Congress at War: How Republican Reformers Fought the Civil War, Defied Lincoln, Ended Slavery, and Remade America [1st PRINT / SIGNED & DATED]

Bordewich, Fergus M.

ISBN 10: 045149444X / ISBN 13: 9780451494443

Published by Knopf, 2020

About this Item

Alfred A. Knopf., 2020, New York. Hard Cover. Book Condition: New. Dust Jacket Condition: New. Stated "First Edition", with no number line, thus a first print. 9-1/2" tall, 450 numbered pages includes "Acknowledgements", "Notes", "Bibliography" & "Index", followed by unnumbered pages of "A Note About the Author" and "A Note on the Type"; plain pale sand colored boards with red quarter binding, gilt lettering on spine only; plain ivory end pages; fore edge is not trimmed. Book is brand new and nearly pristine: it is square, hinges tight, corners not bumped, no dings on edges, head of spine lightly creased. The interior is clean and unmarked; no stains, no page corners folded or damaged; no remainder mark, not book club edition nor ex-library; no staining or discoloration; no distortion of the book from reading or improper shelving; pages are tight and clean with no marks. Jacket is also brand new and nearly pristine: it is clean; no tears, folds, creases or fading; no bumps on spine or edges; very slight crease at head of spine; publisher's original price of "U.S.A. $32.50 / Canada $42.50" listed on the upper right corner of front flap. Condition of book and jacket consistent with being brand new and not read. No other discernible or objectionable faults on book or jacket such as marks or writing within, stains, tears, chips, or other damage that would diminish its appearance. No remainder mark, no previous owner markings or inscriptions, not price clipped, not a book club edition, not a former library book. The jacket has a 2-1/4" x 1" black-on-white store sticker (author, title, price, ISBN number & bar code) at the bottom center of the rear panel. Signed by the author in thin black felt pen at the bottom of title page beneath his printed name and in the upper right corner has very legibly added the date ("February 26, 2020"); done in my presence at Saint Louis County (Missouri) Library headquarters on February 26, 2020, after a 7 PM reading from this book and a short question & answer session with the audience. He stressed the point that Lincoln had been a Whig, meaning he believed power belonged in Congress, not the executive.

Seller Inventory # BMR-2022-5-5-1

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Congress at War: How Republican Reformers Fought the Civil War, Defied Lincoln, Ended Slavery, and Remade America [1st PRINT / SIGNED & DATED]
• Publisher: Knopf
• Publication Date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 045149444X
• ISBN 13: 9780451494443
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: New
• Dust Jacket Condition: New
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

The story of how Congress helped win the Civil War--a new perspective that puts the House and Senate, rather than Lincoln, at the center of the conflict.

This brilliantly argued new perspective on the Civil War overturns the popular conception that Abraham Lincoln single-handedly led the Union to victory and gives us a vivid account of the essential role Congress played in winning the war

Building a riveting narrative around four influential members of Congress--Thaddeus Stevens, Pitt Fessenden, Ben Wade, and the pro-slavery Clement Vallandigham--Fergus Bordewich shows us how a newly empowered Republican party shaped one of the most dynamic and consequential periods in American history. From reinventing the nation's financial system to pushing President Lincoln to emancipate the slaves to the planning for Reconstruction, Congress undertook drastic measures to defeat the Confederacy, in the process laying the foundation for a strong central government that came fully into being in the twentieth century. Brimming with drama and outsized characters, Congress at War is also one of the most original books about the Civil War to appear in years and will change the way we understand the conflict.

About the Author

FERGUS M. BORDEWICH is the author of seven previous nonfiction books, including The First Congress: How James Madison, George Washington, and a Group of Extraordinary Men Invented the Government; America's Great Debate: Henry Clay, Stephen A. Douglas, and the Compromise that Preserved the Union; Bound for Canaan: The Underground Railroad and the War for the Soul of America; and Washington: The Making of the American Capital. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, Jean Parvin Bordewich, who works in philanthropy and writes plays.