Abraham Lincoln: A Life by Michael Burlingame, 2008

  • 2-Volume set, 2024 pages
  • “This book supplants [Carl] Sandburg and supersedes all other biographies. Future Lincoln books cannot be written without it, and from no other book can a general reader learn so much about Abraham Lincoln. It is the essential title for the bicentennial.” — James L. Swanson, Publishers Weekly

Abraham Lincoln: Great American Historians on Our Sixteenth President, 2009

  • A collection of reflections on Abraham Lincoln by American Historians.

Dictionary of American Biography, Scribner

  • Classic, biographical reference source.  This would be an excellent place to start gathering biographical information about Lincoln and other Civil War notables.

Encyclopedia of the American Presidency, Facts on File, 2004

  • Good resource to get information about Lincoln during his Presidency, as well as other former Presidents of the United States.

Lincoln’s Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words, Douglas L. Wilson, 2006

The Speeches of Abraham Lincoln, Excellent Books, 2005

  • Contains several speeches, given by Lincoln before and during his Presidency.  Includes,  “A House Divided Against Itself (1858),” “First Inaugural Address (1861),”  “The State of the Union, 1862 (1862),” “The Emancipation Proclamation (1863),” and  “The Gettysburg Address (1863)” to name a few.

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln - Doris Kearns Goodwin, 2005

 Critically acclaimed work by Doris Kearns Goodwin focused on Lincoln’s relationships with:

  • Edwin M. Stanton
  • Salmon P. Chase
  • William H. Seward
  • Edward Bates