Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years - Volume I

Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years #1

by Carl Sandburg

Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years, by Carl Sandburg. With 105 Illustrations from photographs, and many cartoons, sketches, maps, and letters. In Two Volumes, Volume One.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, American History, Biography Memoir, Presidents, Classics

480 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1926

About the author

Free verse poems of known American writer Carl August Sandburg celebrated American people, geography, and industry; alongside his six-volume biography Abraham Lincoln (1926-1939), his collections of poetry include Smoke and Steel (1920).

This best editor won Pulitzer Prizes. Henry Louis Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_San...

Reviews

[Richard S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've had the six volumes of Sandburg's biography of Lincoln sitting on my shelf for years now, and perhaps to reaffirm my faith in American institutions and the presidency (in light of recent events) I've finally turned to them. I'm generally familiar with Lincoln - growing up in Illinois, I remember a trip to Springfield, and of course he's listed among our greatest presidents, perhaps the greatest. Prior to starting, I had a general outline of his life and was familiar with his speeches of course, but nothing deeper. I've been waiting.

But this book - the first - is full of so many surprises, not sure where to start. Maybe if I just make a list, as I often do.

First and foremost, Sandburg is a poet, and this is a very unusual history/biography, by modern standards but really by any other standard. It is full of descriptive passages, almost like a novel, and while these are conjectures, they make the book absolutely a beautiful reading experience. This is not a dry history book, trying to convey "facts" in the usual slanted way to meet the author's agenda (usually, with more recent history books, some -ism). No, this is conveying feeling along with facts, trying to give a sense of Lincoln's life in a style which I've frankly never encountered before.

Second - are the facts - astonishing would be an understatement - about Lincoln's life, the circumstances of his childhood, the log cabins, the moves from Kentucky to Indiana, and then to Illinois, he is surrounded by death - his mother, his sister, and circumstances which seem incredibly difficult, and in a way incredibly beautiful. It's a world which is completely unfathomable that he comes from, and yet Sandburg is able to convey it.

Next - the history - I have trouble believing Sandburg at times - so much so that I'm finding myself looking up his statements on Wikipedia quite often, and sure enough, the facts are all there about the country at the time. I've learned more American history than I thought possible at this point, and it's not the history you learn in school or college. It's history at the time the books were written in 1926. History is the past through the mirror of the present. The story of Lincoln is very different in 1926 than in 2020. These events a too numerous to list, but these were the important events in Sandburg's head, and probably those of his time. An example would be "Polk's indecision about whether to annex Mexico after the Mexican War". Or "French communists settled in Nauvoo in 1830 after the Mormons left."

And then - slavery of course - in this first book, even, so much of Lincoln's life involves it - directly and indirectly - and Sandburg's treats it as an extraordinarily complex institution, in ways which are very upsetting, very revelatory, and endlessly fascinating. For someone so associated with the end of slavery, Lincoln is very ambivalent about it (the first book goes to 1852). His Kentucky wife, Mary Todd, besides Lincoln the most astonishing character in the book, seems to even support it (or miss it). Sandburg's treatment of this difficult issue is hard to describe - he seems oddly sympathetic at times (which can be very troubling), for example, he draws comparisons between the treatment of slaves and the treatment of workers in the North. He certainly points out how the North benefits from slavery (slave ships from Newport, convicted black criminals sent to become slaves in New Orleans). He points out the most incredibly awful things I can't even mention them. But I suspect this was common knowledge at the time - it isn't anymore.

Another thing that comes up - the randomness of fate - I think a lot of the lives of "great" men are almost random - time and time again it seems like Lincoln's fate is just a question of chance. We are victims of our times, and our fortunes - that is how life is. This is why history/biography is not like a novel - many things happen which "don't make sense" or "don't advance the plot." Sandburg just drops them in - a duel that Lincoln almost fought, a wrestling match - and things like he was offered to be governor of Oregon, but Mary Todd vetoed it (how that would have changed the world!)

And then Lincoln himself - moody, lonely, "depressed", he writes poems (which Sandburg prints), he's this big ugly giant, and yet he has an incredible talent for public speaking, littering his speeches with stories and humor. He's almost an entertainer as much as a politician. And he struggles as a lawyer - not paid very much - learning and reading constantly, and he reads everything. At the end of the first volume, he's reading Euclid, and scribbling notes about it. Sandburg selects carefully from his letters, which are full of insight. And this is not a hagiography by any means, Lincoln is full of faults. But this is the richest, most thorough portrayal of a historical figure I've ever come across.

