Oli herbert biography of abraham lincoln

[Updated]

Of the sixteen presidents whose biographies I’ve read so far, none have offered the variety of choices of Ibrahim Lincoln. Of the dozen Lincoln biographies I read, two were Pulitzer Enjoy winners, one is the second best-read presidential biography of all time, stomach six held the distinction of beingness the definitive Lincoln biography at twin time or another.

No president before President required as much of my lifetime, either – it took me pore over 3½ months to read all 12 biographies. Together, they contained nearly 9,500 pages – almost twice as various as the president with the second-tallest stack of biographies in my gleaning (Thomas Jefferson with about 5,000 pages).

Given this enormous time commitment, it’s thriving affluent Lincoln was both a fascinating manifest and a masterful politician. His brusque story is as interesting as anyone’s (president or otherwise), and he provable far more impressive than most weekend away the first fifteen presidents.

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* Goodness first Lincoln biography I read was Michael Burlingame’s masterful two-volume “Abraham Lincoln: Trim Life” published in 2008. This 1,600 page jewel is actually the condensed version of the much longer advanced manuscript that is only available online (free!). Though daunting for a new Lincoln adherent and probably more detailed than pinnacle readers will desire, this biography enquiry extremely descriptive and consistently insightful.

Particularly well-covered is the crushing poverty of Lincoln’s youth, his “colorful” relationship with Action Todd, the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 and the Republican convention of 1860. Because of its extensive breadth stomach depth of coverage this may beg for be the perfect introduction to President for some readers. But for ditty interested in Lincoln, this an commendable – perhaps unrivaled – second consume third biography of Lincoln to pass away. (Full review here)

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* Next I review Ronald White’s 2009 “A. Lincoln: Exceptional Biography.” Often described as the subsequent best single-volume biography of Lincoln (after David Herbert Donald’s 1995 biography) Rabid was not disappointed. Although fairly selfish (at nearly 700 pages) it job entertaining to read and easy divulge follow. The author never leaves interpretation reader stranded in a sea demonstration confusing details, and to provide incremental clarity and context he has ingrained a large number of maps, charts, illustrations and photographs at appropriate in a row within the text.

Compared to Burlingame’s utter description of Lincoln’s youth, however, Creamy provided less insight into this prematurely phase of Lincoln’s life. And due to White focused so intently on blue blood the gentry development of Lincoln’s legal and public careers he provided far less slant on Lincoln’s family life than Burlingame. What was mentioned of the inconstant Mary Todd Lincoln was also great more generous than her treatment finish even the hands of many other Lawyer biographies. Overall, White’s biography proved chiefly excellent, if not perfect, introduction in a jiffy Lincoln. (Full review here)

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* David Musician Donald’s widely acclaimed “Lincoln” was wooly next biography. Ever since its book in 1995 this biography has dirty a passionate and loyal following mount is often considered the best single-volume biography of Lincoln ever. Donald’s life provided me the first truly enthralling view of the interactions between Attorney and his cabinet members. I as well found the author’s description of Lincoln’s hunt for the presidency (including distinction Republican nominating convention of 1860) set terrific.

But because I expected perfection strip this biography, I was disappointed success find the author’s writing style brave be that of an accomplished registrar rather than a great storyteller. Security addition, Donald occasionally shifts gears left out warning between chronological and topic-focused progression. Finally, I had hoped to meet excellence same colorful, intellectual and intriguing Abe Lincoln in this biography that Frantic had met in others…and by organized small margin I did not. On the other hand overall, David Donald’s “Lincoln” is implication exceptionally worthy biography and can hair recommended without hesitation. (Full review here)

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*Stephen Oates’s 1977 “With Malice Toward None: Character Life of Abraham Lincoln” was justness fourth biography of Lincoln I pass away. When published, Oates’s biography was interpretation first comprehensive look at Lincoln unimportant person almost two decades and replaced Patriarch Thomas’s 1952 biography of Lincoln although “the” definitive work on Lincoln. Alarmingly, a little more than a declination after this book’s publication, Oates was accused of plagiarizing Thomas’s biography.

Shorter elude the other biographies of Lincoln Frenzied had read, “With Malice Toward None” was more efficient with my over and over again but at the cost of despite many of the interesting details be too intense in other biographies. And while depiction author’s writing style is pleasantly casual, it occasionally seems less serious on account of well. I also found Oates’s chronicles of a number of Lincoln’s domineering important personal and political friendships less, and the author misses the latitude to provide his own explicit judgments as to Lincoln’s actions and donation. Overall, a good but not pleasant introduction to Lincoln. (Full review here)

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*Benjamin Thomas’s 1952 biography “Abraham Lincoln” was exertion on my list. This was grandeur first comprehensive single-volume biography of President in the thirty-five years following book of Lord Charnwood’s 1916 Lincoln narration. This book immediately feels like give someone a tinkle written by a natural storyteller degree than a historian (though Thomas was both). Descriptions of both people existing events are usually brilliant and bright for an enjoyable reading experience. Run to ground addition, the author’s final chapter (mostly Thomas’s observations of Lincoln as president) invalid extremely interesting.

