Commander in Chief: Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War
Grade 6 Up?Marrin's study of Lincoln matches, if not surpasses, his outstanding Unconditional Surrender: Ulysses S. Grant and the Civil War. While staying close to his theme of Lincoln as war leader, the book covers its subject from birth to death, depicting him as very much a part of his era, a man who, the author believes, was "our greatest President" and "the one person without whom it is impossible to imagine those trying times." Enhanced throughout with period photographs, reproductions, and direct quotations, and with a fine layout and typography, the narrative is skillfully constructed and expressed in a strong, compelling style. The descriptions of Lincoln's gradual mastery of military strategy and tactics, and his often tense relations with his officers, are riveting, as is Marrin's careful foreshadowing of his subject's assassination. Readers will appreciate the frequent explanations of differences between mid-19th-century political and social mores and those of today. The extensive "Notes" and "More Books About Abraham Lincoln" sections will be useful for further research. Commander in Chief is more focused than Milton Melzer's Lincoln, in His Own Words (Harcourt, 1993) and far more comprehensive than Edward Lindop's summary in the "Presidents Who Dared" series (TFC Bks., 1995). It is the best book on Lincoln for young people since Russell Freedman's Newbery-winning Lincoln (Clarion, 1987).?Starr E. Smith, Marymount University Library, Arlington, VACopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.