The book does fail in one respect - at least in the first volume. For all of his downplaying of Lincoln, he is "rising" in the world - making it to Congress for a term - which seems like a pretty big accomplishment - you get a sense that Sandburg is hiding something - how Lincoln became so great. There are disconnects between the lack of income described and the way he lives, it's almost like he's romanticizing him - and his financial circumstances as a lawyer in particular. And yet - again - the facts - he a congressman for two years, but then a very ordinary Illinois lawyer for years afterwards. Maybe there's no story to be told here.

But other than that - what a book - rich and deep like the black loam of Illinois. What a world to have come from - a President - 14 years in a 18 foot square log cabin, walking 9 miles to school. What a terrible life, always on the verge of death from cold or starvation, but also things like the "milk sickness" that takes away his mother - mysterious ways of dying. And then tearing it all up, moving on, constantly living on the edge, trying and failing to succeed. Constant striving, always chopping wood for an extra $2.50, even while he's a lawyer.

We will see where it goes - but this is a real treat, and I understand why this work is so famous. Recommended for all - especially those who are looking for some assurances about this country at this time, with these people. A truly great, fascinating, but to use two strange words for this kind of book - beautiful and poetic - work - by page 5 or so I was so enthralled I knew I would finish the whole 6 volumes, but we will see.

[Reynold Witmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's plenty to find fault with in Sandburg's "Lincoln". It's windy, he seems determined to tell you not just every detail of Lincoln, his ancestors, descendants, peers, superiors, inferiors, friends, and enemies, but also their life stories and ancestors.
But.
Once I got over the urge to rush through this volume in search of "the good stuff," I started to really, really enjoy Sandburg's method.
Carl Sandburg is a poet. At risk of quoting several paragraphs, I can testify the some of his descriptions made me stop and reread them, then read them aloud the third time. His craft isn't one to show you much or tell you things. He leads you along in a warm storyteller yarn that slowly makes you feel his stories in a surprising way. This isn't just a biography of Lincoln, its a gentle immersion in the people, the nation, and the land that made the man, and the people and nation he crafted in return.
Volume 1 The Prairie Years tells (loosely) the first three decades of Lincolns life. This weaving narrative is the opposite of any cliff notes or blinklist. Here you can't just read and know, you have to experience and understand the story. So relax, pour your favorite beverage and settle in for a long, slow, comfortable experience.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this but the writing style just did not really appeal to me like I had hoped. Overall I learned a lot and will certainly continue with the classic series, but I felt that the narrative tried to be too poetic in a sense and the tangents - while certainly providing a sense of the time period and the people - were too many and at times too random.

[SF]

A few slow parts. But some real nuggets buried within this first volume. I liked it!

[Sher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always loved the poetry of Carl Sandberg, and of course I have always loved and admired Abraham Lincoln, who is a poet in his own right. So, when years ago, I found a set of books about Abraham Lincoln written by Carl Sandberg, I knew I had found a winner. I put the books on my "to read" shelf and totally forgot about them until my mother-in-law died. Among her things were these three volumes. Since I had lost track of my copies, I scooped these up and decided I would finally read them. That was 7 years ago. So, a month or so ago, I finally made a commitment to read the books. I have now finished Volume 1, The Prairie Years. I can't say it was an easy read, but it was a fulfilling read. Being basically a poet, Carl Sandberg's writing is sometimes hard to understand on first reading. It is beautiful writing, but I sometimes have to go back and reread in order to get it. Couple that with the fact that mom had made copious notes throughout her copy in order to report on it to her book club, and it made for rather slow reading. Mom drew lines through paragraphs-at-a-time, in ink, and I had to keep a magnifying glass handy in order to read extended passages. I know, I should have broken down and bought a new copy, but I didn't.

This book has been criticized as being less than factual. I can't judge that one way or the other, although Sandberg includes a lengthy bibliography. But what I can say is that I got the flavor of the personality of Abraham Lincoln, his boyhood and young adult years, as I never have before. I lived with him through his courtship, engagement and marriage to Mary Todd, the death of his son, and the campaigns for congress, the senate, and ultimately, the presidency. I have read much about Lincoln, and because of that, I have known a lot about him. But after reading this book, I feel that I KNOW him. It is a big difference. I am looking forward to reading the other two volumes, although I know how it ends, and it ends badly. At least mom did not mark up these two book.

