Stahr, Walter

Strongly recommended for university and large public libraries, for readers learning the dynamics of abolitionist politics and the inner workings of government and the courts during the Civil War era.

Highly recommended for novice and experienced Civil War readers alike. Larger libraries will want to have both Stahr's and Marvel's fine recent works.

Written in an unembellished style, this is a detailed yet largely uncritical biography of a remarkable, complex, and controversial political figure. Though Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals covers much of the same historical territory, Stahr completes Seward's life and demonstrates his enormous impact on American history before, during, and long after the 1860s. It will be of interest to general readers and useful to academics.