Synopses & Reviews
Mr. Lincoln's Wars marks the emergence of a remarkably gifted writer. In this wildly inventive, 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.
Writing with lyrical yet muscular prose, Braver brings Abraham Lincoln to life, not just as the strong and resilient president of history books, but as a griefstricken father, heartbroken over the loss of his young son. Narrated from the multiple perspectives of Abraham Lincoln and those whose lives he touched, Mr. Lincoln's Wars shows a president who is distraught over his inability to keep his country from destroying itself through civil war and a man who is fighting inner demons during a time of great crisis.
Across a rich canvas of truth and imagination, Mr. Lincoln's Wars reveals the president in his darkest hours 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 goodhearted 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, the book is an insightful and moving exploration of the myth of celebrity and the passions it arouses. More than anything, however, Mr. Lincoln's Wars introduces a talented new writer whose storytelling ability knows no bounds.
Review
“Bravers dissection of Lincolns enduring shadow is . . . brilliant and heroic.” Los Angeles Times Book Review
Synopsis
Narrated from the multiple perspectives of Abraham Lincoln and those whose lives he touched, this highly ambitious, contemporary collection of 13 stories interweaves fact and fiction to probe the darker, more human side of the 16th president -- a leader and man plagued not only by the raging Civil War but also by his own personal grief over the death of his young son.
Adam Braver brings to light the many sides of this complex man, imagining how Lincoln explored the meaning of loss with the father of a slain soldier; envisioning his assassination and autopsy through the eyes of John Wilkes Booth, Mary Todd Lincoln, and others; and demonstrating his effect on the nation's citizenry, showing how a good-hearted, young Union soldier is quickly turned into a killer in the name of the moral president.
Blending rich characterization, deep research, and a modern style, this luminous new work introduces a fresh talent with extraordinary storytelling power.
About the Author
Adam Braver is the author of Divine Sarah and Mr. Lincoln's Wars. His work has appeared in Daedalus, Cimarron Review, Post Road, and Pittsburgh Quarterly. He teaches creative writing at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island.