Super Short Summary

In Lincoln: A Photobiography, Russell Freedman explores the life of Abraham Lincoln through extensive research and a vast collection of photographs, chronicling his journey from a log cabin birth to becoming the 16th President of the United States. The biography delves into Lincoln's self-education, law career, political ascension, key role in the Civil War, and efforts to abolish slavery, culminating in his issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation and work toward the Thirteenth Amendment. The book concludes with a detailed account of Lincoln’s assassination. The biography discusses themes of slavery, the Civil War, and assassination.