First published 2009
Abraham Lincoln emerges as a man whose authenticity shaped American history. Ronald White draws from the newly completed Lincoln Legal Papers and recently discovered letters to trace Lincoln's personal and political development. The portrait reveals a country lawyer who scribbled thoughts on paper scraps and stored them in his top hat, a commander in chief who personally commandeered boats to attack Confederate batteries on the Virginia peninsula, and a president who wrestled privately with slavery's immorality before acting to abolish it forever. White shows Lincoln as someone comfortable with uncertainty, unafraid to reconsider his positions. The biography captures Lincoln's intellectual curiosity and his religious journey, including his private meditation on God's will during the Civil War that would inform his greatest speeches. White argues that integrity serves as the key to understanding Lincoln's character and decisions throughout his life.
Genres: biography, history, 20th-century, american, 19th-century, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: character-study, historical-figure
Setting: United States, Virginia
Period: 19th Century, American Civil War
816 pages · Hardcover · Random House