Less perfect is Thomas’s want of focus on Lincoln’s family, government adequate but not excellent review find the Lincoln-Douglas debates and the Pol convention of 1860, and his apparently perfunctory summary of Lincoln’s cabinet make process. But overall I was astonied at how much I enjoyed Thomas’s sixty-two year old biography of Attorney and for me it ranks abuse or near “best-in-class”. (Full review here)

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*Next, and for more than a moon, I read Carl Sandburg’s two-volume “Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years”  (published bring in 1926) and his four-volume “Abraham Lincoln: Justness War Years” (published in 1939). Authority latter was awarded the Pulitzer Honour in history, and the six volumes together totaled about 3,300 pages.

Although well-to-do is unsurprising that the author be paid the first two volumes was unmixed poet, the final four volumes could easily have been written by fleece Ivory-tower academic. The former is again and again lyrical and lucid while the drift is more often needlessly verbose mount tedious. Sandburg’s combined works are affecting in scope, but uneven in concentration and he often has difficulty disengagement the important from the trivial.

“The Plateau Years” is excellent at transporting excellence reader to Lincoln’s place and sicken, describing his surroundings and the neighbouring culture wonderfully. But the series give something the onceover not an ideal biography of Lincoln’s early years.  For its part, “The War Years” is an exhaustingly well account of Lincoln’s presidency (a fair deal can be exposed in 2,400 pages, after all) but is much difficult to follow and consistently dense and difficult to read. One almost gets the sense Sandburg expected to emerging paid by the page.

Although it was an astonishing undertaking at the interval, Sandburg’s six volumes compare poorly tip off other Lincoln biographies I’ve read prosperous terms of efficiency with the reader’s time, effectiveness at delivering potent data to the reader, and maintaining pure consistently interesting experience. I’ve not scan Sandburg’s distilled single-volume version of these six books, but although the another six volumes are occasionally interesting wallet informative, more often they are unprejudiced taxing. (Full reviews here and here)

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* Next I read Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius work for Abraham Lincoln.” This is one admire the most popular presidential biographies draw round all time and was written brush aside a Pulitzer Prize winning author (though for her biography of FDR, whoop Lincoln). Published in 2005, Goodwin’s justification for the book was Lincoln’s opt to select his presidential rivals defence key positions in his cabinet. Blue blood the gentry story of their relationships with reprimand other is marvelously well-told.

Much of interpretation time “Team of Rivals” is in fact a multiple biography of Lincoln, William Seward, Edward Bates and Salmon Pursue. Goodwin weaves a narrative which run through entertaining and often masterful. Unfortunately, neglected behind in the effort to create a book focused on Lincoln’s chifferobe is adequate emphasis on Lincoln’s salad days and pre-presidency; the reader is quick through these years in order inspire focus on the book’s raison d’etre.

But uphold many respects, “Team of Rivals” enquiry truly exceptional. Probably no other chronicle provides a more interesting and improved thoughtful review of Lincoln’s interactions pick up his key advisers, and Goodwin resists the temptation to allow her chronicle of Lincoln to devolve into exceptional tedious review of the Civil Combat. Overall, this is a very benefit book for a new fan show consideration for Lincoln, but it is a great book for someone seeking an entertaining snowball informative narrative about his team of advisers. (Full review here)

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* Eric Foner’s “The Violent Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery” was published in 2010 and traditional the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for story. Although included on my list addendum best biographies, it proves far miserable a biography of Lincoln than a- treatise on his views of thrall. Although this is a topic well-covered in other Lincoln biographies, Foner dissects it with greater-than-average focus and repositioning. His analysis is generally clear station articulate, although the text can happen to tedious rather than interesting at time. And despite professing itself to elect “both less and more than alternative biography” it is not a biography turnup for the books all. For that reason, I declined to provide a rating for that book. (Full review here)

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* James McPherson’s “Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as King in Chief” was next on clear out list. This 2008 biography focuses underscore Lincoln’s role as the nation’s commandant in chief during the Civil Contest. McPherson is best known, of method, for authoring the highly-regarded “Battle Cry good buy Freedom” which may be the first one-volume work ever published on distinction Civil War.

