Sunday, August 24, 2014

Review: Abraham Lincoln Civil War Stories


Edited by Joe Wheeler

What can you say about Abraham Lincoln that hasn’t been said over and over again, again and again?  That’s the point of Joe Wheeler’s book “Abraham Lincoln Civil War Stories: Heartwarming Stories about Our Most Beloved President.”

Stories about Abraham Lincoln have been passed from person to person, first in orally and later written down, for a century and a half.  If one were to read them all they would have to search through many books, newspapers and magazines in libraries and archives to find them.  Mr. Wheeler has saved you the time and effort, collecting many of the most popular stories and poems in his book.  The stories span the breadth of Lincoln’s life and run from the humorous to the tear-jerker.  The book is split into four parts: The Frontier Years, Civil War – The Early Years, Civil War – The Later Years, and To Live on in Hearts is not to Die. 

I would venture to say that many of these stories are largely fictional, some more so than others, but all have some kernel of historical truth to them.  Included by Mr. Wheeler is one of my favorites, “The Perfect Tribute,” by Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews, which was turned into a made for television movie in 1991 and starred Jason Robards as Abraham Lincoln.

This is a great book for people who don’t know much about the 16th President of the United States or the Civil War.  For those who have studied and know a great deal about Lincoln and the war this book may help to understand the folklore surrounding Lincoln.  The stories are simply written, and range in size from a two to twenty pages in length which are easily read in a short time, so that you can pick the book up when you have just a few minutes to spare or a couple of hours.

ISBN 978-1476702865, Howard Books, © 2013, Hardcover, 384 pages, Photographs, Illustrations, & Notes. $22.99.  To purchase this book click HERE.

No comments: