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Three Books about Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin

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Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the same day – February 12, 1809. Each in their own way became icons of change and are remembered throughout history for their contributions. While you might expect them to have little in common other than their birth dates, several authors have examined the two men together in books. Click on the links for full reviews of each book.

Rebel Giants: The Revolutionary Lives of Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin, by David R. Contosta

Lincoln and Darwin: Shared Visions of Race, Science and Religion, by James Lander

Angels and Ages: A Short Book about Darwin, Lincoln, and Modern Life by Adam Gopnik

Look for my new book coming out summer 2017: Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America [Click for Prologue]

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, is scheduled for release in summer 2017.

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2017 Travel Preview

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The thing about traveling is that travel plans change. They changed a lot last year, with anticipated trips to Machu Picchu, China, and Michigan being bumped. Now here we are a third of the way through January 2017 and travel plans are nearly non-existent, in part because of the lingering uncertainties from 2016.

Two trips are /more-or-less committed, if not actually planned. October should bring us to Australia/New Zealand in a tour being arranged by Sherry Kumar (who organized the Serbia/Montenegro/Croatia trip where we got to meet Tesla royalty). We are thinking of going a week early so we can drive down to the 12 Apostles and side-trip to Uluru (aka, Ayer’s Rock). More imminent is a trip to China this spring to replace the visit postponed from last fall. The (albeit, still incredibly tentative) plan is to see South Korea either on the way there or back.

Beyond that plans are still in the “thinking about” stage. They include the twice bumped Machu Picchu, but that seems unlikely this year given time constraints. This month I will participate in a special Abraham Lincoln event at the Hill Center. At some point I’ll start making “day” trips to Lincoln-related sites such as the USS Monitor Center at Marine Mariner’s Park in Newport News, Virginia (where the Monitor ironclad is displayed and preserved); the Tredegar Iron Works site near Richmond; and the National Museum of Civil War Medicine in Frederick, Maryland. I’ll also need to visit the confederate submarine Hunley and Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina as I continue research for my upcoming Lincoln book.

Other possible trips include a Michigan writer’s retreat, Mt. Rushmore, a 4th of July road trip to New England, and maybe, just maybe, Cuba. I’ll definitely be going to Gettysburg in November for the annual Lincoln Forum.

Of course, I’m always open to last minute changes, so feel free to provide suggestions (and plane tickets).

Meanwhile, my Lincoln: The Man Who Save America book is in the final stages of design before going to the printer for a July 2017 release. I’m back working on my other Abraham Lincoln book, which hopefully will see the light of day in 2018. Oh, and I’m working on another Lincoln-related project that I hope to announce soon. Stay tuned!

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book is on Abraham Lincoln, due out in 2017.

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[Photo credit: David J. Kent, Erfurt, Germany, 2008]

 

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Science Traveling – 2016 in Preview

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I’m going to Machu Picchu in 2016. Of course, I said I was going to Machu Picchu in 2015 and had to punt on it to this year. But this year I’m really going. I hope. Like last year, my plans could easily change, but here is what I’m planning for 2016.

Wind SurfThe only trip actually booked so far is a sailing cruise of the Caribbean in late January/early February. We’ll meet four Saints (Maarten, Kitts, Barthelemy, and Lucia), plus Barbuda, Guadaloupe, and Dominica. All while sailing point to point on a 535-foot sailboat.

Beyond that we’re looking at two other overseas trips – one to the aforementioned Machu Picchu in May, the other to China (and hopefully one other country) in October. If it all works out I’ll get to add at least six new countries to my visited list (last year I added only 3, though I was in 6 outside the U.S.).

I’ll also have my annual trip to New England to visit my parents, plus perhaps a second trip for my high school reunion. I’ve never attended a reunion before but this year I just might. It’s not until August so we’ll see when it gets closer.

Lincoln TombSpringfield, Illinois may see me twice this year. I have a scheduled trip there in September with the Lincoln Group of DC, in which we’ll pursue Lincoln’s memory through New Salem, Springfield, and points surrounding. I’m also anticipating a purely research trip, probably in March, to visit with the staffs of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. Lincoln is also the focus of a November trip to Gettysburg.

