Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington

Daniel Mark Epstein succeeds at what seems simple, but in truth is a daunting task: combining the literary and the historical in a moving, evocative narrative. The book gracefully moves between and across the lives of Lincoln and Whitman, with a cathartic spirit uniting the stories of both men. Epstein makes no claims that the spiritual union was, in reality, anything more than a parallel, largely reliant on the troubled times (and Whitman's obsession...or coincidence). There is a somewhat amplified mysticism surrounding Lincoln and Whitman as "characters" in this historical narrative, but such characterization errs more often on the positive than it does otherwise. The parallels between the lives of both men are compelling, revealing, and informative, and the ending is truly poignant. Civil War Washington also comes alive with a mapmaker's eye and a storyteller's gift for detail. Wonderful!

Epstein hits the ground running in this extraordinary blend of dramatic storytelling and lit crit, and he never lets up until the final page. Everyone has always known that Whitman was influenced by Lincoln, but it has been a matter of heated controversy for many years as to whether Lincoln was or was not influenced by "Leaves of Grass." Epstein proves this beyond any reasonable doubt in the first thirty pages, as he introduces us into the gritty atmosphere of Lincoln's law office in the 1850s. He follows the two men to Washington, D.C. during the Civil War, and his capturing of their two characters and their struggles, as their paths cross and shadow one another during that intense period, is a literary and historical tour de force. One of my favorite books about the Civil War. Bernard Northrop Providence, R.I.

Two behemoth men at a time of great crisis in our country, manage to find themselves in the same city at the same time, and the great mystery becomes, do they meet? This question is addressed in the highly enjoyable and highly readable book, Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington". In this tome, the reader discovers a deeper understanding of both Lincoln and Whitman, amazingly, through the eyes of each other.It seems natural to have both of these men appear in a book with each other, as the two are linked somewhat through the times in which they lived and the recognition of their stunning intellect. And the book reads very naturally, moving from one story to another without any interruption. The Lincoln and Whitman presented in the book are demystified, and very much human. Perhaps the closeness of their supposed contact allows us a literary entrance into their lives. As Whitman sympathizes with Lincoln, so do we. As Lincoln wonders about the wild man and shows him respect, so do we, building on connections with each other that are timeless.One thing that struck me was Whitman's volunteer efforts in hospitals in the DC area. Knowing that he did that, I never knew just how deeply it effected him and the lives of the soldiers that he visited. Well documented, even with quotes from Whitman's own letters, he expresses his care and concern for the men, many of whom suffered very painful deaths, but were someone appeased by the poet who talked with them and held their hand. It might be tempting to draw conclusions based on Whitman's sexuality, but Epstein respects the poet, and his readers, enough not to do that.Refreshingly, the author doesn't shy away at all from Whitman's romantic life, detailing the men that inhabited his life. We are with Whitman the night he meets Peter Doyle on that street car, starting a seven year relationship despite a huge age gap. I was even more surprised to learn that Doyle himself was in Ford's Theater, sitting directly across from Lincoln, the night he was assassinated. Doyle's story lends credence to Whitman's undertaking as a Lincoln expert later in his life.Almost a third character in the story is Washington DC itself. Painfully recreating the town, Epstein brings the 1860's capital alive unlike other writers have in the past. The muddy streets, the horrible smells, the buildings all come alive with fresh, succinct descriptions that are wonderfully detailed. Being a visitor to the city many times, I began to "see" it in a different, exciting way.As we wander through both of these extraordinary Americans lives, we come to love both men for their individuality and their connections. And as the book concludes in an amazing, heartbreaking way, we find ourselves sorry that the tale ends, craving more knowledge of them both, separate and together, bringing history alive in a way that hasn't for some time. I'm eagerly awaiting Daniel Mark Epstein's next book, while reading and re-reading this one for ti

This double biography of two great Americans is a narrative tour-de-force, a compelling page-turner built on a rock-solid foundation of meticulous research. Epstein deftly weaves together the lives of the poet and the President, setting each character in bold relief against the richly-described backdrop of the Civil War. The original approach is a great contribution to literary and historical scholarship, showing each of these iconic figures in a revelatory new light. Many have described how Lincoln inspired some of Whitman's greatest poetry. Epstein is THE FIRST to make a persuasive argument -- by ingenious historical analysis and insightful comparison of passages from "Leaves of Grass" and Lincoln's speeches -- that the poet influenced the President. This book belongs on the shelf next to Gary Wills' Pulitzer-prize winning "Lincoln at Gettysburg."

This is a profoundly moving work, which should be read with pleasure by any admirer of the Great Emancipator or America's Great Poet. Although Abraham Lincoln and Walt Whitman are dead, their spirits live; and in this volume, Daniel Mark Epstein has again clothed them in flesh and blood and restored the breath of life. You will find yourself in the Lincoln and Herndon law office in 1857 as the merits of Leaves Of Grass are debated by the law partners and their young clerks; you will stand alongside Whitman on the corner of Fourteenth and L streets in Washington in 1863 as he awaits the president and the opportunity to offer a friendly wave.As far as history knows, the two men never formally met, though they came tantalizingly close to doing so on more than one occasion. Yet as Epstein notes in the subtitle of this book, they lived parallel lives in Civil War Washington. While Lincoln struggled to hold the union together, Whitman tenderly nursed the young men who were maimed by the tens of thousands on the great battlefields of that war. While Lincoln struggled with the insurgency in his own ranks from Treasury Secretary Samuel Chase, Whitman vainly pursued a federal job in the secretary's domain. Although Whitman had already created the bulk of his greatest works by 1865, the death of Lincoln provided the well-spring for a glorious last hurrah, including the grand panorama of "When Lilacs Last in the Door-yard Bloom'd" and the poet's best known offspring, "O Captain, My Captain."Indeed, the assassination only strengthened the bond linking these two men of genius. Especially poignant is the last chapter, which takes place 22 years after Booth's dark deed. Whitman presents a talk on Lincoln at the Madison Square Theater to an audience that includes luminaries such as Mark Twain and William Dean Howells. Playing out at the same moment was one of the afterwords of Lincoln's earthly life, as his casket was moved, opened and reburied at his final resting place in Springfield.Epstein brings an historian's skill and a poet's passion to this work. Read this book with an open mind and an open heart, and be ready to appreciate the great souls that sometimes walk alongside us.--William C. Hall