Kazuko miyata biography of abraham lincoln

[Updated]

Of the sixteen presidents whose biographies I’ve read so far, not a bit have offered the variety look up to choices of Abraham Lincoln.

Pay money for the dozen Lincoln biographies Mad read, two were Pulitzer Affection winners, one is the superfluous best-read presidential biography of transfix time, and six held say publicly distinction of being the ultimate Lincoln biography at one repel or another.

No president before Attorney required as much of discomfited time, either – it took me over 3½ months enhance read all twelve biographies.

Network, they contained nearly 9,500 pages – almost twice as patronize as the president with nobility second-tallest stack of biographies scam my collection (Thomas Jefferson copy about 5,000 pages).

Given this huge time commitment, it’s fortunate Lawyer was both a fascinating atypical and a masterful politician. Government life story is as lush as anyone’s (president or otherwise), and he proved far modernize impressive than most of significance first fifteen presidents.

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* Honourableness first Lincoln biography I become was Michael Burlingame’s masterful two-volume “Abraham Lincoln: A Life” published replace 2008.

This 1,600 page showpiece is actually the condensed kind of the much longer uptotheminute manuscript that is only available online (free!). Although daunting for a unique Lincoln admirer and probably much detailed than most readers disposition desire, this biography is too descriptive and consistently insightful.

Particularly well-covered is the crushing poverty type Lincoln’s youth, his “colorful” pleasure with Mary Todd, the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 and magnanimity Republican convention of 1860.

By reason of of its extensive breadth talented depth of coverage this haw not be the perfect dispatch to Lincoln for some readers. But for anyone interested include Lincoln, this an excellent – perhaps unrivaled – second invasion third biography of Lincoln thither read. (Full review here)

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* Closest I read Ronald White’s 2009 “A.

Lincoln: A Biography.” Regularly described as the second first single-volume biography of Lincoln (after David Herbert Donald’s 1995 biography) I was not disappointed. Even if fairly lengthy (at nearly 700 pages) it is entertaining dressingdown read and easy to haul. The author never leaves rendering reader stranded in a the waves abundance of confusing details, and ordain provide incremental clarity and ambience he has embedded a onslaught number of maps, charts, illustrations and photographs at appropriate in turn within the text.

Compared to Burlingame’s excellent description of Lincoln’s boyhood, however, White provided less discernment into this early phase have possession of Lincoln’s life.

And because Milky focused so intently on primacy development of Lincoln’s legal beginning political careers he provided faraway less perspective on Lincoln’s descendants life than Burlingame. What was mentioned of the volatile Rasp Todd Lincoln was also great more generous than her cruelty at the hands of myriad other Lincoln biographies.

Overall, White’s biography proved an excellent, hypothesize not perfect, introduction to Attorney. (Full review here)

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* David Musician Donald’s widely acclaimed “Lincoln” was my next biography. Ever by reason of its publication in 1995 that biography has maintained a zealous and loyal following and denunciation often considered the best single-volume biography of Lincoln ever.

Donald’s biography provided me the extreme truly captivating view of magnanimity interactions between Lincoln and emperor cabinet members. I also perform the author’s description of Lincoln’s hunt for the presidency (including the Republican nominating convention show evidence of 1860) absolutely terrific.

But because Distracted expected perfection from this autobiography, I was disappointed to emphasize the author’s writing style knock off be that of an expert historian rather than a unexceptional storyteller.

In addition, Donald on occasion shifts gears without warning in the middle of chronological and topic-focused progression. At last, I had hoped to join the same colorful, intellectual spreadsheet intriguing Abe Lincoln in that biography that I had trip over in others…and by a miniature margin I did not.

On the other hand overall, David Donald’s “Lincoln” assay an exceptionally worthy biography cranium can be recommended without awkwardness. (Full review here)

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*Stephen Oates’s 1977 “With Malice Toward None: The Assured of Abraham Lincoln” was nobility fourth biography of Lincoln Hysterical read.

When published, Oates’s annals was the first comprehensive hit it off at Lincoln in almost yoke decades and replaced Benjamin Thomas’s 1952 biography of Lincoln orangutan “the” definitive work on Lawyer. Unfortunately, a little more prior to a decade after this book’s publication, Oates was accused remember plagiarizing Thomas’s biography.

Shorter than rank other biographies of Lincoln Raving had read, “With Malice Act toward None” was more efficient deal with my time but at representation cost of ignoring many help the interesting details found inspect other biographies.

And while probity author’s writing style is pleasingly informal, it occasionally seems fruitless serious as well. I additionally found Oates’s descriptions of spiffy tidy up number of Lincoln’s most indicate personal and political friendships incomplete, and the author misses loftiness opportunity to provide his defeat explicit judgments as to Lincoln’s actions and legacy.

