Appeal of A. Lincoln - and kindness of strangers - are universal

Sometimes, when you set out on a journey to explore your own interests and to satisfy your own hunger for knowledge, you find some pleasant surprises along the way. Some of the greatest unplanned gifts along my Lincoln trail have been the many fine people I've met in person or in cyberspace who share an interest in or passion for Abraham Lincoln.

Recently, a reader left a comment on my blog. He told me he, too, had been interested in Lincoln as a small child. He directed me to his own Lincoln blog. With a few clicks of the mouse, I was transported to another place and time. The blogger, Sebastio Albano, wrote of a small Brazilian boy who ventured into a dark, out-of-the-way room in the basement of a church several decades ago. There he discovered a face in a book which seemed to pull him in. You guessed it. The image was Abraham Lincoln - and the small boy is now the man, Albano.

As an adult, Albano made a pilgrimage to Springfield to see the Lincoln sites. Thirty years later, he still remembers his visit to Lincoln's Home. Just as strongly, he remembers the kindness of a stranger who sat down beside him and extended a kindness which transcended generations, cultures and continents. This stranger made Albano's trip even more special by going out of his way to take the Brazilian to see yet another Lincoln site, his tomb. In his excitement, Albano didn't get the stranger's name. He regrets that.

When I heard the story, I thought of one of my favorite journalists, The State Journal-Register's Dave Bakke. Bakke and I have been in touch off and on by email for a number of years now. We share a common admiration for a late Illinois investigative journalist, Rick Baker. In fact, both of us keep Baker's books near our work areas as inpiration (and I keep Bakke's there, too.)

Bakke's really, really good at telling stories like this one. He's also really good at using his column to reach out and reconnect people with long lost friends, family, even cherished objects such as lost rings and long-forgotten baby books. His column brings people together and often extends a cord which entertwines with others to create a rope binding the present and the past.

When I shared Albano's story with my fellow Lincoln blogger, State Journal-Register metro editor Mike Kienzler, who blogs as Abraham Lincoln Observer (ALO), he thought Bakke might like the story, too, and pitched it for me. Just maybe, the three of us together can help Albano find his friend and say "Thanks." And, please, no bad jokes about how many journalists it takes to tell a Lincoln story or find a Lincoln friend.

One more little coincidence makes this story even more significant. It appears today in the State Journal-Register, though Bakke first thought he'd run it earlier. This just happens to be the final day of a conference in England. The conference theme - The Global Lincoln.

Sebastio Albano's story shows us Lincoln is indeed global. It also leaves us wondering - would he have freely experienced such a gift of thoughtfulness in the U.S. if Lincoln hadn't lived? You see, the kindness Albano recieved was bestowed by a black man.

Be sure to read:

• Bakke's story
• Albano's blog, which will likely bring tears to your eyes
• About the Global Lincoln conference
• Kienzler's ALO blog

Do you have your own global Lincoln story? If so, let me know. Let's keep sharing our enthusiasm throughout the world - in the bicentennial year and beyond.

In case you were wondering...

... I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. My absence from the blogosphere is due, in part, to other obligations. I've been tackling some long overdue projects at home and, quite frankly, many evenings I'm just too tired to blog. That must mean I'm getting old!

Still plenty of Lincoln news out there
There's still plenty of Lincoln news on the horizon - good books coming off the presses, events happening across the company and a general, all-around enthusiasm for Lincoln. I sure do wish I could write about each and every thing I hear of. Maybe someday I'll be able to find the time to do that.

In the meantime, I'll share what I can when I can. I am reading one very engaging Lincoln book now and have a whole stack of them to get to later. I listened to a book on tape a few weeks ago and still need to review it. And, I've got three more in the car to listen to over then next few weeks. You'll get to hear about all of them - eventually

Follow me on Twitter
Until then, please follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lincolnbuff2.

I'm tweeting and retweeting about:

• Lincoln books,
• Lincoln documentaries,
• Lincoln events,
• Lincoln sites,
• Lincoln-related articles and
• comments people make about Lincoln.

And sometimes, I'll retweet something simply because it makes me smile and I hope it can do the same for you, like the one about the little kid who thought the Gettysburg Address was where Lincoln lived.

Though I'd love to be writing about everything Lincoln that crosses my path, most days, I just can't. Twitter is a way that I can still keep you in the loop somewhat on Lincoln happenings. If you're not following yet, please do. I was at 300 followers yesterday, but seem to be down one today. Please join the other 299 who follow Lincoln Buff 2 to learn more about Abraham Lincoln.

Thanks for reading and come back soon. You never know when I'll get a few minutes to write or will run across a really cool story I just have to share. If the stars align as I think they will, there's a fantastic one coming very soon, so y'all come back now, ya hear?

1 President + 2 authors + 43 Americans = Great book

In 1998, I wrote my first review of a Lincoln book. It was of Harold Holzer’s The Lincoln Mailbag: America Writes to the President, 1861-1865.

When I received the assignment, I didn’t know Holzer from Adam. I didn’t have any idea he’d have more than 30 books under his belt within the next decade and be one of the most recognized names in Lincoln scholarship. If you would have told me then that seven years later I’d meet the man, and four years after that, I’d consider him a mentor and friend, I’d have answered, “Yeah-h-h-h, ri-i-i-i-ght!”

But, he has, I did and he is. It’s funny how this crazy thing called life plays out.

