Mr. Lincoln's Wars: A Novel in Thirteen StoriesIn this highly ambitious collection, Adam Braver explores Abraham Lincoln's inner life and personal turmoils -- while also reflecting on the indelible impact Lincoln had on the nation during the last year of his presidency. Braver brings the president to life, not just as the strong and resilient leader of history books but also as a grief-stricken father, heartbroken over the loss of his young son. Across a rich canvas of truth and imagination, Mr. Lincoln's Wars reveals a president within the White House walls. We see Lincoln as he explores the meaning of loss through a chance encounter with the father of a slain soldier. And a good-hearted young Union soldier is quickly turned into a killer in the name of President Lincoln. Finally, there is the assassination and the autopsy, as seen through the eyes of John Wilkes Booth, Mary Lincoln, the assistant surgeon general, and one of Lincoln's closest friends. Brilliant in its depiction of the country during the waning days of the war, this book is an insightful and moving exploration of the myth of celebrity and the passions it arouses. More than anything, Mr. Lincoln's Wars introduces a talented new writer whose storytelling ability knows no bounds. |
From inside the book
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... never make the beginning and the middle go away. Smoke was finally clearing and people on both sides were no longer shadow figures, they were tired and worn and feeling helpless. The bullets and the cannons would finally stop pounding ...
... never enter the room that Willie slept in , and she wants to know , Abraham , what do you think of that ? And Abe just shrugs his shoulders , as his stomach boils , unable to reply because any thought of Willie sends him into a thousand ...
... never known the president to be out of his dress coat. Lincoln kept his eyes held hard to the ground, but it was no doubt due to my bug-eyed gawking that he rolled those grays down until they met mine, and just held his stare for an ...
... never saw answers that February night . No missing text that would complete the unfinished chapter . Just a twelve - year - old boy who'd been stripped naked by disease . " Mr. Lincoln , " I whispered , “ I'm just the undertaker's ...
... never did call on him . Didn't see him again until he lay dead on the table . And I sliced the seam of his pant leg and laid it flat , just the same as I had his boy's . Zack ack Hargrove I believe it is an established maxim 23 { Mr ...
Contents
11 | |
25 | |
The Idiot Brother | 47 |
The Willie Grief | 67 |
His Stepmothers Sister | 89 |
A Letter to President Lincoln from a Good Girl | 97 |
The Ward | 107 |
On to the Next Field | 131 |
Crybaby Jacks Theory | 149 |
The Sad and Familiar Ballad of Captain | 181 |
The Necropsy | 195 |
A Rainy Night in Springfield Illinois1849 | 289 |
A Word on Researching Mr Lincolns Wars | 305 |