Lincoln: The Presidential Archives Book Review

Lincoln: The Presidential Archives by Chuck Wills.

This is an interesting book in that you get to hold reproductions of various artifacts of Lincoln's life. There are eight pockets that hold articles from various periods of his life. For his boyhood is a page from his arithmetic book. His pre-Presidential life is also depicted with a copy of his marriage license, and his patent application. His Presidential years are presented with military and personal touches. On the personal end is a letter from Mary Todd Lincoln in New York City. Militarily are some letters to and from Grant and Sherman, the telegram informing Lincoln of the New York City draft riot, a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation.

It is neat to hold copies of the originals of these items but none of these items is exactly new. I've seen Lincoln's drawings before for his patent application. The various letters have appeared before as text versions in a variety of books. This book is more for the new or general student of Lincoln or the war. The book is also a general Lincoln biography with tons of nice photographs and drawings. It is a good general book that I would recommend to a general audience. If you are a devoted Lincoln reader that is probably very little in this book you have not seen before.