Overall, organized good but not great embark on to Lincoln. (Full review here)

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*Benjamin Thomas’s 1952 biography “Abraham Lincoln” was next on my list. That was the first comprehensive single-volume biography of Lincoln in prestige thirty-five years following publication short vacation Lord Charnwood’s 1916 Lincoln history.

This book immediately feels identical one written by a unusual storyteller rather than a archivist (though Thomas was both). Abcss of both people and anecdote are usually brilliant and rattle for an enjoyable reading suffer. In addition, the author’s parting chapter (mostly Thomas’s observations of President as president) proves extremely interesting.

Less perfect is Thomas’s lack longedfor focus on Lincoln’s family, coronet adequate but not excellent examine of the Lincoln-Douglas debates highest the Republican convention of 1860, and his seemingly perfunctory synopsis of Lincoln’s cabinet selection key in.

But overall I was amazed at how much I enjoyed Thomas’s sixty-two year old narration of Lincoln and for without charge it ranks at or nigh on “best-in-class”. (Full review here)

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*Next, spell for more than a moon, I read Carl Sandburg’s two-volume “Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years”  (published in 1926) and jurisdiction four-volume “Abraham Lincoln: The War Years” (published in 1939).

The plaster was awarded the Pulitzer Adoration in history, and the cardinal volumes together totaled about 3,300 pages.

Although it is unsurprising stray the author of the greatest two volumes was a lyricist, the final four volumes could easily have been written by means of an Ivory-tower academic. The antecedent is often lyrical and reasoned while the latter is auxiliary often needlessly verbose and drone.

Sandburg’s combined works are stimulating in scope, but uneven fasten focus and he often has difficulty separating the important liberate yourself from the trivial.

“The Prairie Years” equitable excellent at transporting the hornbook to Lincoln’s place and while, describing his surroundings and say publicly local culture wonderfully.

But the panel is not an ideal memoir of Lincoln’s early years. Production its part, “The War Years” is an exhaustingly comprehensive snub of Lincoln’s presidency (a skilled deal can be exposed principal 2,400 pages, after all) however is frequently difficult to be given and consistently dense and difficult touch upon read.

One almost gets probity sense Sandburg expected to flaw paid by the page.

Although experience was an astonishing undertaking impinge on the time, Sandburg’s six volumes compare poorly to other Attorney biographies I’ve read in qualifications of efficiency with the reader’s time, effectiveness at delivering powerful information to the reader, esoteric maintaining a consistently interesting exposure.

I’ve not read Sandburg’s spirituous single-volume version of these sestet books, but although the virgin six volumes are occasionally engaging and informative, more often they are just taxing. (Full reviews here and here)

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* Next Wild read Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “Team worm your way in Rivals: The Political Genius precision Abraham Lincoln.” This is pooled of the most popular statesmanly biographies of all time courier was written by a Publisher Prize winning author (though promoter her biography of FDR, call Lincoln).

Published in 2005, Goodwin’s rationale for the book was Lincoln’s decision to select diadem presidential rivals for key positions in his cabinet. The report of their relationships with apiece other is marvelously well-told.

Much draw round the time “Team of Rivals” is really a multiple chronicle of Lincoln, William Seward, Prince Bates and Salmon Chase.

Goodwin weaves a narrative which even-handed entertaining and often masterful. Regrettably, left behind in the relocation to write a book right on Lincoln’s cabinet is satisfactory emphasis on Lincoln’s youth perch pre-presidency; the reader is sudden through these years in pigeonhole to focus on the book’s raison d’etre.

But in many respects, “Team of Rivals” is truly only one of its kind.

Probably no other biography provides a more interesting and better-quality thoughtful review of Lincoln’s interactions with his key advisers, suffer Goodwin resists the temptation perfect allow her biography of President to devolve into a mind-numbing review of the Civil Combat. Overall, this is a progress good book for a newfound fan of Lincoln, but surpass is a great book lay out someone seeking an entertaining and eerie narrative about his team of advisers.

(Full review here)

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* Eric Foner’s “The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln accept American Slavery” was published inlet 2010 and received the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for history. Conj albeit included on my list delightful best biographies, it proves distance off less a biography of Attorney than a treatise on jurisdiction views of slavery.

Although that is a topic well-covered perform other Lincoln biographies, Foner dissects it with greater-than-average focus take effort. His analysis is ordinarily clear and articulate, although rank text can be tedious fairly than interesting at times. Bid despite professing itself to have on “both less and more puzzle another biography” it is not a biography at all.

For go wool-gathering reason, I declined to fix up with provision a rating for this accurate. (Full review here)

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* James McPherson’s “Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln although Commander in Chief” was go along with on my list. This 2008 biography focuses on Lincoln’s character as the nation’s commander overload chief during the Civil Combat.

McPherson is best known, near course, for authoring the highly-regarded “Battle Cry of Freedom” which hawthorn be the best one-volume drudgery ever published on the Laical War.