Closer to home, I will likely have a book launch party in August to celebrate the release of my newest book Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World.

Those are the more-or-less planned trips. Others may include Orlando for the SETAC meeting in November, Charlottesville for the CPRC meeting in April, Mt. Rushmore (still trying to squeeze this in at some point), and Newport News, VA (home of the Monitor ironclad).

I’ll be writing many science traveling articles during 2016 so check back regularly.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for thirty-five years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (now in its 5th printing) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His book on Thomas Edison is due in Barnes and Noble stores in spring 2016.

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Abraham Lincoln Book Acquisitions for 2015

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DACOR Bacon HouseI’m still far short of the 15,000+ books published about Abraham Lincoln, but did make several great acquisitions for my collection in 2015. The following list shows 59 new additions, almost exactly the number I added last year.

Seven of the books are brand new 2015 publication dates, including Looking for Lincoln in Illinois: Lincoln’s Springfield, which I’ll use to prepare for next September’s Lincoln Group of DC trip to Illinois. Another 2015 issue is Kathryn Canavan’s Lincoln’s Final Hours: Conspiracy, Terror, and the Assassination of America’s Greatest President. Kathryn will be the Lincoln Group’s guest speaker during one of LGDC’s March 15, 2016 dinner meeting.

Nine of the books are signed by the author. That includes my 2015 “Harold Holzer Book of the Year” (though he often has several new books come out in any given year). A Just and Generous Nation is co-written by Holzer and economist Norton Garfinkle, and Harold was nice enough to sign it for me during the annual Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg in November. You can read my review on Goodreads.

The coolest book I obtained this year is probably Villianous Compounds: Chemical Weapons and the American Civil War by Guy R. Hasagawa. Given my science and toxicology background, this especially grabbed my attention. The oldest book was published in 1894. Abraham Lincoln: The First American by D.D. Thompson was a gift by the Lincoln Group of DC after my October 2015 presentation on “Lincoln and the March of Technology.”

There are several classic books on the list, including those by Paul Angle, Noah Brooks, and the first and second supplements to the famous Roy Basler Collected Works. Some of the books examine specialty areas of Lincoln research. There’s even one by William F. Petersen that claims the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas were foretold by the weather. [I haven’t read this one yet, but am eager to get the scoop.]

One never-ending problem always attends new acquisitions – where to put them. I’ve reached the point where creative rearranging of bookshelves, combined with strategic sales and library donations, are simply not enough. So my big question for 2016 is “where do I put more bookcases?”

See the list of books below my signature blurbs.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for thirty-five years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (now in its 5th printing) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His book on Thomas Edison is due in Barnes and Noble stores in spring 2016.

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Here is the 2015 list:

