Lincoln: An Illustrated Biography

If you are an admirer of Abraham Lincoln then you really should make space on your history shelf for this outstanding volume. No only is it an exceptional book on Lincoln it is also massive - in the "coffee table book" category. The ponderous size is appropriate since one of its main virtues is the magnificent photos of Lincoln and his contemporaries. The size of the book brings the photographs to life, which would be lost in a standard size book. The first 147 pages details Lincoln's life story up to his Presidency. There are some fascinating photographs of people and locations that you may have read about in other biographies. To see these images truly brings a degree of reality to there relationship with Lincoln. Once Lincoln is inaugurated the authors devote one double pages spread to each month of his presidency. Dated photos and illustrations highlight events of the month. Several text paragraphs summaries the events that took place. I found this 50-month chronological history, from March 1861 to April 1865, very helpful to place into perspective and sequence events in the war and with Lincoln's domestic and international responsibilities. I estimate there are 1000 photographs in this 415-page book. Among them you will find almost every photograph ever taken of Lincoln. I would stress this is not just a photo album. Ample text accompanies almost every page. I state "almost" since some pages are devoted to those magnificent iconic images of Lincoln, some familiar - some not - but all worthy of viewing.

Kudos to the publisher Knopf and all involved on the quality of this book. The reproduction of the 19th century photographs is first rate. The sepia toned image of the great man inside the front cover is exceptionally gorgeous - just breathtaking. John Updike said Knopf publishes the most physically beautiful books in America, and this book leads me to believe he's right.This is not a comprehesive, scholarly biography of Lincoln, nor does it pretend to be. But the text reads well, and the Lincoln photographs are beautiful, all-inclusive and presented in sound written context. The large size of the book works particularly nicely here. Well done!

Philip B. Kunhardt is to be highly commended for this outstanding photographic history of Abraham Lincoln. Not only are the photographs captivating, but the narrative of Lincolns life and the important events during his lifetime are interesting and enhance this book. Many interesting stories go along with the photographs of Lincoln from his 40's to his last days, however the most interesting part in my opinion is the month by month account of his presidency and the important events that occured. So much about the man has been written, but until this book was published not as many photos of President Lincoln were circulated or published. Just as important, are the events and stories which swirled around Lincoln. From his habits and humor to his history changing decisions are written in clarity and interesting form. His life and his loves are given with compassion, and his impossible losses of his sons and his mentally unballanced wife Mary Todd Lincoln is given unflinchingly. The last chapter of the book is about the assassination and the controversy surrounding Lincoln's remains, a very interesting and informative chapter to close with. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in U.S. History or 19th Century U.S. History.

This is a fantastic and beautiful book--oversized, loaded with more photos than you've ever seen in a Lincoln book, and worthy of coffee-table display. But it's not just a picture book. Each page is jam-packed with text, including an account of a dream Lincoln had about his own assassination. You'll definitely want the hardback version. Even if you've got a hefty collection of Lincoln lore, you must add this book to your shelves!

Over 400 pages of pictures of Abraham Lincoln, his family, friends and enemies. This volume contains every known picture of Lincoln, including the ones used on the penny and 5 dollar bill. Which are 2 of his worst presidential poses. The compilation is so complete it contains a picture of his horse, Old Bob, (unfortunately, there is no extant picture of his other horse, New Bob) and his dog, Fido. The text is easy-going and informative without any scholarly weightiness and the only mistake I could detect is on p. 71. Can you find it? The same consortium produced a very fine 4-part documentary for PBS.