Land of Lincoln: Adventures in Abe's America - Softcover

Ferguson, Andrew

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080214361X ISBN 13: 9780802143617

Publisher: Grove Press, 2008

Synopsis

Abraham Lincoln was our greatest president and perhaps the most influential American who ever lived. But what is his place in our country today? In Land of Lincoln, Andrew Ferguson packs his bags and embarks on a journey to the heart of contemporary Lincoln Nation, where he encounters a world as funny as it is poignant, and a population as devoted as it is colorful. In small-town Indiana, Ferguson drops in on the national conference of Lincoln presenters, 175 grown men who make their living (sort of) by impersonating their hero. He meets the premier collectors of Lincoln memorabilia, prized items of which include Lincoln’s chamber pot, locks of his hair, and pages from a boyhood schoolbook. He takes his wife and children on a trip across the long-defunct Lincoln Heritage Trail, a driving tour of landmarks from Lincoln’s life. This book is an entertaining, unexpected, and big-hearted celebration of Lincoln’s enduring influence on our country--and the people who help keep his spirit alive.

About this title

From the Publisher

"A charming expedition in the extraordinary world of those who love, hate, market, and impersonate Lincoln. That a humorist with Ferguson's gifts should have written so funny a book comes as no surprise. What is startling is just how moving it is." --Michael J. Lewis, Commentary

"There are at least 14,000 books on Abraham Lincoln, and even his greatest enthusiasts won't claim to have read a tenth of them. Do we need another? Yes, indeed. What Andrew Ferguson offers in Land of Lincoln is the geography of enthusiasm itself. . . . A vivid, beautifully written book." --Ernest W. Lefever, The Wall Street Journal

"Splendid . . . so wonderful I am sick with envy . . . Land of Lincoln is a book that teaches you more about Lincoln in its way than a five-volume biography would, and more about America today than almost any other book I can think of." --John Podhorezt, New York Post

"A hilarious, offbeat tour of Lincoln shrines, statues, cabins and museums. . . . The Land of Lincoln turns out to be a big place: bigger than Illinois, bigger even than the United States, stranger than anyone would have thought. Mr. Ferguson maps it expertly, with an understated Midwestern sense of humor that Lincoln, master of the funny story, would have been the first to appreciate." --William Grimes, The New York Times

"A wickedly funny yet surprisingly fresh road trip memoir." --John Marshall, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Fascinating . . . a vibrant and consistently surprising account that chases the wraithlike spirit of the Great Emancipator as it is incarnated or invoked by those around us, usually on less-than-hallowed ground." --Art Winslow, Chicago Tribune

"Brilliant . . . Ferguson's guided tour of the often amusing, sometimes bizarre ways we remember Lincoln today . . . is heartening and even inspiring." --Bill Kristol, Time

"The best thing you'll read all summer." --Neil Steinberg, Chicago Sun-Times

"Blends exhaustive historical research, biting satire and slice-of-life immediacy . . . Ferguson seamlessly mixes earnest history, objective observation and sharp wit. His insight and humor help penetrate the murky years that separate modern America from one of its most famous presidents." --Adam Goldstein, Rocky Mountain News

"A funny, sad, savage and tender account of contemporary America" --Roger Buoen, Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Ferguson set out to find the real Abe, and his journey yields a portrait of modern American life unmatched in wit and insight. . . . An extraordinary and wonderful book." --Tod Lindberg, Washington Times

"Land of Lincoln is a gossamer creation, spun with generosity and wit. So much so that you'll scarcely notice how formidable an enterprise it is as the narrative pulls you along." --Jonathan Last, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Ferguson is a curious and incisive, amusing and often amused guide . . . On the surface, [his] subject is the present-day obsessives, eccentrics and entrepreneurs who chew over Lincoln, dress up like him or make bucks on his legacy . . . But this book is no comic toss-off . . . It's a sharp, funny, complex book." --Joshua Wolf Shenk, The New York Times Book Review

From the Back Cover

"Writing with humor, insight, imagination, and warmth, Andy Ferguson has accomplished a most unusual feat--he gives us a fresh look at Abraham Lincoln and his impact on our country." --Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Team of Rivals

"Andy Ferguson is the single most important writer about American politics. Abe Lincoln was the single most important American politician. The combination of Abe and Andy is--no other word will do--Lincolnesque. Land of Lincoln is like its subject: wise, funny, melancholic, virtuous, complex, tragic, undefeated, kind, stern, and possessed of a fund of wonderful stories. If you don't read this book you are on the wrong side of the twenty-first-century American Civil War, casting your lot with those who would secede from the union of good sense, good principles, and good humor." --P.J. O'Rourke, author of Peace Kills and On The Wealth of Nations

"What a funny and warm-hearted and wonderful book this is. In Land of Lincoln, part sociology, part journalism, part history, Andy Ferguson's superb reporting bursts forth on each page. This book belongs on the bookshelf of every civil war buff!" --Jay Winik, author of April 1865: The Month That Saved America

"Land of Lincoln is, as its title suggests, LOL, which is to say, laugh-out-loud funny. It's also a wonderful and serious book about the enduring impact of our greatest president, by one of our best and wittiest writers." --Christopher Buckley, author of Boomsday and Thank You for Smoking

"Wow! This is a fascinating book. With his usual humor and insight, but also with real poignancy, Ferguson looks at how we see ourselves as a nation by exploring the way we choose to see Lincoln. The result is brilliant and amusing, but also deeply moving." --Walter Isaacson, author of Einstein and Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

"Now he belongs to the ages--including the age of kitsch, criticism, and yearning in which we live. Andy Ferguson, one of the best writers in America, tracks Lincoln through twenty-first-century America with humanity, clarity, humor and passion--the very qualities of Lincoln himself." --Richard Brookhiser, author of What Would the Founders Do?: Our Questions, Their Answers

About this edition

• Publisher: Grove Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 080214361X
• ISBN 13: 9780802143617
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304