The amazing uneducated/self-educated Abraham Lincoln!

[RJNorton]

Liz, thank you for sharing your thoughts. And, no, you certainly didn't start a firestorm. Your first sentence of your second paragraph perfectly defines my feelings toward President Kennedy - I have plenty of interest in his life and accomplishments, but I have no real interest in the story of his assassination. We are all unique in our interests, I suppose.

I am a Lincoln "generalist." I have interest in all aspects of his life, although I am most interested in the Illinois years. I am also very interested in his family. I find it all fascinating. I have a very strong sub-interest in the assassination.

Until the 1960's I had no interest whatsoever in the Lincoln assassination. Then, one day in c. 1967, my wife and I were on the third(?) floor of Chicago's downtown Marshall Field's where that company had a huge book department. There was a large table filled with oversized books, and one was called Twenty Days. The book covers the 20 days from April 14, 1865, to May 4, 1865 (actually many more as it covers the trial, too). I leafed through it and told my wife I was going to buy it.

The book changed my life. Never has a single book had such an impact on me as it describes the incredibly dramatic days that surrounded our nation's first presidential assassination. The book is richly illustrated. It is my favorite of all the Kunhardts' books. Yes, it is sad in many parts, but it also has some uplifting stories such as how Lincoln, his heart crushed after Willie's death, was able to get his mind back on his work.

Soon thereafter I purchased a copy of Jim Bishop's The Day Lincoln Was Shot. Then I bought Theodore Roscoe's The Web of Conspiracy.

Nowadays, I own about 400 Lincoln-related books; about 70 of these are about the assassination.

Liz, are you willing to give the assassination a chance? Have you ever read Twenty Days? If not, would you be willing to give it a try? If you can spend a few days with that book and still not see why the assassination fascinates so many of us, I will fully respect and understand your feelings. That is exactly the way I feel about the Kennedy assassination. I have seen some things...read some things...but nothing inspires me to want to delve into the study of Kennedy's death. My interest remains Kennedy's life, not his death. But I feel just the opposite about the Lincoln assassination. I am not sure how I can explain that; I am just telling you the way I am.