What Would Lincoln Say? - Hardcover

Richard Fenton; Andrea Waltz

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0977439348 ISBN 13: 9780977439348

Publisher: Courage Crafters Inc., 2012

Synopsis

What can best be described as a work of real person fiction, What Would Lincoln Say? is a fast-paced political-thriller about a Secret Service agent who arrests a man on the South Lawn of the White House who claims to be Abraham Lincoln. But is it really Lincoln? If so, how is it possible? How did he get here? Who sent him, and why? The book asks a simple yet highly intriguing question: What if Abraham Lincoln showed up on the White House lawn in 2012 with a message for Barack Obama? And if he did... What Would Lincoln Say?

About this title

Review:

The premise of Richard Fenton and Andrea Waltz s new novel is that a time-traveling Abe Lincoln materializes on the South Lawn of the White House just in time for the 2012 elections. He has a message for President Obama, hence the title What Would Lincoln Say? Lincoln's words are only one aspect of the book, however. There is also a great story with plenty of action that keeps the reader engaged. It begins with the ambush of a Secret Service agent in a public housing project and builds to an assassination attempt on President Obama. The cover promises a Twist You ll Never See Coming! and the book delivers on that promise. The characterization is excellent. The authors capture both Lincoln's intense melancholy and his corny sense of humor ( How many plums can a young boy eat on an empty stomach?...One. After the first, the boy s stomach is no longer empty! ). We see Barack Obama's arrogance (he gets upset that Matt Lauer directs a question to Lincoln instead of him during a photo op) and Joe Biden's combination of political calculation and buffoonery ( I say we blame it on the Tea Party. ). The fictional characters are good as well: the portrayal of a former Secret Service agent who was disabled in the line of duty is particularly touching. I enjoyed the many humorous images and situations: Lincoln sitting in the psych ward reading The Fountainhead; a thoroughly repulsive liberal businessman of Russian/Hungarian descent who, like his thinly disguised real-life counterpart, is disappointed with Obama; an angry (and in my imagination, large) older woman completely changing her tune when Lincoln turns on the charm. Sometimes the humor in time travel stories gets irksome. The characters can sound like those annoying historical re-enactors who refuse to break character ( What in tarnation is a digital watch, by gum? ). Mercifully, Fenton and Walsh came up with a device to avoid this Lincoln has made most of his adjustment before the action starts. The fish-out-of-water jokes are rare, and when they occur, they are actually funny. My favorite is Lincoln eating Fruit Loops (he doesn t like them). The writing style is lean; the book is only 128 pages long. I would have enjoyed it more if the writers had fleshed out the scenes a bit. In one place, the paucity of words caused me some confusion. We see a character in Federal custody, handcuffed to a railing. In the next scene, he s walking around free in Ford s Theater. I think I know how he escaped, but I m not sure. Overall though, What Would Lincoln Say? is an entertaining and fast-moving book with humor, excitement, and a timeless message of individualism and freedom. --Michael Isenberg - Full Asylum

About this edition

• Publisher: Courage Crafters Inc.
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0977439348
• ISBN 13: 9780977439348
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 128
• Editor: Jessica Chapman
• Illustrator: Jim Weems