Lincoln & Herndon

[LincolnToddFan]

[Toia, you sound quite convincing it's a "must-read" on the topic. Is it footnoted? Is it the same Epstein who wrote "Henry & Clara"?]

Eva,

I enjoyed the Epstein book because it was very sensitive and honest.(And yes, there are extensive footnotes) But again, I have to stress that Epstein is a poet, not an historian, and some of the assumptions/speculations that he makes in the book are a bit much...private conversations and thoughts that he imagines between the couple, and the idea that Tad was conceived during a full moon in late June 1852...but all in all I enjoyed it very much. I didn't find anything glaringly, factually inaccurate. But, just as Gene is a huge fan of the Ruth Painter Randall book, I also consider her bio, along with the MTL compilation of letters(by both Leavitt-Turner and Jason Emerson ) the absolute keys to understanding this tragic, complex woman.

I have Mallon's "Henry and Clara". It was a great read, but left me feeling profoundly melancholy. The final few pages will absolutely shock you.