Abraham Lincoln: A Life, Volume One

By: Michael Burlingame

Narrated by: Sean Pratt

In the first multivolume biography of Abraham Lincoln to be published in decades, Lincoln scholar Michael Burlingame offers a fresh look at the life of one of America's greatest presidents. Incorporating the field notes of earlier biographers along with decades of research in multiple manuscript archives and long-neglected newspapers, this remarkable work will both alter and reinforce our current understanding of America's 16th president.

Volume 1 covers Lincoln's early childhood, his experiences as a farm boy in Indiana and Illinois, his legal training, and the political ambition that led to a term in Congress in the 1840s. In Volume 2, Burlingame examines Lincoln's life during his presidency and the Civil War, narrating in fascinating detail the crisis over Fort Sumter and Lincoln's own battles with relentless office seekers, hostile newspaper editors, and incompetent field commanders. Burlingame also offers new interpretations of Lincoln's private life, discussing his marriage to Mary Todd and the untimely deaths of two sons to disease. But through it all - his difficult childhood, his contentious political career, a fratricidal war, and tragic personal losses - Lincoln preserved a keen sense of humor and acquired a psychological maturity that proved to be the North's most valuable asset in winning the Civil War.

This landmark audiobook establishes Burlingame as the most assiduous Lincoln biographer of recent memory and brings Lincoln alive as never before.

©2016 Michael Burligame (P)2016 Gildan Media LLC

Critic reviews

"A magisterial enterprise." (William Safire, The New York Times)

Fantastic content

This was an extremely engaging audio book. There were no moments of long drawn out information spewing. A very lively story. Very excited to move on to the next volume. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is Mr. Pratt mispronounced a handful of words multiple times. Not that I think I could do any better. It was just really distracting.

Fantastically in-depth

A book made for people like me who crave detail in their nonfiction and biographies especially. It's full of amusing anecdotes, insight into antebellum America and the West especially, and really brings Lincoln's personality and world to life with vivid description.

I found the psychoanalyzing incredibly annoying at times ("Lincoln may have mistrusted women because of his abandonment issues following his mother's death" and such) but the author's use of direct quotations and citing of first and secondhand sources throughout the book really makes it stand out among other well-regarded biographies.

Exceptionally entertaining and moving

I can’t recommend this book more. I only thought I knew the story of Honest Abe until I listened to this. By the end I was absolutely enraptured and moved to tears. Though not a believer myself, there is something of the Divine that radiates from Lincoln, as many of his contemporaries describe and are catalogued in this book. I have such a deep appreciation for his morality, humility, and sense of duty.

Quite thorough, a little dry

The book is a deep dive into Abe pre-presidency. Well researched, but I found that many of the political side stories weren't all that enthralling 160 years later. Probably a better speed read than a book on tape.

History at its most detailed Best

This is a detailed and meticulously documented book and his story is told from every angle. Not only did I learn about Abraham Lincoln, and I’ve read 2 other Biographies recently, but I learned much about the reasons and causes of the Civil War. This is an excellent book if you’re intellectually curious and I can hardly wait to start Volume II.

This one ends with him boarding the train for Washington, DC in Springfield. The narrator is especially talented in delivering the various voices and comments from the various people in his life with accents north and south male and female accurately rendered.

Very detailed

I think the narrator did well and was suited for this title. This book must have involved a lot of research as it included many details throughout his life. Overall, I liked the book and thought it was well written, but there were a couple of things I would have changed:

1) Given it's so long and detailed, it would have been helpful if there was a little more reference here and there to who individuals were. Ex: Senator Bob (who he lived with after we bought that blue unicorn) more important people may even include something like this (discussed in chapter 5 page 200 / minute 36), but maybe there is something like that in the written version?

2) He frequently makes reference to things like "probably written by Lincoln" without giving reason for why he / history believes that Lincoln was the author. The assumptions feel lazy, and out of place in a book that clearly includes a lot of research.

3) He makes a lot of statements giving his assumptions about Lincoln's thoughts and feelings on various matters. Most without any real backing, and therefore come across more like the authors opinions than Lincoln's. He did this on other matters as well (most notably in the beginning when talking about Lincoln's mother / depression / her reputation) but most frequently surrounding Lincoln's thoughts. It felt sloppy and inappropriate.

4) There are many old time sayings or stories that a modern day explanation would have been helpful to include, as they didn't always make sense to me.

Going into it, you have to decide how much backstory you want on his life and circumstances surrounding events, because this gives a lot. If you're looking for less backstory and are more interested in covering important people and events, you'll likely find this a bit dry and slow. If you want details, this gives an impressive amount. I have suggested it to others who I felt would also appreciate it.

Exceptional volume of research and detail

I am impressed with the extraordinary amount of research and detail that fed into this Lincoln biography. The performer’s use of different voices for different characters made the book more understandable. I also appreciate the greater honesty in describing aspects of Lincoln’s personality and behavior that may be less consistent with more heroic Lincoln myths. This is the best of the ten or so major Lincoln biographies I have read.

Stunning..

This is a wonderfully detailed biography. Burlingame Has put together a masterpiece. looking forward to 2nd volume! Thinking of the subject if I may, it is unusual isn't it that one life should affect society in such an identifiable way. It's not that a society turned left or right, it's as though its trajectory moved more skyward , somehow , able now to lift, with an unseen weight left behind.
R Piepenbrink

Important Work

Well researched, sources given, truly eye opening. Mr. A. Lincoln was a rare good man. I’ve shed tears, stopped listening many times. Shocked and sickened by the dogma of the country during this sad but important part of the history of our young country. As terrible as the history of the colonization of a country which was not yours.

The most comprehensive Lincoln biography ever

This is a review for volumes 1 and 2. This book is not for the casual listener. It is very long and sometimes repetitive (because Burlingame cites never before used sources that often say the same thing), but extremely thorough. No other book will give you as much knowledge about Lincoln and his life.