Lincoln Bicentennial in 2009

Here's the famous sculpture on Abraham Lincoln's grave monument in Springfield, IL. Probably every last person who visited the gravesite has rubbed Lincoln's nose to make it so shiny. This is a likeness of Lincoln that I love. You can see the sadness and compassion in that beautiful homely face.

Lincoln was born on Feb. 12, 1809. On Feb. 11, the night before his 200th birthday, PBS will show "Looking for Lincoln," a documentary hosted by noted Harvard scholar, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. You can see lots more about the year-long celebrations at the Lincoln Bicentennial website, including details of the release in 2009 of new Lincoln pennies with 4 different designs for the reverse sides.

I never tire of reading about Lincoln. There are more books published about him every year, so I'll never run out of possibilities. The more I read about him, a man both reviled and loved, the more I admire his deep understanding of people and all their foibles. He was probably one of the most emotionally intelligent people who ever lived. Nonetheless, his profound humanity did not prevent his willingness to subject the country to the horrors of war in order to preserve the United States first, and end slavery second. This makes for an endless supply of literary assessments! I'm giving myself a break from Lincoln biographies for a little while, but there'll be plenty to think about this next year, even if it's not from a book.

Skip this if you don't care about Lincoln

In honor of Lincoln's birthday today, I'm posting the list of selected biographies I mentioned in my last post. I wish I had had a nifty link, but I just couldn't find it on the Web, so had to resort to typing.

Abraham Lincoln: Selected Biographies

Herndon's Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life (3 vols.), c. 1889.
William H. Herndon and Jesse W. Weik (Herndon was Lincoln's last law partner in Springfield, IL)

The Life of Abraham Lincoln (2 vols.), c. 1900.
Ida M. Tarbell (her two brothers knew Lincoln)

Lincoln the President: Springfield to Gettysburg (2 vols.), 1945.
Lincoln the President: Midstream, c. 1952.
Lincoln the President: Last Full Measure, c. 1955.
James G. Randall

Abraham Lincoln: A Biography, c. 1952.
Benjamin Thomas

With Malice Toward None: A Life of Abraham Lincoln, c. 1977.
Stephen B. Oates

Last Best Hope of Earth: Abraham Lincoln and the Promise of America, c. 1995.
Mark E. Neely, Jr.

Lincoln, c. 1995.
David Herbert Donald

Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President, c. 1999.
Allen C. Guelzo

Abraham Lincoln and Civil War America: A Biography, c. 2002.
William E. Gienapp

Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power, c. 2004.
Richard Carwardine

Abraham Lincoln - and Steven Spielberg

As you can see by my current book list on the right, I've been indulging my long interest in Abraham Lincoln. A few years ago, my husband and I took a trip to Springfield, IL, and stayed at a B&B just down the block from the Lincoln family home there. Our room overlooked the street and, in the early morning with no one around, you could look out and pretend that you were seeing the neighborhood as it was in those days - with fences to keep out stray animals around each restored house.

While we were there, we visited the marvelous Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum. In a room designed for kid visitors, complete with a wall height chart to show how tall Lincoln was compared to his wife, etc., a curator gave me a list of selected Lincoln biographies (there are hundreds, maybe thousands) arranged in chronological order by publication date. So, the first one was by his law partner, Wm. Herndon, and written within a few decades of his death. I'm reading through the list and am now only on the third one - a lifetime project.

Meanwhile, Spielberg bought the film rights to Team of Rivals, a recent book on Lincoln by historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, that tells how he incorporated many of the men who ran against him for president into his Cabinet, then got them to work together. Wouldn't that be interesting with this year's candidates!! Spielberg has cast one of my all-time favorite actors, Liam Neeson, as Lincoln - with rumors that Sally Field will play Mary Lincoln. Film production has been delayed until after the next Indiana Jones movie and may not be out until 2009 (sigh), but I will be first in line to see it!