[Jonathan Jerden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Discovering Abe thru the words of Carl Sandburg is like studying birds thru the artist's paintbrush of John James Audubon . . . they were made for each other. The writing in Vol. 1 is outstanding, the problem is the subject matter: Abe before the White House was pedestrian, no more than a decent country lawyer, a competent but not memorable local and Illinois state politician, while going thru the mundane but necessary steps of political maneuvering - just like thousands of other young, ambitious men of mid-19th century America were doing - learning no discernable skills in business, basic economics, warfare, and foreign relations. So, his early years are tedious, small in scale, with little hint of what's to come. I'm now 80 pages into Vol. 2 "The War Years 1861 - 1864" and the pace and suspense are already markedly improved. Bottom line after reading 500 pages of Vol 1 . . . I don't believe we can discern an ounce of Abe's character, decision-making, nor courage from his early years that will emerge once he's in the White House. If that is true, then it is a wonder that the 1860 voters saw enough good to trust his leadership.

[William Guerrant · Rating 5 out of 5]

The subject of more biographies than any other American--perhaps of more than other person in world history, Abraham Lincoln, it seems to me, is a sort of personification of America itself: humble in origin, ambitious, determined, a potent combination of rusticity and talent. Of all the images that might come to mind when recalling the life of Mr. Lincoln, I prefer to think first of a nine-year-old boy swinging an ax on the frontier and helping build his mother's coffin.

This was my second trip through The Prairie Years and I greatly enjoyed it. It is wonderfully written and should be on everyone's short list. It is not, however, without flaws. Sandburg's mistake about the timing of the secession of the border states is especially irritating and misleading. But in comparison to its overall brilliance, the faults are minor.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A poetic, evocative and very Euro-centric account, not only of Lincoln's life until around 1850, but of the political, social, and cultural milieu that surrounded him, based on all the materials available to Sandburg around 1925, when he published these volumes. Sandburg really tries to give a sense of what the world was like in early and mid-19th century America. I don't think he truly appreciated the horrors of slavery, but it's amazing how similar the political and economic issues and disagreements are to our own.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I knew quite a bit about Lincoln. This first volume has filled in many gaps that were obviously there in my knowledge of the real person and the people and things that influenced him. I was also pleased with how readable and engaging this volume was. I look forward to reading all 6 volumes of Sandburg's Lincoln.

[Purple Wimple]

My theory is that Sandburg collected a vast file of anecdotes and reminisces about Lincoln, and when time came to write the book, he left *nothing* out.

Our philosophy of biography has changed a bit since then. So this one goes a little long, and could use a re-editing (which I believe has occurred in the single-volume edition of the Prairie Years).

[Debbie Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot imagine a book that captures the essence of Lincoln that could possibly be better than this one. Vividly descriptive and filled with Lincoln's witticisms and anecdotes, this biography of Lincoln's life until the Civil War certainly utilizes Sandburg's background as a poet.

[Ed Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This first volume of six total is, not surprisingly, a poetical treatment of this complex man. Many details are omitted which may easily be deeply mined in later biographies. It is chiefly unique in having first person quotations from those who knew Lincoln. It certainly stands the test of time

[Kendrick Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally started the 6 volume set. I am still trying to make up my mind on vol 1. Seems like half the book is dedicated to random (non Lincoln) stories, I assume to give us a feel for the era. Not entirely sold yet but an easy and informative read.

[David Coody · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I’ve ever read. I truly can’t wait to read this book and the anecdotes within to my children as they grow up.

[Dave Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

Few writers possess Sandburg's wonderful command of language and imagery. Though a poet by trade, Sandburg's obsession with Lincoln became a state-of-the-art in biography with his massive six volume work. I received a first edition set of the Sangamon Edition from my mother-in-law and had started the series as my nightly bedside reading over a dozen years ago. I never completed Volume 2 because of time constraints. I recommitted myself to reading the entire series and, this time, couldn't put down Volume 1.

The first chronicle spans from Lincoln's prehistory starting with the long colonial lineage of Lincolns who had served their nation's cause since the mid 1700's. As the title obviates, it details Lincoln's upbringing on the prairie and the well known tales of self education by log cabin firelight. His experience piloting cargo rafts down the Mississippi and visits to the New Orleans slave markets was an early exposure to the inhumanity of the slave system. As a young lawyer he did defend a slaveholder's property dispute though, it seems, not very well as he lost that case.

