Ariel Gonzalez, writing in the Sunday January 11, 2009 edition of the Miami Herald offered an excellent, long review of A. Lincoln: A Biography.
Abraham Lincoln was less qualified to assume the presidency than any of his 15 predecessors. A self-educated lawyer with only two years in Congress under his belt, he had no executive, diplomatic or military experience (aside from a few uneventful months in the Illinois state militia). Even so, he successfully led the nation through its worst crisis, a ghastly civil war that makes today's red state-blue state divide look like a game of paintball.
In this comprehensive yet accessible biography, Ronald C. White Jr. shows how Lincoln's moral and intellectual development equipped him with the tools he needed for greatness.
White's title refers to the nondescript way the president signed his name. A deeper meaning emerges, however, if the initial is treated as the indefinite article. Moving targets are hard to hit, so Lincoln kept his rivals and enemies guessing about his true nature. To them he was unremarkable, a homely hayseed who could be swayed and manipulated. But he wasn't merely a Lincoln; like Whitman, he contained multitudes. He was fiercely ambitious and cunning. Had he lived in ancient Rome, he would have been a match for Caesar.
Certainly his speeches were as good as anything Cicero delivered in the forum. Several presidents have used memorable language to shape public opinion, but no one else redefined the United States through the power of his words. Some of the most illuminating parts of White's book, in fact, are his adroit appraisals of Lincoln's rhetorical gems: the ''House Divided'' speech, the Cooper Union Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, and his second inaugural address, which White considers his masterpiece for its rejection of vindictiveness (''with malice toward none, with charity for all'') and its noble call "to bind up the nation's wounds.'"
White himself is no slouch when it comes to writing. He is that rarity: a scholar who can tell a good story. His style is informative and unobtrusive; he expertly processes roomfuls of research into a vivid and readable narrative. The section on the Lincoln-Douglas debates should be singled out for praise; it is fast-paced, almost thrilling and eerily resonant....
