We are excited to host acclaimed historian Edward Achorn for an in-store discussion featuring his new book, The Lincoln Miracle: Inside the Republican Convention That Changed History. This narrative follows the vivid, behind-the-scenes story of perhaps the most consequential political moment in American history, Abraham Lincoln’s history-changing nomination to lead the Republican Party in the 1860 presidential election. Mr. Achorn will be in conversation with The Book Stall's historical expert, Jon Grand. 

This event is free with registration. To register, please CLICK HERE.

More About the Book: Illinois lawyer Abraham Lincoln had a record of political failure. In 1858, he had lost a celebrated Senate bid against incumbent Stephen Douglas, his second failed Senate run, and had not held public office since one term in Congress a decade earlier. As the Republican National Convention opened in mid-May 1860 in Chicago, powerful New York Senator William Seward was the overwhelming favorite for the presidential nomination, with notables like Salmon Chase and Edward Bates in the running. Few thought Lincoln stood a chance, though stubborn Illinois circuit Judge David Davis had come to fight for his friend anyway.

Such was the political landscape as Edward Achorn’s The Lincoln Miracle opens on Saturday, May 12, 1860. Chronicling the tense political drama as it unfolded over the next six days, Achorn explores the genius of Lincoln’s quiet strategy, the vicious partisanship tearing apart America, the fierce battles raging over racism and slavery, and booming Chicago as a symbol of the modernization transforming the nation. Closely following the shrewd insiders on hand, from Seward power broker Thurlow Weed to editor Horace Greeley, Achorn brings alive arguably the most consequential political story in America’s history.

New York Journal of Books says the work is “a masterful narrative of the day, weaving together a cast of characters and events in a compelling work that reads like hands-on reportage from a writer who was on the scene . . . Achorn’s work is as epic as the topic deserves. His research is remarkable, telling the wider story through minute details and moments of deep meaning . . . A welcome addition to the voluminous canon of Lincoln books. Through these pages Achorn transforms readers into spectators of history as it unfolds.”

More About the Author: Edward Achorn, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for Commentary and winner of the Yankee Quill Award, is the author of the highly-praised Every Drop of Blood: The Momentous Second Inauguration of Abraham Lincoln, as well as two acclaimed books about nineteenth-century baseball and American culture, Fifty-nine in '84 and The Summer of Beer and Whiskey. He lives in an 1840s farmhouse in Rehoboth, Massachusetts.