Good Brother, Bad Brother: The Story of Edwin Booth and John Wilkes Booth

For a compelling re-imagining of Booth's childhood from the perspective of his sister read Booth's Sister by Civil War scholar and storyteller Jane Singer. Now available from Bell Bridge Books.

An excellent read! Having read most of the books listed in the bibliography, I can say this book weaves all the stories, letters and folklore into a comprehensive, factual account of the Booth brother's lives. It was especially humbling and enlightening to see how John Wilkes Booth's act haunted Edwin for the rest of his life and never left his psyche. Also, how he triumphed over this and left a legacy in both the theater and his family that proved his talents could overide the ghosts that haunted him.

It is hard to believe that there could be a better written, more compelling study of the Booth siblings than in Good Brother, Bad Brother. James Cross Giblin skillfully details the history of the Booth family and chronicles the events that helped shaped the family dynamics. Although it is considered a children's book, I would not hesitate to recommend it to adults. Good Brother, Bad Brother is a family tragedy, but more importantly, a testament to the power of love and kindness. It will haunt you long after you have closed it's pages.

On the morning of April 15, 1865, one of the United States' premier actors received the word that there had been an attempt on the life of the President, and that the would-be assassin was none other than his beloved younger brother. That actor, who was famous throughout the country for his fine acting and devoted patriotism, was Edwin Booth, and the brother was John Wilkes Booth. In spite of Edwin's fame during his lifetime, his name has quietly faded from the American mind, while the name Booth has become forever associated with treachery and assassination. This book is a very interesting double biography of the two brothers, though it does focus primarily on Edwin. (Not a big surprise, considering that Edwin had a much longer life.) I must admit that I had never heard of Edwin Booth before, and I was quite interested to read about the family that produced America's most famous assassin. Overall, I found the book to be a very interesting read. The author does an excellent job of portraying the lives of the two brothers in an interesting and informative way. I really enjoyed this book, and highly recommend it to anyone interested in a little-known corner of American history.

A notation in Good Brother, Bad Brother suggests that it is for readers aged 10-14, but I found it to be interesting and informative for even well-read adults and, although the writing style may be more geared towards a younger audience, it includes some nice analysis and even a little intrigue. James Cross Giblin covers Edwin more thoroughly--he lived longer, of course-from his youthful days accompanying his famous father actor Junius Brutus Booth on his theatrical tours to the beginnings of Edwin's stage career, his sometimes heated relationship with younger brother John Wilkes, fears about his future after the assassination and how the assassination continued to affect him throughout his life, his post-assassination career including the Booth Theatre and The Players club, his troubling second marriage, to his death. The chapters on John Wilkes Booth include information and reviews on his brief acting career but, of course, focus on his fanaticism with the southern cause and his conspiracy plans to kidnap (which later escalated to killing) President Lincoln. Giblin uses many sources (including the fairly recent publication of JWB's writings) to draw a very thorough overview of the lives of the brothers. A comparison of the different acting styles of the brothers are described (pg. 73), the impact John Brown's hanging had on JWB is shown with a nice brief description of the event (pp. 55-7), the efforts on the part of the Booth family (including Edwin) to obtain the remains of JWB for burial is demonstrated through passages of family letters to the government (pp. 166, 173-7), etc. The author also explains the political-military situation at the time to provide background to JWB's infamous act. The fate of the conspirators (including how they suffered in prison) is detailed but does not deviate the book too far from the subject of the brothers. Mary Surratt (often over-covered in other books on the subject) is barely touched on. Little details like why Lincoln was not taken to the hospital are nice touches as many young readers would ask such questions and, adults as well, may be puzzled by it (pg. 128). Giblin does not overly sanitize his book for his younger audience. Junius Brutus Booth's alcohol problems (and the fact that Edwin had to accompany him to keep him from imbibing too recklessly) are fully explained as are Edwin's own struggles with alcoholism. Junius Brutus' second family in England is revealed (something I don't remember reading about before). Some of JWB's angry writings (including using the n-word) are included and it is revealed he smuggled quinine to the South (pg. 86). Oddly, Giblin does not include any passages from or even mentions an undelivered speech JWB wrote in Philadelphia about his political stands after South Carolina seceded from the Union; a speech Edwin saved from the furnace. This revealing speech is published in its entirety in `Right or Wrong, God Judge Me: The Writings of John Wilkes Booth.'