Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I figured that since Feburary was the month of Abraham Lincoln, and it was 200 years since his birth, it would be a good idea to read a book on good ol' Honest Abe. Team of Rivals isn't just a bio on Abe, but also the three other men who ran against him for president in 1860. There is the shoe-in, the wealthy elitist snob, and the elder statesman who all ran against the no-name backwoods lawyer from Illinois. After Abe unexpectedly gains the Republican nomination, he then brings in these three rivals into his cabinet as Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury & Attorney General. The subtitle of this book is, "The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" and it shows how he was a genius in his own way, usually when a spat broke out between his Sec of State & Sec of Treasury, he would somehow smooth things over with each man thinking he was the victor when really Abe was the winner. The book also goes through the Civil War and what a personal toll it took on Abe, his family, and the men in his cabinet. This is a hefty book, 750pgs, not something you can power through in a weekend but I highly recommend it even though it can get a little muddled since there are so many names to keep track of, but you learn quickly who is important in the history of our country.