A Portion of That Field: The Centennial of the Burial of Lincoln 1967
Andreasen, Bryon C. Looking for Lincoln in Illinois: Lincoln’s Springfield 2015
Angle, Paul M. The Lincoln Reader 1947
Angle, Paul M. A Portrait of Abraham Lincoln in Letters By His Oldest Son 1968
Baber, Adin A. Lincoln With Compass and Chain 2002
Basler, Roy P. (ed) The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln: First Supplement 1832-1865 1990
Basler, Roy P. and Basler, Christian O. (ed) The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln: Second Supplement 1848-1865 1990
Brookhiser, Richard Founder’s Son: A Life of Abraham Lincoln 2014
Brooks, Noah Abraham Lincoln: The Nation’s Leader in the Great Struggle through which was Maintained the Existence of the United States 1909
Brown University Books at Brown Volumes XXXI-XXXII 1985
Canavan, Kathryn Lincoln’s Final Hours: Conspiracy, Terror, and the Assassination of America’s Greatest President 2015
Carnahan, Burrus M. Lincoln On Trial: Southern Civilians and the Law of War 2010
Charles River Editors The Transcontinental Railroad: The History and Legacy of the First Rail Line Spanning the United States no date
Current, Richard N. Lincoln’s Loyalists: Union Soldiers From the Confederacy 1994
Di Bella, Anna and Chapman, Sandy (eds) Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln: A Commemorative Collage 2009
Donald, David Herbert Lincoln’s Herndon 1948
Donald, David Herbert Lincoln’s Herndon 1948
Farley, Jeremy The Civil War Out My Window: Diary of Mary Henry 2014
Fornieri, Joseph R. and Gabbard, Sara Vaughn Lincoln’s America: 1809-1865 2008
Hasagawa, Guy R. Villainous Compounds: Chemical Weapons & The American Civil War 2015
Hightower, C.L. Sr. (Editor-in-Chief) Hood County History in Pictures and Story 1978 1978
Hodges, Robert R., Jr. American Civil War Railroad Tactics 2009
Holden, Raymond Abraham Lincoln: The Politician and the Man 1929
Holzer, Harold and Garfinkle, Norton A Just and Generous Nation 2015
Horgan, Paul Citizen of New Salem 1961
Horwitz, Tony Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War 1998
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency On Lincoln’s Mind: Leading the Nation to the Gettysburg Address 2013
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency On Lincoln’s Side: Reelecting a Leader 2014
Jewell, Scott (Editor) Ipswich in the Civil War 2012
Kempf, Edward J. Abraham Lincoln’s Philosophy of Common Sense: An Analytical Biography of a Great Mind 1965
Knorowski, Carla (Ed.) Gettysburg Replies: The World Responds to Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address 2015
Magliocca, Gerard N. American Founding Son: John Bingham and the Invention of the Fourteenth Amendment 2013
Mansfield, Stephen Lincoln’s Battle With God: A President’s Struggle With Faith and What It Meant for America 2012
McGinty, Brian Lincoln’s Greatest Case: The River, The Bridge, and the Making of America 2015
McPherson, James M. and McPherson, Patricia R. Lamson of the Gettysburg: The Civil War Letters of Roswell H. Lamson, U.S. Navy 1997
Miller, Richard Lawrence Lincoln and his World: The Early Years: Birth to Illinois Legislature 2006
Oates, Stephen B. Abraham Lincoln: The Man Behind The Myths 1984
Peet, Tom and Keck, David Reading Lincoln: An Annotated Bibliography 2014
Peraino, Kevin Lincoln in the World: The Making of a Statesman and the Dawn of American Power 2013
Petersen, William F. Lincoln Douglas: The Weather as Destiny 1943
Quercia, Jacopo Della The Great Abraham Lincoln Pocket Watch Conspiracy 2014
Rayner, William Horace and Schmidt, Milton O. Elementary Surveying 1957
Reck, W. Emerson A. Lincoln: His Last 24 Hours 1987
Rothenberg, Marc (Ed) The Papers of Joseph Henry, Volume 10: January 1858-December 1865, The Smithsonian Years 2004
Sandburg, Carl Storm Over the Land: A Profile of the Civil War 1995
Shively, Carol A. (Ed.) Asians and Pacific Islanders and the Civil War 2015
Songini, Marc The Lost Fleet: A Yankee Whaler’s Struggle Against the Confederate Navy and Arctic Disaster 2007
Spencer, J. Ronald (Ed) A Connecticut Yankee in Lincoln’s Cabinet: Navy Secretary Gideon Welles Chronicles the Civil War 2014
Temple, Wayne C. Abraham Lincoln From Skeptic to Prophet 1995
Temple, Wayne C. Lincoln’s Connections With the Illinois Michigan Canal, His Return From Congress in ’48, and His Invention 1986
The Heritage Press The Literary Works of Abraham Lincoln 1942
Thompson, D.D. Abraham Lincoln, The First American 1894
Williams, Frank J. and Pederson, William D., eds. Lincoln Lessons: Reflections on America’s Greatest Leader 2009
Winkle, Kenneth J. Lincoln’s Citadel: The Civil War in Washington, DC 2013
The Invisible General 2004
Lust for Love and Battle 1984
Lee Faces Up to Gettysburg 2002
Eyewitness Account Gettysburg 2003
A.P. Hill’s Bloody Bristol Assault 2003

 

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A Few New Abraham Lincoln Books

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Lincoln Forum CakeI’ve just returned from the annual Lincoln Forum conference in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This was the 20th anniversary event, complete with cake. The Forum fills two and a half days with presentations by renowned Abraham Lincoln scholars, great camaraderie, and books. A lot of books. As usual, my bag coming home is filled with new books picked up at the conference bookstore.

