LINCOLN A Life of Purpose and Power

Some readers may find Lincoln tedious and poorly organized. Rather than writing a traditional chronological biography, Oxford historian Carwardine lays out hundreds of facts about Lincoln’s public career with scant continuity or artistry. The author suffers from an addiction to unhelpful adverbs: “ . . . to coincide more or less precisely with . . .” For Lincoln’s many quotes, narrator Dick Hill chooses a comedic voice that makes the great Illinois orator sound like an ignorant hillbilly. Hill portrays Stephen A. Douglas, a native of Vermont, with a German accent that sounds comic. The liberties constitute no small crime because the narrator contradicts the author’s descriptions of the men’s voices. J.A.H. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/ SEP 06]