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American Brutus: John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 364.1524097309034
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Random House
Manufacturer: Random House
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 528
Publication Date: November 02, 2004
Publisher: Random House
Release Date: November 02, 2004
Studio: Random House
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Editorial Review:
It is a tale as familiar as our history primers: A deranged actor, John Wilkes Booth, killed Abraham Lincoln in Ford’s Theatre, escaped on foot, and eluded capture for twelve days until he met his fiery end in a Virginia tobacco barn. In the national hysteria that followed, eight others were arrested and tried; four of those were executed, four imprisoned. Therein lie all the classic elements of a great thriller. But the untold tale is even more fascinating.Now, in American Brutus, Michael W. Kauffman, one of the foremost Lincoln assassination authorities, takes familiar history to a deeper level, offering an unprecedented, authoritative account of the Lincoln murder conspiracy. Working from a staggering array of archival sources and new research, Kauffman sheds new light on the background and motives of John Wilkes Booth, the mechanics of his plot to topple the Union government, and the trials and fates of the conspirators.Piece by piece, Kauffman explains and corrects common misperceptions and analyzes the political motivation behind Booth’s plan to unseat Lincoln, in whom the assassin saw a treacherous autocrat, “an American Caesar.” In preparing his study, Kauffman spared no effort getting at the truth: He even lived in Booth’s house, and re-created key parts of Booth’s escape. Thanks to Kauffman’s discoveries, readers will have a new understanding of this defining event in our nation’s history, and they will come to see how public sentiment about Booth at the time of the assassination and ever since has made an accurate account of his actions and motives next to impossible–until now.In nearly 140 years there has been an overwhelming body of literature on the Lincoln assassination, much of it incomplete and oftentimes contradictory. In American Brutus, Kauffman finally makes sense of an incident whose causes and effects reverberate to this day. Provocative, absorbing, utterly cogent, at times controversial, this will become the definitive text on a watershed event in American history.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - The Murder of An American President -- In Amazing Detail
On the evening of Good Friday, April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth stared through a boring hole he made in the door to the balcony where Abraham Lincoln sat with his wife and other couple enjoying the play "Our American Cousin."
Booth, a famous stage actor from a well-established theater family, steeled his nerves and walked unannounced into the balcony. He pressed a .44 caliber single shot derringer against the back of Lincoln's head and fired. He hissed: "Sic temper tyrannis!" (Latin ... Read More
Rating: - Wonderful overview of JWB; great for beginners, too.
When I read American Brutus, I did not know very much about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, apart from the facts I learned years ago in school and had mostly forgotten. American Brutus is exciting, authentic, and written in such a way that even a history neophyte like me can understand it and be engaged with the story. I would highly, highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a fast-paced story, packed to the gills with action. This book has absolutely turned me into a history buff, and that ... Read More
Rating: - Amazing!
As a long time Lincoln scholar, I have read many Lincoln books. Including many books on the assination. I thought I knew it all. Man was I wrong!
This is by far the absolute best book I have ever read on the assination.
I had always wanted to know why Booth had shot Lincoln. Now I do in fact know why he did it. The answer isn't what you think it is. Yes Booth was a souther sympathizer. Yes he was a white supremacist. But those weren't the reasons why he did it. What's amazing is the answer ... Read More
Rating: - Lincoln Assassination
American Brutus is a well researched, chronological description of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Written by an amateur historian, the book is well edited, unbiased, and thorough.
My only disappointment is that the book, to a large extent, uses the Jack Webb's Dragnet approach--"just the facts, ma'am, just the facts" --sometimes to excruciating detail. For example, the book jacket promises to correct common misperceptions, which it sometimes does, but the text often doesn't point out ... Read More
Rating:  - Still things to be learned about the Lincoln conspiracy...
It has been 143 years since the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and this heinous crime still continues to fascinate readers, authors and historical researchers alike. You would think that there wouldn't be anything new to write after all these years. But Michael W. Kauffman in American Brutus: John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies shows us otherwise.
Kauffman takes a fresh look at the assassination using new research materials that he discovered over the last 30 years. First, he ... Read More
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