This year I tried to restrict my book buying, so the total was only six (yes, only). In addition to all the new books there are opportunities to buy older tomes from Chuck Hand, collector extraordinaire. And then there is the unparalleled Dan Weinberg of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop, who always has an amazing showing of Lincoln photos, signed documents, and other artifacts. To this elite group we can add the beautiful sculptures of John McClarey.

Villainous CompoundsNow the books. New additions to my collection include an essay compilation book edited by Frank Williams and a second similar book edited by Joseph Fornieri. I also picked up an edition of Reck’s A Lincoln: His Last 24 Hours and a book on the lost whaling fleet (which had battled the confederate navy and the Arctic during the Civil War). Perhaps the most unique acquisition is a book called Villainous Compounds: Chemical Weapons & The American Civil War by Guy R. Hasegawa. With my scientific background it would almost be blasphemous if I hadn’t bought it (he tells himself, in a rationalizing sort of way).

Just and Generous NationHaving already bought it beforehand, I took advantage of the conference to bring my copy of Harold Holzer’s new book A Just and Generous Nation and had him inscribe it for me. As always, Harold was gracious and generous with his time and expertise. He noted that he wrote the first section of the book (seven chapters) and his co-author, economist Norton Garfinkle, wrote the second section (five chapters) on Lincoln’s economic improvement focus and influence on modern America. I’ll have a review of the book as soon as I finish reading it.

At the end of the year I’ll update on new Lincoln book acquisitions for 2015. And now…it’s on to writing!

David J. Kent has been a scientist for thirty-five years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (now in its 5th printing) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His book on Thomas Edison is due in Barnes and Noble stores in spring 2016.

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How Scientific Peer-Review Works – The Series (from The Dake Page)

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Huh CommunicationEarlier this year I posted a series of articles explaining what scientific peer-review is, and what it isn’t. The series was very popular so I’ve decided to create this single post that links to all the previous ones.

In Part 1 we gave a basic definition of peer-review, described the process, what it is expected to accomplish, and what it is not expected to accomplish. In a nutshell, scientists conduct research and then write that research up in a formal paper (including methods, results, how the statistics were done, conclusions, and some discussion of what it all means). The paper is then submitted to a scientific journal, whose editors send it out to other scientists in the field who are capable of reviewing it for clarity, content, and value to expanding our collective knowledge. The reviewers don’t validate or invalidate the work, just make sure it meets some basic scientific principles and complete enough for others to 1) know what the researchers did, and 2) replicate it.

Part 2 looked at how peer-review can go wrong. Standards for scientific journals can differ, with some being akin to Ivy League colleges while others may be less stringent. The relatively rare problem of “pal-review” (common among climate deniers) was examined, as was the difficulties caused by some (but not all) of the new “open access journals.”

[Read Part 3 and Part 4 on The Dake Page]

The above is a partial cross-post of a full article on The Dake Page. Please click on the link above to read further. Thanks.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for over thirty years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and the e-book Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time. He is currently writing a book on Thomas Edison.

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Science Traveling – 2015 in Preview

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Expect to see a few changes on Science Traveler in 2015. I’m looking at a new landing page, new focus on current and upcoming books, and a greater emphasis on science traveling itself.

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This past year had some great traveling – Argentinian glaciers, Giant Sequoias, and quaint villages. There was also my annual science conference (Vancouver) and my first of what will be annual Lincoln conferences (Gettysburg). The year 2015 will see me in at least three new countries…and a rock in the middle of nowhere.

The rock is where I start. Next week I’ll fly to Miami, then drive out to the Everglades, snorkel in Biscayne Bay, drive all the way to Key West, and board a float plane to get to the rock – Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas. Not only is the reef beautiful, but the place is where the four convicted conspirators from Abraham Lincoln’s assassination were imprisoned (the ones that weren’t hung). So the trip is both science and Lincoln, always a great combination.

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The following week will find me in New York City doing some research for the next book. I may be back in The City in April for a writing conference.

