Team of Rivals

Doris Kearns Goodwin, Winner of the Pulitzer Prize Acclaimed historian Doris Kearns Goodwin illuminates Lincoln's political genius in this highly original work as the one-term congressman/prairie lawyer rises from obscurity to prevail over three gifted rivals of national reputation to become President. On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry. Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war. Lincoln succeeded because he possessed an extraordinary ability to put himself in the place of other men, to experience what they were feeling, to understand their motives and desires. This capacity enabled President Lincoln to bring his disgruntled opponents together, create the most unusual cabinet in history, and marshal their talents to preserve the Union and win the war. Doris Kearns Goodwin won the Pulitzer Prize in history for No Ordinary Time. She lives in Concord, Massachusetts with her husband, Richard Goodwin. Richard Thomas entered the public's heart starring in the Emmy Award-winning series, The Waltons. He has continued to star in series, films, on Broadway and in over 40 movies for television.