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1864: Lincoln at the Gates of History Audiobook
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(3.11) - 171 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
At the beginning of 1864, the Civil War was far from won; terrible and bloody Union setbacks and casualties lay ahead. Abraham Lincoln was facing a re-election battle as some northern Democrats were ready to start peace talks that could leave the Confederacy a separate slaveholding American nation and as his secretary of the treasury, Salmon P. Chase, challenged him for the Republican nomination. But by the end of the year, the war's end was in sight, and slavery was on the verge of extinction.
Despite all the turmoil of war and political infighting, Lincoln also set the stage for a new era of westward expansion. He shaped the decades to come through laws and subsidies that propelled railroads westward, by the Homestead Act that offered western lands to immigrant farmers and by the Act to Encourage Immigration that enabled 615,000 men, women, and children to arrive in America during the Civil War.
As the year ended, John Wilkes Booth, who stalked Lincoln throughout 1864, was only a few weeks away from assassinating our greatest president.
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"I picked this up when I saw it on the new book shelf at the library and it sounded interesting. Flood writes the story of Lincoln's last year in office, which turned out to be a turning point in the Civil War. As it just so happens, it was also the re-election year for Lincoln. So the author is trying to weave together the political events and the war chronology to make it one cohesive story. Which of course, is the way things work in real life. But he didn't do such a hot job of it. He would frequently jump back and forth with no segue between them. It also felt like one of his primary goals was to have us know the names of every crony and political boss in the Union. He would repeatedly refer back to the same events, such as "So and so, the guy who did this and that which I talked about on pages 15, 98, 124, and 165." So overall, it was an interesting read, I just didn't particularly care for the author's style."
— Jared (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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The book is as adept at analyzing Lincoln's choices as at showing what they meant to his ravaged nation.
— The New York Times -
“The book is as adept at analyzing Lincoln’s choices as at showing what they meant to his ravaged nation.”
— New York Times -
“Combining a novelist’s flair with the authority and deep knowledge of a scholar, Flood artfully integrates this complex web of storylines.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)
1864 Listener Reviews
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" An interesting summary of a pivotal year in Lincoln's life. "
— Tom, 12/4/2013 -
" A very thorough book about a pivotal year. The politics of Lincoln's reelection were not as interesting to me as his interactions with individuals and tales of the war. The last chapter was beautifully written. "
— Brenda, 10/25/2013 -
" A challenge to write one more book re Lincoln, but Flood meets it with good results. "
— Tony, 10/10/2013 -
" I'm giving it three stars for having the most wonderfully random factoids that I have never encountered in any other Civil War book I've read. That is a huge complement. However, the story it was trying to tell was super stilted and disjointed. And the battle descriptions....oh boy, were they awful. "
— Lewis, 8/19/2013 -
" This book sets forth a time line of the war, the Lincolns' personal lives along with the parallel history of Lincoln's reelection. It was a fascinating and fresh look at historical events. "
— Gwen, 8/4/2013 -
" Great read. In my list for re-reading. "
— Lia, 6/7/2013 -
" Wow, this certainly is a play by play. I was a little bored during some parts, but there were quite a few interesting parts and places where I learned quite a bit of information about Lincoln. "
— Heather, 1/27/2013 -
" This was very detailed regarding the stratagies of the political parties. It is mixed with some personal reflections of and by Lincoln. Good research by the author. "
— Cindy, 12/13/2012 -
" Enjoyed it. I never realized how close to losing the war the union was. 1864 highlights the vents of this pivotal period in history. "
— George, 12/5/2012 -
" Wonderful book on Lincoln's last full year on earth. Having been out of an American History class for over 40 years, I had forgotten how many battles the Union Army lost and how bad its generals were. Thank God we had Lincoln at the helm! "
— Scott, 11/3/2012 -
" I enjoyed the book and learned some new facts but the writing style was pretty wooden and the author kept repeating himself and reintroducing characters almost like he wanted to add bulk to the book, "
— Steve, 10/25/2012 -
" Interesting, close up look at the life of this legendary president and tumultuous period in history. "
— Amy, 10/17/2012 -
" This was a "surprisingly" good read. I never heard of this book before until I saw it at the Library. Very good writing "
— Mark, 5/23/2012 -
" I enjoyed this quite a bit, though it was pretty long. "
— Lorraine, 5/22/2012 -
" Learned much. Because itnwas about just one year, many interesting details not covered in other books. "
— Jim, 5/21/2012 -
" 1864 was quite a year! 1864 provides an interesting look at the politics of the time and the struggles of the Union and it's President. "
— Curtis, 5/15/2012 -
" This book details the year leading up to the re-election of Lincoln, including everything from civil war battles to political battles regarding the election. Not my favorite Lincoln book, but it was interesting. "
— Joshua, 3/10/2012 -
" Thanks James, a really great read. "
— Dad, 12/10/2011 -
" 1864 was quite a year! 1864 provides an interesting look at the politics of the time and the struggles of the Union and it's President. "
— Curtis, 3/21/2011 -
" Interesting, close up look at the life of this legendary president and tumultuous period in history. "
— Amy, 3/1/2011 -
" Learned much. Because itnwas about just one year, many interesting details not covered in other books. "
— Jim, 9/3/2010
About Charles Bracelen Flood
Charles Bracelen Flood (1929-2014) wrote fifteen books, including Lee: The Last Years and Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War, which Salon named one of the “Top 12 Civil War Books Ever Written,” and the New York Times bestselling novel Love Is a Bridge. He graduated from Harvard and was a past president of the PEN American Center.