Early June (or perhaps late August) should see me in Scandinavia. When I was living in Brussels I saw a lot of Europe, including Finland, but I never made it to Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. This year I’m making it. Details are still being worked out and should include Stockholm, Copenhagen, and Oslo, as well as a train/boat/bus/train adventure through the mountains and fjords on the way to Bergen.

Cancun sunrise

After my annual trip to New England to visit parents and old high school friends in July, October should see us in China (and some other country yet to be determined). November could be Salt Lake City and environs for a combined SETAC and science traveling jaunt, plus back to Gettysburg for the Lincoln Forum. [Update: Within the last few minutes the possibility arose of going to Montreal during my New England trip, with a stop at Tesla’s birthday event on Long Island on the way back.]

Somewhere in the year I need to squeeze in a research trip to Chicago/Springfield (Illinois), some other off-the-beaten-path trip (Mt. Rushmore?), and, hopefully, a few more science traveling adventures. Check back for more details, as well as photos and stories from the road.

2015 will also see me preparing more travel articles for publication, beginning with the great experiences emanating from Argentina. Look for more science traveling articles in magazines.

Finally, if you missed them, the latest articles in Hot White Snow, The Dake Page, and here on Science Traveler cover Reading is Fundamental, Welcome to a Critical Year in Climate, and Abraham Lincoln Book Acquisitions.

See you again shortly.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for over thirty years, an avid science traveler, and is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and the e-book Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Abraham Lincoln Book Acquisitions for 2014

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Lincoln book towerI’m lucky to have a growing collection of books about Abraham Lincoln. Nowhere near the 15,000 books reportedly written about our 16th President, but my sagging bookshelves now hold over 900 titles. The number of actual books is well over 1000 when one figures that some “titles” are 3 or 6 or 10-book sets.

This year I obtained just over 60 new titles, far short of what I obtained in 2013. While I haven’t done a comparison, I may have obtained more books this year directly from the authors, along with their signatures and inscriptions. Forty-three of the newly obtained books are first editions, 14 are signed, 11 are inscribed, and seven are signed and inscribed to me personally. One book, in fact, was signed and inscribed to me by all three of its authors at the recent Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg, where I had the privilege of meeting Tom Horrocks, Harold Holzer, and Frank Williams.

I took on the role of VP of Outreach and Education for the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia in 2014, and LGDC has presented many opportunities to meet outstanding Lincoln scholars and authors. John Barr, Jonathan W. White, James Conroy and Tom Horrocks all gave presentations this year. Joseph Fornieri, whom I met at the Forum in Gettysburg, will be our Lincoln’s birthday speaker in February 2015.

The oldest book on the 2014 list of acquisitions is a 1909 “centennial” edition of Lincoln’s first and second inaugural speeches. The newest book is Harold Holzer’s Lincoln and the Power of the Press, published this fall and signed to me by Harold at the Lincoln Forum in November. I’m currently reading it so stay tuned for a book review when I’m finished.

Other special books this year include a book about Mentor Graham, who was mentor in both name and function during Lincoln’s early manhood in New Salem, Illinois. I also obtained a copy of Kirkham’s Grammar, the textbook Lincoln used to learn basic writing skills. Another favorite is Jonathan W. White’s new book Emancipation, The Union Army, and the Reelection of Abraham Lincoln. I’m looking forward to trekking down to Newport News, where Jonathan has volunteered to show me around the USS Monitor exhibit the Mariner’s Museum.

While writing this I realized I actually have obtained many more books than are currently listed. As I continue the research for my forthcoming book I’ve been downloading PDF files of several books that helped shape Lincoln’s education over his lifetime. I’ll have to catalog them and do a separate post in the future.

