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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
: Lincoln - The Man, Complex, Visionary and Brought to Life, 26 Mar 2008
Stephen Oates' Without Malice portrays Abraham Lincoln in all his complexity; visionary, procrastinator, vacillating and revolutionary. The book tells Lincoln's life from his humble beginnings in Indiana, where he was born into a frontier family. Thereafter Lincoln's family moved to Illinois and Kentucky. Early life for the great man was hard. He seemed to have made up his mind early on to better himself intellectually and not be condemned to working "with his hands" all his life. Even though Lincoln was intellectually inclined he had a singular gift for connecting with the rural folk of his childhood: He knew how to wrestle and earn "respect" from the farm hands.
The book portrays Lincoln as a driven man who bettered himself against all odds. He never went to college but was able to school himself in the law and became a successful lawyer. In addition to his supreme gift for oration, Lincoln came across as deliberative, slow to anger/malice, ponderous and shy. He never seemed to rush into taking decisions.
The majority of the book is dedicated to the defining events of Lincoln's life, the American Civil War and the Emancipation of the Slaves. After taking up office, Lincoln formed a cabinet of strong-willed men, with differing political convictions and temperaments. Thereby, he (Lincoln) took advantage of the atmosphere of healthy competition and debate within his cabinet in order to inform his political positions.
What I really liked about the book was that it was not only about Lincoln. Stephen Oates dedicated much space to the key characters in Lincoln's life; his wife Mary, Secretary of War Cameron, Secretary of State Seward, his bosom friend Ed Baker, General McLelland and Senator Sumner. These portrayals were fleshed out to great detail, giving the reader an appreciation of the predilections, strengths and backgrounds of the people within Lincoln's circle.
Lincoln endured much grief throughout his life: the loss of two sons, his best friend and his parents. Through it all Lincoln displayed immense grace, dignity and a sense of destiny. What a man! He seems to have slowly come to the conclusion that slavery needed to be abolished in the US. Being a politician who needed to lead a diverse nation this is not surprising. However, when he came to the conclusion that the "Negro question" must be solved he stood his ground against formidable political foes.
I found his managerial style to be quite far-sighted, especially when it came to the handling of the war. He was never quick to find faults with his generals. For example, he very reluctantly fired General Mclelland even when it was clear that the general could not engage the enemy in a decisive battle. Instead Lincoln, chose to take the blame for his generals' failings. Even when it became clear that Sec of State Seward was openly ignoring Lincoln's office, Lincoln refused to take offence or malice. He preferred to retain Seward's skill in administering the war effort. This was one politician who tolerated dissent, What a lesson for today's dog-eat-dog ideologically constricted politicians!
There are some aspects of the book, which I did not like. The book is quite thin on Lincoln's early family life. His father Thomas and mother were sketchily portrayed. This may have been because Lincoln himself was ashamed of his "log-cabin" origins and never spoke much about it during his lifetime. Furthermore, in laying emphasis on the war, Mr Oates loses the reader in the details of the war. At some point, I skipped some 30 pages of the book, which gave a blow by blow account of each bout of political infighting during one Civil War campaign or the other. Giving such a detailed account of the Civil War battles made the tone of the book sound more academic and less engaging.
In conclusion, this is an excellent book. If you are interested in one of the greatest American leaders of all time, then Stephen Oates' book is as good a place to start. It paints the picture of an honest, driven, tragic visionary hero of humble origins, who, due to political expediency, vacillated on the key moral issue of his time but who stood up for his beliefs when the chips were down. Abraham Lincoln stepped up to the plate when it mattered most and shall be remembered in the annals of history as the leader who freed the slaves and changed the course of world history. Mr Oates' Without Malice does immense justice to that legacy and the man. I highly recommend this book.
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