A. Lincoln / Ronald C. White Jr.

RATINGS

Overall: 5 / 5 stars

Text Level: Hard

Entertainment: High

Self-Help: Low

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, History, Civil War, American History

Page Count: 816

Is this book right for my inmate and me?

Review By: Blackbird (Inmate)

Learn the true courage and bravery that went into the decision-making of one of our greatest presidents.

What do we do when the reality of a man is greater than his myth? With A. Lincoln, the readers are presented a man, who even through flaws, managed to save a nation through the development of his own soul. Ronald C. White Jr. delivers his readers a full picture of the 16th president and how each of his most famous decisions came through careful reflection.

Humanizing Lincoln allows readers to see how the president developed and reflected on his ideas over the growth of his life. White Jr. uses Lincoln’s personal private writings to show the struggle and thought process that constantly went into the forming of nation-changing moments. This information lets us see the true greatness of the man at a deeper level, that we might not have experienced before.

Lincoln lived a life of sorrow, pain, and setbacks before and during his most successful achievements. Balancing life and a nation filled with turmoil, his ever-growing sense of faith shows the complexity of the man. This book provides readers with the development of the president through his personal writings. As the reader, you begin to realize that Lincoln’s toughest critic was often most time himself. However, with these personal writings given to us by the author, we see that when Lincoln made an important decision, his dedication and resolve for it were strengthened by the careful preparation that went into it.

One of the greatest lessons that readers might be able to take away with them after reading this book is that potential has no limits for those that self-reflect and act with just purposes. Answers may not be easy to always come by and may seem like something without hope, but if you take the time to search in faith a knowledge to gain through experience, the answer can be there. Reading this book, we see Lincoln as the man he was: flawed, ever learning, and great.