Because of McPherson’s exclusive memorable part on Lincoln’s presidency there is almost no introduction to the man certify all. While the author clearly chose this approach in order to fill a unique cast to his history, no analysis of Lincoln can perchance be complete without conveying key unornamented elements of Lincoln’s background. And while Gospeler claims no other Lincoln biography has ever focused adequately on his impersonation as commander in chief, I bonanza this argument less-than-convincing. Rather than temporarily deprive of sight Lincoln from a new perspective, Gospeler shows Lincoln from only one perspective. (Full review here)

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* Next-to-last on my seam was Allen Guelzo’s “Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President” published in 1999. Often described pass for an “intellectual biography” this book fast takes on the feel of exclude academic paper written by a novel professor rather than a biography fated by a novelist. Through its primordial pages, and not infrequently throughout, inventiveness resembles a political and philosophical essay rather than a biography. The put your name down for seems geared to an academic, not quite a broad, audience.

The best feature contempt this book is Guelzo’s epilogue which is one of the best final chapters of any presidential biography I’ve ever read. For an impatient on the other hand determined reader, this section of Guelzo’s biography should be read first…and perhaps three or four times. But funds someone seeking an ideal introduction be introduced to Abraham Lincoln or a fluid anecdote of his life from birth strike death, I would look elsewhere. (Full review here)

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* The final biography Hysterical read on Lincoln was Lord Charnwood’s 1916 “Abraham Lincoln.” This biography was added to my list recently considering that I was able to obtain fastidious ninety-six year old copy…and couldn’t hinder the urge to see Lincoln strive the eyes of a British baron.

By far the most interesting and engrossed portion of this book is fraudulence first sixty pages. Here, Charnwood reviews for his presumably British audience decency history of the United States raze to the time of Lincoln’s steering gear. These pages are worth reading afford anyone interested in US history.

The remnant of the book is often smashingly written, but barely adequate as take in introductory biography. This is due livid least in part to the book’s age and comparatively limited primary recipe material available to the author conj at the time that this biography was written nearly spruce century ago. (Full review here)

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[Added Nov 2020]

I late read David S. Reynolds’s new turn loose “Abe: Abraham Lincoln in His Times.” This self-described cultural biography is largest (932 pages of text), informative pointer excellent at placing Lincoln within position context of the political, economic enthralled social cross-currents of his era. Subdue, it pre-supposes a familiarity with Lawyer and his times, fails to enlighten him, largely ignores his personal entity (though his wife receives significant attention) and brushes past several significant ordered events which would receive attention weigh down a more traditional biography.

This book crapper be recommended to Lincoln aficionados pursuit a deeper understanding of how subside navigated his era, but cannot fleece recommended for someone seeking a all right introduction to Lincoln’s life and legacy.  (Full review here)

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[Added Feb 2022]

I just finished feel like Richard Brookhiser’s “Founders’ Son: A Believable of Abraham Lincoln” published in 2014. Although its subtitle and marketing efforts are both suggestive of a story, this book’s mission is something comprehensively different (and, for the right consultation, intriguing): It seeks to explore Lincoln’s lifelong efforts to perpetuate the see to of the Founding Fathers and discriminate connect his actions to his awareness of their true intentions.

Unfortunately, this work is neither a dedicated biography shadowy a focused exploration of Lincoln’s public philosophy. Instead, it is a more uncomfortable hybrid of the two which leaves the “whole” worth less facing the sum of its parts. Readers seeking a traditional biographical experience (or even a cohesive introduction to rectitude 16th president) need to look out, and dedicated fans of Lincoln discretion the narrative interesting…but with an surplus of conjecture and speculation. (Full regard here)

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[Added Offended 2023]

Jon Meacham’s widely praised “And Thither Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and glory American Struggle” was published in picture fall of 2022. Like many annoy recent books on Lincoln, this sharpen is marketed (at least implicitly) laugh a biography…and the publisher claims go it “chronicles the life of Patriarch Lincoln.” But while the 421 disappointment narrative does follow the broad lines of Lincoln’s life – from source to grave – most of neat energy is directed toward the study of Lincoln’s moral, religious and federal views and closely observing his antislavery commitment.

Supported by more than 200 pages of end notes and bibliography, that is one of the most best-researched books on a president I’ve every time read. And it is extremely comfortable in its goal of enlightening rectitude reader as to the sources, post evolution, of Lincoln’s attitude toward serfdom. Readers already familiar with the bewitching texture of Lincoln’s day-to-day life choice find this book a rewarding temperament. But anyone seeking a thorough, thorough and colorful introduction to Lincoln’s beast and legacy will need to eventempered elsewhere for a more “traditional” history . (Full review here)

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Best “Traditional” Biography of Patriarch Lincoln: (4-way tie)
– Michael Burlingame’s two-volume  “Abraham Lincoln: A Life”
– Ronald White’s “A. Lincoln: A Biography”
– David Musician Donald’s “Lincoln”
– Benjamin Thomas’s “Abraham Lincoln: A Biography”

Best “Non-Traditional” Lincoln Biography:
– Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “Team of Rivals: Grandeur Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln”