Lincoln, Inc.: 01/16/12

Lincoln, Inc. by Jackie Hogan is a biography of the Lincoln brand, rather than yet another Abraham Lincoln biography. Lincoln's image as advertising device is most often seen in February around President's day, in April for when tax returns are due or anytime "truth" or "trustworthiness" is being hyped as part of an advertising campaign.

The book opens with a lengthy discussion of the modern day Lincoln brand. Some of campaigns were run nationally, while others may be regional interpretations of Lincoln. Either way, it was both an entertaining and enlightening look at how we view our 16th president.

Another chapter look at contemporary, political representations of Lincoln, both for and against him. These are mostly in the form of political cartoons from his time in office.

My favorite chapters though, were the ones that analyze the contents of themes in nonfiction and fiction. Of course Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Slayer by Seth Grahame-Smith. On the nonfiction front there's a tally of popular themes from his life: the log cabin, growing up in poverty, his love of books, his sexual orientation (highly debated), his views on race, the Civil War, and his assassination.

Read via NetGalley.

Four stars.

Comments (2)

Comment #1: Tuesday, January, 17, 2012 at 16:47:28

Joy Weese Moll

What an intriguing concept! I love that it has material both from his time and ours.

Comment #2: Saturday, January 21, 2012 at 21:25:04

Pussreboots

If you're at all interested in Lincoln, it's worth a read.