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A review by greatlibraryofalexandra
And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle by Jon Meacham
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I was a little taken aback by how much I liked this book. It was well written, emotional, thoughtful, and possessed of intense insight.
It’s been, I think, somewhat popular lately to denigrate Lincoln as a racist, with lots of “he only frees the enslaved to get elected” or “he freed the enslaved, but he hated Black folk” - this book delves into Lincoln’s ideology, his philosophy, and the things that made him stand out amongst his peers. It also fairly agrees that yes, he was a racist alongside those same peers, and his political motivations were complex, emotional, and oftentimes as odds with his personal, socially learned believe and prejudices.
It paid a great deal of attention to his legacy without getting too boring or in the weeds, and by the end I felt very reflective and emotional. I very firmly believe that the assassination of Lincoln set this country back 100 years, and this book reinforced that belief.
It’s been, I think, somewhat popular lately to denigrate Lincoln as a racist, with lots of “he only frees the enslaved to get elected” or “he freed the enslaved, but he hated Black folk” - this book delves into Lincoln’s ideology, his philosophy, and the things that made him stand out amongst his peers. It also fairly agrees that yes, he was a racist alongside those same peers, and his political motivations were complex, emotional, and oftentimes as odds with his personal, socially learned believe and prejudices.
It paid a great deal of attention to his legacy without getting too boring or in the weeds, and by the end I felt very reflective and emotional. I very firmly believe that the assassination of Lincoln set this country back 100 years, and this book reinforced that belief.