Much more to come…2015 looks to be an exciting year. See the list of books below.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for over 30 years, is a lifelong Lincolnophile, and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Here’s the 2014 list:

Abraham Lincoln: First and Second Inaugural Addresses (and other speeches) 1909
Lincoln’s Last Speech in Springfield in the Campaign of 1858 1925
Ambrose, Stephen E. Nothing Like It In The World: The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-1869 2000
Angle, Paul M. A Shelf of Lincoln Books: A Critical Bibliography of Lincolniana 1946
Bacon, Benjamin W. Sinews of War: How Technology, Industry, and Transportation Won the Civil War 1997
Baringer, William E. Lincoln Day by Day: A Chronology 1809-1865, Volume I: 1809-1848; Volume II: 1849-1860; Volume II: 1861-1865 1960
Barr, John McKee Loathing Lincoln: An American Tradition From the Civil War to the Present 2014
Barton, William E. Abraham Lincoln And His Books 1920
Bauer, Charles J. The Odd Couple Who Hanged Mary Surratt! (Preston King and Jim Lane) 1980
Bishop, Jim The Day Lincoln Was Shot 1955
Borritt, Gabor (ed) The Gettysburg Nobody Knows 1999
Boritt, Gabor S. (ed) Lincoln The War President 1992
Bray, Robert Reading with Lincoln 2010
Brown University Books at Brown 1960
Bruce, Robert V. The Launching of Modern American Science 1987
Burkhimer, Michael 100 Essential Lincoln Books 2003
Burlingame, Michael Honest Abe, Dishonest Mary 1994
Conroy, James B. Our One Common Country: Abraham Lincoln and the Hampton Roads Peace Conference of 1865 2014
Corry, John A. Lincoln at Cooper Union: The Speech That Made Him President 2003
Denenberg, Barry Lincoln Shot: A President’s Life Remembered 2008
Dennett, Tyler (Ed) Lincoln and the Civil War in the Diaries and Letters of John Hay 1988
Duncan, Kunigunde and D.F. Nickols Mentor Graham: The Man Who Taught Lincoln 1944
Fairfax County Civil War Centennial Commission Fairfax County and the War Between the States 1987
Fletcher, George P. Our Secret Constitution: How Lincoln Redefined American Democracy 2001
Fornieri, Joseph R. Abraham Lincoln: Philosopher Statesman 2014
Gary, Ralph Following in Lincoln’s Footsteps: A Complete Annotated Reference to Hundreds of Historical Sites Visited by Abraham Lincoln 2001
Goodheart, Adam 1861: The Civil War Awakening 2011
Grant, Ulysses S. Personal Memoirs 1999
Haydon, F. Stansbury Military Ballooning during the Early Civil War 2000
Herdon, William H. and Weik, Jesse William Herndon’s Life of Lincoln 1942
Holzer, Harold Lincoln and the Power of the Press 2014
Holzer, Harold Lincoln: How Abraham Lincoln Ended Slavery in America 2012
Horrocks, Thomas A. Lincoln’s Campaign Biographies 2014
Horrocks, Thomas A., Holzer, Harold, and Williams, Frank J. (Editors) The Living Lincoln 2011
Humes, James C. The Wit & Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln: A Treasury of Quotations, Anecdotes, and Observations 1999
Jorgenson, Tim Mrs. Keckly Sends Her Regards 2007
Katcher, Philip The Civil War Day By Day 201
Kirkham, Samuel Kirkham’s Grammar: The Book That Shaped Lincoln’s Prose 1999
Martin, Iain C. Worthy of Their Esteem: The Timeless Words and Sage Advice of Abraham Lincoln, America’s Greatest President 2009
Mead, Franklin B. Heroic Statues in Bronze of Abraham Lincoln 1932
Miller, Richard Lawrence Lincoln and his World: Prairie Politician 1834-1842 2008
Mills, Eric Chesapeake Bay in the Civil War 1996
O’Reilly, Bill and Zimmerman, Dwight Jon Lincoln’s Last Days: The Shocking Assassination That Changed America Forever 2012
Percoco, James A. Summers with Lincoln: Looking For The Man in the Monuments 2008
Poleskie, Stephen The Balloonist: The Story of T.S.C. Lowe – Inventor, Scientist, Magician, and Father of the U.S. Air Force 2007
Randall, J.G. Mr. Lincoln 1957
Rice, Wallace The Lincoln Year Book ?
Riddle, Donald W. Lincoln Runs for Congress 1948
Ross, Charles Trial by Fire: Science, Technology and the Civil War 2000
Sandburg, Carl Abe Lincoln Grows Up 1956
Stashower, Daniel The Hour of Peril: The Secret Plot to Murder Lincoln Before the Civil War 2013
Steiner, Mark E. An Honest Calling: The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln 2006
Stoddard, William O. Inside the White House in War Times: Memoirs and Reports of Lincoln’s Secretary 2000
Thomas, Benjamin P. Lincoln’s New Salem 1987
Thompson, Frank Abraham Lincoln: Twentieth Century Portrayals 1999
Tyrner-Tyrnauer, A.R. Lincoln and the Emperors 1962
Waugh, John C. One Man Great Enough: Abraham Lincoln’s Road to the Civil War 2007
Waugh, John C. One Man Great Enough: Abraham Lincoln’s Road to the Civil War 2007
White, Jonathan W. Emancipation, The Union Army, and the Reelection of Abraham Lincoln 2014
Widmer, Ted (Ed) The New York Times Disunion 2013
Wilson, Douglas L. Lincoln before Washington: New Perspectives on the Illinois Years 1997
Wilson, Douglas L. Lincoln’s Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words 2006
Zeitz, Joshua Lincoln’s Boys: John Hay, John Nicolay, and the War for Lincoln’s Image 2014
Lincoln Takes Norfolk 1983
Lincoln Herald Fall 1966 1966
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Three Books about Abraham Lincoln and His Books

