It’s been a long time since I’ve a full biography of Abraham Lincoln – much less can I be sure which one that was, there being so many of them – but A. Lincoln by Ronald White now repays the read quite well.
It wasn’t a perfect or ideal Lincoln bio, but it puts the pieces together nicely. Maybe reading it in our present situation gives it some extra flavor.
It seemed to me the second-best White biography of the period; I preferred the too-overlooked U.S. Grant life American Ulysses for its finer-grain detail and willingness to stretch. (I even prefer it over the more recent and hotly acclaimed Chernow book, though that’s no criticism of it, either.)
If I have some quibbles with this Lincoln book, it’s in two areas. White skims over some areas and subjects that, a number of other writers probably would argue, merit a little closer look. (The Ann Rutledge aftermath and Lincoln’s bouts of depression come to mind.) In some other places, White seems to be a little too determined on agenda, notably in the area of Lincoln and religion, which is an ambiguous area where some ambiguity is best probably let alone.
It’s a recommended read, though, for putting Lincoln into context in his time. The political and military context is neatly lined out, in some cases in ways I’d not seen before. The story of his first run for the U.S. Senate is more neatly told than usual, and his relationship with the emerging Republican Party, from which he at first wanted to keep at arm’s length, is nicely clarified.
It is not an emotional work, and the writing is direct rather than overwrought (something easily done in Lincoln’s case). If you’ve not read a full biography of Lincoln or done so in a long time, the time may be right, and A. Lincoln would be a sound choice. – rs