Today, I want to tell you about one of Holzer’s latest books. Not because he asked me to. (He did not.) Not because he answers my questions, no matter how ridiculous they may be. (He does.) Not because he’s the chair of the U.S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission. (He is – and he’s one fine spokesperson.)

I want to tell you about In Lincoln’s Hand: His Original Manuscripts because it’s a really neat book. But Holzer didn’t produce this one alone. As he’s done occasionally in the past, the author joined forces with another Lincoln scribe, Joshua Wolf Shenk. If that name is familiar, it’s because Shenk “wrote the book” on Lincoln and depression. It’s titled Lincoln’s Melancholy: How Depression Changed a President and Fueled His Greatness.

A winning combination
The duo combined images of documents in Lincoln’s own handwriting with photographs and supporting artwork, then topped the creation with commentary from 43 Americans. And, these weren’t just any Americans. They included in their ranks all living former Presidents, a past Supreme Court Justice, leading Lincoln scholars, actors who’ve portrayed Lincoln, famous politicians and writers, big name film makers and more.

This diverse group presents an unprecedented look at the Lincoln legacy through a multi-faceted wall of windows. The book is even more unique in that some of the panes have since shattered. We’ll never again have an opportunity to get a fresh perspective on Lincoln from three commentators who recently passed away – the patriarch of Lincoln scholars David Herbert Donald, the great American historian John Hope Franklin and legendary author John Updike.

In Lincoln’s Hand serves not only as a valuable resource for accessing many of Lincoln’s most famous words and seeing them in their original form, complete with the emancipator’s strikeouts and edits. It’s also a very attractive, easy-to-read volume which would make a cherished gift or a great conversation piece on a coffee table. It’s meant to be looked at – often – and read and discussed.

But wait, there’s more
In Lincoln’s Hand is an official publication of the Library of Congress Bicentennial Exhibition, “With Malice Toward None.” Though the celebratory exhibit of original Lincoln documents is no longer on display at the Library of Congress, it’s hitting the road, stopping for a time in museum and libraries across the country. Check to learn the approximate dates the exhibit will be in a venue near you.

You can also learn more on the exhibit website.

On the road to knowledge

You’ve gotta love audio books. How else can you learn while you’re driving?

I have a 30-minute commute to and from work each day, and I’ve grown to look forward to my classroom on wheels. Recently, I listened to two Lincoln-related audio books, though to the non-Lincoln buff, they might not seem so.

Illinois general turned president
The first of the two is Grant: A Biography (Unabridged) by John Mosier from the Great Generals Series.

A fellow history buff from Galesburg, retired Judge Harry Bulkeley, bears an uncanny resemblance to the great general, portraying him in Civil War Reenactments and even in two television documentaries.

I chose the Ulysses S. Grant bio for a couple reasons. I wanted to learn more about this Illinois icon my Galesburg acquaintance brings to life, and I knew I needed to know more about the general and his service to better understand Lincoln and the Civil War.

So what did I learn?

First, I learned how little I know about the Civil War. In corporate-speak, it’s my Lincoln growth area. But, I also learned more about the general, his life and his leadership style. Mosier paints a mural of Grant’s life and military accomplishments as vivid as those panoramic walls WPA folks used to paint in post offices across the country back in the 1930s and 1940s.

Through the book, the reader learns a lot about the often misunderstood Grant – a family man, an artist, a brilliant military strategist. Mosier also teaches about the battles of the Civil War and military leadership in general not only through the Civil War, but throughout history in the U.S. and abroad.

I really wished I were listening to this not in a car, but in a room with a timeline across the wall and a map of Civil War battlefields in front of me. Because I don’t know either of these nearly as well as I should, I felt at sometimes that I were sitting in a sidewalk café in a foreign land, not understanding what was said around me. But every once in a while, I heard morsels in my native language so interesting that I couldn’t help but linger to hear more.

So, though much of the military strategy and Civil War specifics were foreign to me, I learned – tons. I have a much greater appreciation for Grant - the man, Grant - the General and Grant - the President, and I’ll listen to this again someday when I can visualize Grant standing on a battlefield and leading his men to victory. And, maybe, I’ll even read the book – that is, if I ever run out of Lincoln books. Alas, I don’t see that happening any time soon with a new one coming out each week.

The audio book has a very helpful introduction by Wesley K. Clark and is narrated by Brian Emerson, a comfortable voice to listen to any time of day.

Little stories with a moral
I also just finished listening to an unabridged edition of Aesop’s Fables, narrated by Jonathan Kent. I’m embarrassed to say that though I’ve started them numerous times, I’ve never before made it through all of these classic tales. This time, I did.

It was important to me that I understood them, as this was one book which Lincoln is supposed to have read early in life – and which is to have influenced him throughout life.

Many of the stories were familiar, of course. You just can’t go through life without being exposed to them and many of the morals are things I’ve heard over and over. I just didn’t realize they came from Aesop.

Though Kent’s voice is soothing to hear, there are some times when, in portraying a particular character, it’s more annoying than pleasant. That’s rare, though, and not a deterrent from the value of the book in general. And, for some reason, this particular copy was difficult to hear. I’m not sure if it was just a defect or what, but I had to listen at full volume. My husband just about blew us all out of the van when he popped out the CD to listen to oldies and we heard our first 60s song at the highest level on the dial!

More to come
I’ve also been turning the pages of several books (but not while I'm driving), so I’ve got more reviews to share in the coming days – this time of Lincoln books. Keep watching. I’ll try not to stay away so long this time.