Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
Ratings76
Average rating4.5
I had known little about Lincoln before reading this book, but Goodwins analysis of both him and his ‘team of rivals' has left such a profound impression upon me that I would now personally consider Licoln one of the greatest men to ever exist.
This man in Ted Lasso is in the flesh saving the great experiment of a people's democratic government. Pure class, no judgment, magnanimity against those who despised him, absolute forgiveness. Even going so far as to not only constantly take responsibility for the mistakes of a man in his cabinet who usurped him at every position for his own ambition, but to nominate his as chief justice to the supreme court after being betrayed by him due to his qualifications in spite of their personal relationship.
If everyone could be 10% more like lincoln the world would be a much better place
I was having difficulty keeping track of all these dead white guys and the book is entirely to heavy so I'm officially abandoning this at page 147.
An exceptional look into Lincoln's political mastery. I ‘read' this through Audible, with the exceptional narration of Suzanne Toren. Being from Illinois, a love of Lincoln was part of the package growing up, but I had never realized the depth of greatness Lincoln really could pull from. His magnanimity, calmness, and self-confidence blending into something very one of a kind. In the closing chapters, as the war draws to a close and the amendment is pursued, one is left with extreme sadness at the thought: “what would our country be like today if Lincoln's Reconstruction had continued?”
I originally read the book, or large parts of it, in 2013, but was interrupted by moves and was never able to return to it. I was able to get the audiobook in 2018 and was halfway through it when distracted by schooling. Finally able to return for the second half, it's a book I think is worthy of another, complete, readthrough in the future.
I only realized at the end that it was abridged, so I can only hope the unabridged version was better.
An excellent book which gives a clear picture of Lincoln's character and demonstrates that he was the right man for the time.
I think history books exploring the “great” deeds of dead white men are not my thing. Well-researched but altogether not a satisfying long read (for me). 2 stars for personal enjoyment, 4 stars for acknowledging the research and writing.
I have a new appreciation of Lincoln as a shrewd political tactician and a phenomenally self-made man. His singular focus on preserving the union required great skill and tremendous patience–particularly in assembling his cabinet from his outmaneuvered and dismayed rivals for the presidency. Doris Kearns Goodman portrays a man who takes responsibility for his mistakes (and sometimes for those of his cabinet and generals). For the Great Emancipator, freeing the slaves from bondage was a political calculation balancing demands of republicans and radicals and a strategic decision to build the Northern armies from the ranks of freed slaves. Only later does one get the sense that his commitment to honor the emancipation proclamation and the pursuit of the 13th amendment had a strong moral foundation.
The book is a formidable portrait of a complicated man, brought into sharpest contrast with her attention to Seward, Chase, Stanton, McClellan, and others who served, and in some cases, undermined, the efforts of a determined president. This is a remarkable work.