Lincoln's fascination in everything was obvious but rudderless. His awkwardness in the company of courting ready women in contrast to his passionate friendship with Joshua Speed reveals a man who was guided much more by purpose then by personal desire. Meeting Mary Todd, an urbane, forthright and forward looking woman of privilege set Lincoln down a course he probably had never envisioned for himself. She was his driving force that propelled him first to Springfield then to Washington to represent the people of his little corner of Missouri but, even more, to help carve the path for the inevitable passing of the Whig Party and its metamorphosis into the Republican Party.

This is a very detailed series. As well as the man, the reader is treated to watching a nation blossom and burgeon from an isolated colony to a global industrial and agricultural power. The sectional disputes between these two vital economic sectors which had boiled below the surface since the the very first Continental Congress and had festered as both fought for political and commercial dominance at home and abroad shaped the mind, the character and the passion of a man who, in less than a decade from the volume's end, would be returning to Washington in a very different capacity.

I've nothing but raves for Sandburg's Lincoln. It is wordy. It is detailed. It is prone to flowery and meandering musings on a significant life and time in America's history. In my view, perfect.

Anxiously anticipating starting Volume 2.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the life of Lincoln leading up to his election and presidency. This is the first book of three in Sandburg's condensed biography of Abraham Lincoln. It was very well written and read like a novel. I love the portrait he paints of Lincoln as a far from perfect person, yet the right person at the right time. It was great to gain a better understanding of Lincoln's background and the events that helped to shape the person he became. It really is a fascinating story to hear. Sandburg does a great job of telling the story, using letters, stories, and quotes of those who knew Lincoln best.

It's interesting to think about if a person like Lincoln could get elected today. I believe the probability is not very good, if possible at all. Even those who knew Lincoln best seemed intrigued by him in so many ways. It's almost as if his own friends and partners didn't really know him completely. Lincoln is a mysterious figure and a one-of-a-kind individual who came to the forefront of national politics at just the right time. Life was not easy for him, but he was a man who persevered. It's really as if he did not go pursuing leadership, but he didn't run from it when it came his way.

I'm looking forward to the next two books in this trilogy. If this is the condensed version, I can only imagine the detail of the original! This is one I am definitely enjoying and looking forward to continuing!

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of Carl Sandburg’s life works was writing the definitive biography of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States. With the encouragement of his publisher Harcourt Brace, Sandburg began in the 1920s to write about Lincoln’s early years. The resulting two-volume Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years was published by Harcourt Brace in 1926. Sandburg followed this with a four-volume treatment of Lincoln’s service during the Civil War – Abraham Lincoln: The War Years, which was published in 1939. Eventually, Sandburg condensed his six-volume masterpiece into a single volume on Lincoln’s life – 762 pages published in 1954.

[James Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume covers Lincoln's birth to 1854. Sandburg covers his childhood, the death of his mother and his fathers 2nd marriage to Sarah Bush who would be a constant in his life and a very close relationship. According to Carl Sandburg he was to become a successful Lawyer and Politician on the state and national level.
No surprises except that during this period of his life he and Mary had successful marriage based on love. You start to understand Lincoln through his losses politically and relationships. His deep depressions and his deep belief that he would suffer a tragic death. Looking forward to read volume II.

[Billy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being full of unverified anecdotes while jumping from topic to topic, this is still a fascinating look at the young Lincoln and his times. The reader gets a good glimpse at the hard life on the frontier. Sandburg tells you what Lincoln is thinking, which is dangerous but something tells me he is on target as much as not. The constant battle against depression comes across as does Lincoln's basic goodness and honesty.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

"As Labor is the common burthen of our race, so the effort of some to shift their share of the burthen on to the shoulders of others, is the great, durable, curse of the race." -- Abraham Lincoln

A very enjoyable book. Shows the difficulties and struggles of Lincoln both public and private and his endurance... just to be elected. While showing the greatness he was capable of, Sandburg also shows Lincoln as very human with his own eccentricities and weaknesses.

[Ben Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's limitation as a historical text comes largely from its uniqueness as a narrative one; it was written within living memory of Lincoln. At least in volume one the number of apocryphal stories about Lincoln's rigid honesty in his youth rises above the number of observations about his legacy or keen slides of hand as a politician by ten fold.

[Bob Wrathall]

Fine

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little too poetic in the earliest years when there's not much documentation of his life. Better once it gets into the better known years.

[James Nozell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for Lincoln and Civil War fans!

[Bottlegirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good information.