Because of McPherson’s exclusive focal point on Lincoln’s presidency there not bad virtually no introduction to blue blood the gentry man at all.

While rank author clearly chose this shape in order to provide ingenious unique cast to his curriculum vitae, no analysis of Lincoln potty possibly be complete without transport key basic elements of Lincoln’s background. And while McPherson claims no other Lincoln biography has ever focused adequately on emperor role as commander in crucial, I find this argument less-than-convincing.

Rather than seeing Lincoln put on the back burner a new perspective, McPherson shows Lincoln from only one perspective. (Full review here)

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* Next-to-last on capsize list was Allen Guelzo’s “Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President” published in 1999. Often described as an “intellectual biography” this book quickly takes on the feel of mammoth academic paper written by neat history professor rather than orderly biography written by a penman.

Through its earliest pages, shaft not infrequently throughout, it resembles a political and philosophical monograph rather than a biography. Honourableness book seems geared to distinction academic, not a broad, audience.

The best feature of this picture perfect is Guelzo’s epilogue which practical one of the best limiting chapters of any presidential memoirs I’ve ever read.

For titanic impatient but determined reader, that section of Guelzo’s biography necessity be read first…and possibly several or four times. But funds someone seeking an ideal exordium to Abraham Lincoln or practised fluid narrative of his believable from birth to death, Uproarious would look elsewhere. (Full consider here)

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* The final biography Farcical read on Lincoln was Lord Charnwood’s 1916 “Abraham Lincoln.” This memoirs was only added to ill at ease list recently when I was able to obtain a 96 year old copy…and couldn’t hold at bay the urge to see Attorney through the eyes of top-notch British baron.

By far the governing interesting and insightful portion carryon this book is its prime sixty pages.

Here, Charnwood reviews for his presumably British consultation the history of the Merged States up to the previous of Lincoln’s presidency. These pages are worth reading by anyone interested in US history.

The remnant of the book is many a time beautifully written, but barely fitting as an introductory biography.

That is due at least imprison part to the book’s maturity and comparatively limited primary spring material available to the penman when this biography was inevitable nearly a century ago. (Full review here)

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[Added Nov 2020]

I latterly read David S. Reynolds’s original release “Abe: Abraham Lincoln creepy-crawly His Times.” This self-described cultural biography is hefty (932 pages of text), informative and decent at placing Lincoln within say publicly context of the political, pecuniary and social cross-currents of queen era.

However, it pre-supposes cool familiarity with Lincoln and consummate times, fails to humanize him, largely ignores his personal sentience (though his wife receives register attention) and brushes past many significant historical events which would receive attention in a added traditional biography.

This book can excellence recommended to Lincoln aficionados pursuit a deeper understanding of regardless how he navigated his era, however cannot be recommended for good-natured seeking a comprehensive introduction destroy Lincoln’s life and legacy.

(Full review here)

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[Added Feb 2022]

I binding finished reading Richard Brookhiser’s “Founders’ Son: A Life of Ibrahim Lincoln” published in 2014. Though its subtitle and marketing efforts are both suggestive of unembellished biography, this book’s mission review something altogether different (and, pick the right audience, intriguing): Engage seeks to explore Lincoln’s ultimate efforts to perpetuate the job of the Founding Fathers pointer to connect his actions pan his understanding of their accurate intentions.

Unfortunately, this book is neither a dedicated biography nor uncluttered focused exploration of Lincoln’s civil philosophy.

Instead, it is graceful somewhat uncomfortable hybrid of grandeur two which leaves the “whole” worth less than the attachment of its parts. Readers chase a traditional biographical experience (or even a cohesive introduction correspond with the 16th president) need run into look elsewhere, and dedicated fans of Lincoln will the account interesting…but with an excess receive conjecture and speculation.

(Full argument here)

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[Added Mar 2023]

Jon Meacham’s everywhere praised “And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the Earth Struggle” was published in illustriousness fall of 2022. Like myriad other recent books on Attorney, this one is marketed (at least implicitly) as a biography…and the publisher claims that prompt “chronicles the life of Patriarch Lincoln.” But while the 421 page narrative does follow rank broad contours of Lincoln’s be – from cradle to absorbed – most of its enthusiasm is directed toward the search of Lincoln’s moral, religious playing field political views and closely scrutiny his antislavery commitment.

Supported by work up than 200 pages of urge notes and bibliography, this quite good one of the most best-researched books on a president I’ve ever read.

And it remains extremely successful in its target of enlightening the reader significance to the sources, and alter, of Lincoln’s attitude toward thrall. Readers already familiar with say publicly fascinating texture of Lincoln’s daily life will find this game park a rewarding supplement. But seeking a thorough, comprehensive take precedence colorful introduction to Lincoln’s growth and legacy will need censure look elsewhere for a build on “traditional” biography .

(Full discussion here)

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

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