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Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln grew up reading everything he could get his hands on in the largely illiterate western frontier of 19th century America. So it’s no small irony that estimates of books written about Abraham Lincoln run over 15,000 volumes. Some day I’ll count up the number of books about Lincoln I’ve read (I’m guessing over 200) but for now I’ll give you three quick reviews of books related to Lincoln’s own love of books. All of these and more can be found on my Goodreads page under “read” books.

Abraham Lincoln and His Books: With Selections from the Writings of Lincoln and a Bibliography of Books in Print Relating to Abraham Lincoln – William E. Barton (1920)

Interesting small book from 1920 on books Lincoln read, as well as books about Lincoln, with an early bibliography. Also includes several of his speeches and other writings.

A Shelf of Lincoln Books: A Critical, Selective Bibliography of Lincolniana – Paul M. Angle (1946)

Published in 1946, this volume is necessarily outdated, but should definitely not be overlooked. Paul M. Angle was one of the preeminent Lincoln scholars of his day. He has carefully selected about 80 of the thousands of Lincoln books extant at that time, with an eye for those that offer the greatest contribution to Lincoln scholarship and have stood the test of time. Thus, Angle eliminates those books that “were little better than worthless when they were published,” and focuses on those with lasting value.

Despite selecting the best books, Angle is direct in his critiques for any inadequacies he sees in each volume. He notes that many of his comments may reflect a “magisterial tone,” but it is exactly that tone and his authoritative evaluation of each book’s strengths and weaknesses that make this “Shelf” so valuable in its own right.

There is a need for an updated bibliography of Lincoln books, but such an update should start with this volume by Angle.

100 Essential Lincoln Books – Michael Burkhimer (2003)

Very useful book published in 2003. The essential books are listed chronologically, starting with Carpenter’s “The Inner Life of Abraham Lincoln: Six Months in the White House” (1866) and ending with Miller’s “Lincoln’s Virtues: An Ethical Biography” (2002). Burkhimer writes in 2-3 pages a combination of summary, highlights, and essay for each of the 100 books he deems “essential.”

His selection is obviously somewhat arbitrary, and the early books sometimes are chosen not because of their staying power but because they were the big (and often, only) books of the day. More culling was necessary for recent decades because the number of books being published about Lincoln has increased rather than drifted off. Given the number of Lincoln books published in the decade since this publication (including, for example, Doris Kearns Goodwin’s stellar “Team of Rivals”), there is a definite need for updating. This book, however, is a wonderful resource for those interested in filling in their Lincoln reading list, as well as for providing insights into the value of each of the books cited.

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World and two specialty e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

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Last Chance to Get E-book for Free – Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time

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Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its TimeToday is the last day you can download a free copy of my new e-book, “Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time” on Amazon.com. In thanks to all of the people who celebrate Nikola Tesla and have supported me over the last few years, I’m providing followers with the book for no cost during this limited period. After today you’ll have to purchase it.

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