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Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin
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About This Book
ISBN13: 9780743270755 |
Powells.com Staff Pick
A first rate biography by the brilliant historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, this landmark book details Lincoln's political acumen and remarkable leadership style.
Recommended by Ted, Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Publisher Comments:
On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry.
Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war. That Lincoln succeeded was the result of a character that had been forged by life experiences that raised him above his more privileged and accomplished rivals. He won because he possessed an extraordinary ability to put himself in the place of other men, to experience what they were feeling, to understand their motives and desires.
This capacity enabled President Lincoln to bring his disgruntled opponents together, create the most unusual cabinet in history, and marshal their talents to preserve the Union and win the war.
Review:
"Pulitzer Prize-winner Goodwin (No Ordinary Time) seeks to illuminate what she interprets as a miraculous event: Lincoln's smooth (and, in her view, rather sudden) transition from underwhelming one-term congressman and prairie lawyer to robust chief executive during a time of crisis. Goodwin marvels at Lincoln's ability to co-opt three better-born, better-educated rivals — each of whom had challenged Lincoln for the 1860 Republican nomination. The three were New York senator William H. Seward, who became secretary of state; Ohio senator Salmon P. Chase, who signed on as secretary of the treasury and later was nominated by Lincoln to be chief justice of the Supreme Court; and Missouri's 'distinguished elder statesman' Edward Bates, who served as attorney general. This is the 'team of rivals' Goodwin's title refers to. The problem with this interpretation is that the metamorphosis of Lincoln to Machiavellian master of men that Goodwin presupposes did not in fact occur overnight only as he approached the grim reality of his presidency. The press had labeled candidate Lincoln 'a fourth-rate lecturer, who cannot speak good grammar.' But East Coast railroad executives, who had long employed Lincoln at huge prices to defend their interests as attorney and lobbyist, knew better. Lincoln was a shrewd political operator and insider long before he entered the White House — a fact Goodwin underplays. On another front, Goodwin's spotlighting of the president's three former rivals tends to undercut that Lincoln's most essential Cabinet-level contacts were not with Seward, Chase and Bates, but rather with secretaries of war Simon Cameron and Edwin Stanton, and Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles. These criticisms aside, Goodwin supplies capable biographies of the gentlemen on whom she has chosen to focus, and ably highlights the sometimes tangled dynamics of their 'team' within the larger assemblage of Lincoln's full war cabinet. Agent, Amanda Urban. 400,000 first printing; BOMC, History Book Club main selection; film rights to Steven Spielberg/DreamWorld Entertainment. (Nov.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Review:
"Illuminating and well-written, as are all of Goodwin's presidential studies; a welcome addition to Lincolniana." Kirkus Reviews
Review:
"[Ms.Goodwin] argues that Lincoln's success in winning the election and in building an exceptionally effective administration lay in his extraordinary ability to empathize with his rivals." Library Journal
Review:
"An elegant, incisive study....Goodwin has brilliantly described how Lincoln forged a team that preserved a nation and freed America from the curse of slavery." James M. McPherson, The New York Times Book Review
Review:
"Goodwin's narrative abilities...are on full display here, and she does an enthralling job of dramatizing...crucial moments in Lincoln's life....A portrait of Lincoln as a virtuosic politician and managerial genius." Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Review:
"Splendid, beautifully written....Goodwin has brilliantly woven scores of contemporary accounts...into a fluid narrative....This is the most richly detailed account of the Civil War presidency to appear in many years." Los Angeles Times
Synopsis:
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin illuminates Lincoln's political genius in her #1 "New York Times" bestseller, as she chronicles the rise of the the one-term congressman/prairie lawyer from obscurity to prevail over three gifted rivals of national reputation to become president. 16 pages of photos.
About the Author
Doris Kearns Goodwin is an award-winning author and historian. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1995.
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Average customer rating based on 2 comments:
-
DOCTOR PETER TEIMAN FRANKLIN, September 26, 2007 (view all comments by DOCTOR PETER TEIMAN FRANKLIN)
DOCTOR PETER TEIMAN FRANKLIN HERE,
See the true Lincoln, the good nad the not-so-good. Excellent read.
DOCTOR PETER TEIMAN FRANKLIN
FRANCE
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psaucerman, June 8, 2007 (view all comments by psaucerman)
This long book flows effortlessly, is so well organized and covers such momentous ground that it's difficult to put down, and I was sorry to see it end (not the least because we all know how it ends). Now I begin to understand why Lincoln is so revered; how many shades away from the current Repub Occupant. This is a lucid and fascinating picture of the workings of Washington DC in the 1860's, with warm, fully rounded pictures of the men who shaped some of our most historic events. I'm a tepid history buff, but this book had me hooked all the way.
View all 2 comments
Product Details
- ISBN:
- 9780743270755
- Subtitle:
- The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
- Author:
- Publisher:
- Simon & Schuster
- Subject:
- Political
- Subject:
- Historical - U.S.
- Subject:
- Presidents & Heads of State
- Subject:
- General Biography
- Copyright:
- 2006
- Edition Description:
- Trade paper
- Publication Date:
- September 2006
- Binding:
- Paperback
- Grade Level:
- General/trade
- Language:
- English
- Illustrations:
- Y
- Pages:
- 916
- Dimensions:
- 9.25 x 6.125 in
