Michael Burlingame has 4 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 1 narrator. The most-rated is Abraham Lincoln: A Life, Volume Two.
Abraham Lincoln: A Life 1864-1865
Summary
"Hold On with a Bulldog Grip and Chew and Choke as Much as Possible": The Grand Offensive: (May–August 1864): The Spring Offensive is launched. A bogus presidential proclamation calling for volunteers and prayers causes panic throughout the North. Grant and Lee battle for six weeks until severe losses force them to a halt. Congressional Radicals pass a bill that will allow Southern States readmittance to the Union as long as they give an oath that they never supported the Confederacy. Southern leaders spread bogus peace overtures. Lincoln reaffirms his commitment to the Emancipation. "The Wisest Radical of All": Reelection: (September–November 1864): McClellan is nominated by Democrats to run against Lincoln. Democrats launch a personal attack against Abraham and Mary Lincoln. The president defines the significance of the Union’s cause. Maryland celebrates the Emancipation. The national election is held despite the war. Lincoln wins a second term. "Let the Thing Be Pressed": Victory at Last: (November 1864–April 1865): Chase is appointed Chief of Justice. The Bixby letter is written. Lincoln drafts his annual message to Congress. The president is hounded by office seekers, only finding solace in music dramas. Plans are made to secure the 13th amendment. The Hampton Roads Conference fails to negotiate an end to the war. Lincoln gives his second inaugural address and visits the army front. Richmond is captured and the rebels are finally defeated. "I Feel a Presentiment That I Shall Not Outlast the Rebellion. When It Is Over, My Work Will Be Done." The Final Days: (April 9–15, 1865): Lincoln predicts that he will not live long after the war. He begins to deal with the issues of Reconstruction. The president carries out what is to be his last public speech and final cabinet meeting. White supremacist John Wilkes Booth is enraged at the proposal of blacks becoming citizen-voters. His belief in white superiority and hatred of Republicans drives him to conspire against the government. On April 14, 1865, Booth assassinates Lincoln in Ford’s Theater. The nation goes into mourning.
©2009 Michael Burligame (P)2012 Gildan Media LLC
Abraham Lincoln: A Life 1861-1862
Summary
"You Can Have No Conflict Without Being Yourselves the Aggressors": The Fort Sumter Crisis (March - April 1861): Lincoln struggles with William Seward's thirst for power while the Fort Sumter question comes to the forefront of the nation's politics. To supply Fort Sumter would incite hostilities with the South and to desert Sumter would imply acknowledgment of the Confederacy. It is a decision that cannot be made lightly. As time goes by without a verdict, the North starts to question the strength of their government. Seizing the opportunity, Seward secretly begins negotiations with the South based on unfounded promises. Out of time, Lincoln makes a fateful decision. "I Intend to Give Blows": The Hundred Days (April - July 1861): War has begun. Lincoln hesitates calling a session of Congress amidst fears of interference with the war effort. Needing to defend the capital, he calls for the Union militia. The brash proclamation offends many in the Upper South and Borderline States. A few refuse to allow troops to cross their borders, infuriating inhabitants in Washington. The wait for reinforcements begins. Measures are taken to prevent States from secession. The army, which has been neglected by Congress and state governments, has difficulty mobilizing due to corruption and neglect. Lincoln must explain his actions to a half formed Congress. Defeat at the battle of Bull's Run has unforeseen results. "Sitzkrieg": The Phony War: (August 1861 - January 1862): A commander by the name of George B. McClellan is placed in complete control of the Union army. Snobbish and arrogant, he treats many in the White House with little respect, including the president. For six months, no offense is made from either side of the war. People grow impatient for action. In Missouri, Commander John Freemont attempts to rebel and establish an independent government. Two envoys from the Confederacy, bound for Great Britain, are captured by the Union. The affair leads to talks of a war with Britain. Lincoln begins to address the issue of slavery. "This Damned Old House": The Lincoln Family in the Executive Mansion: The troublesome Lincoln children and the expensive taste of his wife bring difficulty to the functionality of the White House. Mary convinces Lincoln to give government positions to family and friends. Her manner and susceptibility towards flattery make it easy for others to take advantage. The First Lady soon becomes involved in scandal. One such a scandal involving monetary fraud and blackmail caused outrage throughout the capital. In midst of war, the public was unimpressed with the extravagancies of the White House while loyal soldiers marched in rags. Mary's luxurious lifestyle had the unfortunate effect of not only damaging her image, but her husband's as well.
©2009 Michael Burligame (P)2012 Gildan Media LLC
Abraham Lincoln: A Life, Volume One
Summary
In the first multivolume biography of Abraham Lincoln to be published in decades, Lincoln scholar Michael Burlingame offers a fresh look at the life of one of America's greatest presidents. Incorporating the field notes of earlier biographers along with decades of research in multiple manuscript archives and long-neglected newspapers, this remarkable work will both alter and reinforce our current understanding of America's 16th president. Volume 1 covers Lincoln's early childhood, his experiences as a farm boy in Indiana and Illinois, his legal training, and the political ambition that led to a term in Congress in the 1840s. In Volume 2, Burlingame examines Lincoln's life during his presidency and the Civil War, narrating in fascinating detail the crisis over Fort Sumter and Lincoln's own battles with relentless office seekers, hostile newspaper editors, and incompetent field commanders. Burlingame also offers new interpretations of Lincoln's private life, discussing his marriage to Mary Todd and the untimely deaths of two sons to disease. But through it all - his difficult childhood, his contentious political career, a fratricidal war, and tragic personal losses - Lincoln preserved a keen sense of humor and acquired a psychological maturity that proved to be the North's most valuable asset in winning the Civil War. This landmark audiobook establishes Burlingame as the most assiduous Lincoln biographer of recent memory and brings Lincoln alive as never before.
©2016 Michael Burligame (P)2016 Gildan Media LLC
Abraham Lincoln: A Life, Volume Two
Summary
In the first multivolume biography of Abraham Lincoln to be published in decades, Lincoln scholar Michael Burlingame offers a fresh look at the life of one of America's greatest presidents. Incorporating the field notes of earlier biographers along with decades of research in multiple manuscript archives and long-neglected newspapers, this remarkable work will both alter and reinforce our current understanding of America's 16th president. In volume 2, Burlingame examines Lincoln's presidency and the trials of the Civil War. He supplies fascinating details on the crisis over Fort Sumter and the relentless office seekers who plagued Lincoln. He introduces listeners to the president's battles with hostile newspaper editors and his quarrels with incompetent field commanders. Burlingame also interprets Lincoln's private life, discussing his marriage to Mary Todd, the untimely death of his son, Willie, to disease in 1862, and his recurrent anguish over the enormous human costs of the war.
©2016 Michael Burligame (P)2016 Gildan Media LLC