As a European I only have surface level knowledge of American history. I learned about for a semester in high school and watched the movie Lincoln   . So I did have a sense of Abrahan Lincolns role in the civil war and in the abolishing slavery.

This book gave me a much deeper insight into the political struggle to end slavery and how Abraham Lincoln managed to balance competing factions in his own cabinet, in parliament, and in the country.

Abraham Lincoln won the presidency to the surprise of most observers at the time. He carefully positioned himself as a down-to-earth, quirky character in just the right political niche to get support from the different political groups when they realised that their favorite candidate wouldn’t be able to get a majority. After he won the presidential election in 1960 he did something unusual. He installed some of his opponents from the presidential race into key positions of his cabinet (This is where the book title comes from).

The first part of the book is about him gaining the respect of his contemporaries that underestimated him for a long time. It’s also about his clever interactions with the key characters in the cabinet to keep them aligned and utilise their individual strengths.

The second part of the book goes deeper into his role during the civil war where he has to make difficult military decisions, like firing generals, and keeping the Confederance internationally isolated. While at the same time waiting for just the right moment when public sentiment was ready to support the abolishment of slavery.

I learned a lot about political decision making and balancing power.