Great Minds Think Aloud - Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination

Great Minds Think Aloud
« Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination »

Welcome Guest. Please Login or Register.
May 18, 2013, 9:55am

Great Minds Think Aloud :: :: :: Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination

Author

Topic: Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination (Read 30 times)

assassin
Guest

Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination
« Thread Started on Apr 13, 2012, 12:59pm »

KILLING LINCOLN

Authors: Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
Published By: Henry Holt & Company, LLC
Age Recommend:
Reviewed By: R.E. Schobernd
Raven Rating: 5
Blog Review For: GMTA

Review:
Co-authors Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard have tied together bits and pieces of factual information to provide intriguing details leading up to the plot to kill President Abraham Lincoln. The book is non-fiction but reads like the best thriller novels. The information was taken from private accounts, newspapers and public records of the period.

The time frame for Killing Lincoln begins two weeks prior to the assassination at Ford's Theater. Most of us simply know President Lincoln was murdered there in April 1885 by John Wilkes Booth. Few of us know the events preceding and surrounding the killing, or how Booth was eventually captured.

Several side issues are presented, among them Secretary of War Edwin Stanton's possible role in the assassination plot.

The story covers the mood of the people on both sides of the failed secession. It dramatically presents battles taking place as Union General Ulysses S. Grant maneuvers his troops to capture the Confederate General Robert E. Lee to end the war. The battle sequences at High Bridge and Sayler's Creek are vivid and point out that the outcomes of battles were often decided by luck, good and bad, as well as military planning and strategy.

The characters involved in and around the actual killing are intriguing. Planned and inadvertent deeds committed by many of the people close to Lincoln contributed to Booth gaining information as well as access to the President. Most were never admonished or punished for their actions.

Many minor details presented in the story surprised me and painted clear differences in the times. An example is the practice that the White House was always open to visitors and it was common for people to sleep in the hallways overnight waiting to speak to the President.

This is an exceptional book that I am pleased to have read and I highly recommend it.

Link to Post - Back to Top IP:

Logged

Click Here To Make This Board Ad-Free