In Lincoln's Hand: His Original Manuscripts with Commentary by Distinguished Americans

On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincolns birth and in conjunction with the Library of Congress 2009 Bicentennial Exhibition, In Lincolns Hand offers an unprecedented look at perhaps our greatest president through vivid images of his handwritten letters, speeches, and even childhood notebooksmany never before made available to the public.

Edited by leading Lincoln scholars Joshua Wolf Shenk and Harold Holzer, this companion volume to the Library of Congress exhibition offers a fresh and intimate perspective on a man whose thoughts and words continue to affect history. To underscore the resonance of Lincolns writings on contemporary culture, each manuscript is accompanied by a reflection on Lincoln by a prominent American from the arts, politics, literature, or entertainment, including Toni Morrison, Sam Waterston, Robert Pinsky, Gore Vidal, and presidents Carter, George H.W., and George W. Bush.

While Lincolns words are quite well known, the original manuscripts boast a unique power and beauty and provide rare insight into the creative process. In this collection we can see the ebb and flow of Lincolns thoughts, emotions, hopes, and doubts. We can see where he paused to dip his pen in the ink or to capture an idea. We can see where he added a word or phrase, and where he crossed out others, searching for the most precise, and concise, expression. In these marks on the page, Lincolns character is available to us with a profound immediacy. From such icons as the Gettysburg Address and the inaugural speeches to seldom-seen but superb rarities, here is the world as Lincoln saw and shaped it in words and images that resound to this very day.

"This illustrated volume, companion to the Library of Congress Bicentennial Exhibition, collects Lincolns' letters, speeches, pages from childhood notebooks, ruminations and reactions, including his inaugural addresses, his 1859 autobiographical sketch and his famous reply to a pre-Emancipation Proclamation editorial by New York Times founder Horace Greeley that excoriated Lincoln for not acting sooner to free the slaves: 'If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it.' Alongside these full-color reproductions and their transcripts, the editors run commentary from 'Distinguished Americans'-including E.L. Doctorow, Sandra Day O'Connor, Kathryn Harrison, Walter Mosley, William Safire, Stephen Spielberg, Toni Morrison, Conan O'Brien, John Updike, and four former Presidents-that are generally entertaining but vary in quality of insight (and occasionally in credibility-Bush II's contribution reads like it was cribbed from a textbook). A vibrant collector's item, this book should please any Lincoln aficionado, and makes an absorbing introduction for students and the historically curious." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Lincoln scholars and authors Holzer and Shenk provide a collection both comprehensive and intimate of Abraham Lincoln's manuscripts, from such famous pieces as the Gettysburg Address and inaugural speeches to little-known poems and humorous writings. An added benefit is the manuscripts are set side-by-side with typeset transcriptions that clearly show Lincoln's edits and changes. Each manuscript is accompanied by commentary on Lincoln by prominent Americans from the fields of politics, the performing arts, and literature such as Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Robert Pinsky, Toni Morrison, John Updike, Conan O'Brien, Steven Spielberg, and Sandra Day O'Connor. The collection is a companion volume to the Library of Congress 2009 Bicentennial Exhibition. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Harold Holzer is cochairman of the U.S. Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and author, coauthor, or editor of thirty-one books on Lincoln and the Civil War era, including the award-winning Lincoln at Cooper Union and most recently, Lincoln: President-Elect. His web site is www.haroldholzer.com.

Joshua Wolf Shenk is the author of Lincolns Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness and the director of the Rose ONeill Literary House at Washington College. His work has been published in Harpers Magazine, the Atlantic Monthly, the Economist, and other publications, and in the national bestseller Unholy Ghost: Writers on Depression. His website is www.shenk.net.