was about to explode.  The war officially began when mortars were fired upon Fort Sumter later that year, and the first battle of Bull Run made everyone take notice of just how precarious the business of war could be.  So this book begins in January the following year, 1862, and it essentially walks us through the main travails of President Lincoln from January to December of that year.

Having a Civil War to deal with is bad enough, but any leader of the free world will tell you that those big problems come packaged with many smaller parcels as well.  Even though the Civil War is the main actor in this play, there are plenty of other calamities to deal with.  Most notably, the year sees the unexpected death of Lincolns young son Willie due to typhoid fever.  If this wasn't bad enough, this tragedy befalls The First Lady so much, that she actually consorts to mediums to hold sances at The White House to try to talk to young Willies spirit.

Then we have problems with other countries.  England, for instance, is keen to join the war  with the Confederacy, that is.  Oh sure, they believe slavery is bad, but the South controls the cotton, and cotton, you know, is good business.  Lincoln also had a cabinet that was frequently disharmonious with each other, and many didn't care for their Commander in Chief (see Doris Kearns Goodwins excellent book Team of Rivals).

What this book really shows, is Abraham Lincolns leadership and calm demeanor throughout all of these events.  Most normal men would explode with the amount of idiocy and insubordination that is ever present at the time, but somehow, this president knows exactly how to juggle all of the balls and keep everyone content while slowly moving the nation towards the direction where it needs to go.  Its a slow, painful, time, and strong patience is needed if changes are to be made and for the country to begin the healing process and become great again.

Are all of his moves perfect?  Well, no.  Example: Hes all for freeing the slaves, but doesnt believe that the two races can live in harmony, so he begins exploring ways to ship the freed slaves <I>back</I> to Africa while setting up a colony for them.  This idea doesnt go over well with the black population (freed and slave).  Even though theyve had a tumultuous time during their entire life, America is now their home.  Wisely, Lincoln quickly abandons the idea.

The book ends at the conclusion of 1862.  Oh sure, we all know what happens during the next few years, but I, for one, kind of wish that the author would have kept going.  I would have loved to have read about all of the events, however painful, up to Appomattox, and Lincolns eventual assassination.  Perhaps this was the original intent of the author, yet he realized that the best stuff was from this one year.  Since this one year ultimately shaped the president and was the precursor to setting the nation on the right track, it isn't a bad thing that were limited to 1862.  I found this to be a great book about a great man that had to lead the country during its worst time in history.

As I write this review in March 2016, it kind of makes problems like Donald Trump seem incredibly inconsequential.
375531
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The first-hand accounts and letters gave me a much better understanding of the man, the era, and the events. I am sure some of the accounts were more generous than factual, but there is no denying Lincoln was a remarkable man on many levels. I was surprised at how affected I was as events approached the well-known conclusion. It also shows that politics and Washington DC have never been as good as we would like them to be.