Book review - Stealing Lincoln's Body

Here's book review number two. By the way, Matt is not counting this one toward his presidential biography series. I think you'll see why.

Book: Stealing Lincoln's Body by Thomas Craughwell, 210 pages

In 1876, an enterprising group of counterfeiters came up with an interesting plan: Why not steal the body of America's beloved president, hold it for ransom and use it to win the release of one of their buddies?
They almost pulled it off.
And their half-baked caper, kicked off a series of adventures for Lincoln's body that made this re-telling a fun, fast and fascinating read.
Growing up in Illinois, it's hard not to be captivated by Lincoln. Appropriately many of the Lincoln books cover different aspects of the same ground- his political acumen, his character, his presidency, his policies. Not this book. Stealing Lincoln's Body definitely creates it's own path.
There is nothing in the book about Lincoln's policies, accomplishments or thoughts (except about his wishes for burial). In fact, Lincoln the living man is not a character at all.
Instead, author Thomas Craughwell takes us on the strange and engaging journey of the president's corpse. It appears the turmoil that Lincoln experienced in life didn't end after he died.
The book opens across from Ford Theater in Lincoln's last moments. Although it's not as lively as other parts of the book, the prologue should give you a good feel for whether you're going to be interested in Stealing Lincoln's Body, as it goes into intricate detail about how the body was prepared for his funeral.
After that introduction, we're brought into the world of the counterfeiters who make an attempt to steal the body. Although that episode inspired the title, this caper only fills about the first quarter of the narrative. I think the book is at its best after the robbery, where the story of Lincoln's corpse is filled with great characters, wonderful anecdotes and genuine drama.
At the Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield (highly recommended, by the way), they talk a lot about how Lincoln has become such an icon, it's hard to see the real man, who had weaknesses and strengths, virtues and faults. In that context, it's interesting that the body of this legend was treated so casually. It was almost stolen, practically abandoned, brazenly lied about, often argued over, frequently relocated, crudely hidden and repeatedly disturbed. Lincoln's corpse was treated more like an old coin than a sacred relic.
Thomas Craughwell's book is a readable and well-researched history of those events. And although it's a history the writing feels more like a fictional mystery, with good guys and bad guys, plots twists...and appropriate footnoting.
The research gives us a feel for the times. Craughwell helps explains the laws about grave robbing and talks about the country's mood in the years after the assassination. The way we treated Lincoln's body gave me a lot to think about, in terms of what we value and how we honor the dead.
Craughwell also has an appreciation for those wonderful historical nuggets, such as: As a young boy, which future president was among the people who came out to see Lincoln's body brought through New York? Or, who was the last living person to see Lincoln's face? (He lived until 1963!)
Now, if you believe corpses are holy, sacred things that should never be touched, you may not feel comfortable in this book. It's never gory, but it's practical about how a body ends up in a grave. If that's not going to bother you, I think you're in for a treat.
I've been to Lincoln's tomb before. But next time I go, it will look like a lot more than just a slab of marble. It'll look like the end of an adventure.

Good book for: People looking for an interesting story about Lincoln which they probably haven't read anywhere else. Lincoln buffs who want to read something very different.
Avoid this book if: You're going to be horrified by how they treat a dead body. You don't have a bit of dark humor in you. You don't like history books.