Candidate Lincoln, a Novel

In 1858 Abraham Lincoln left his law practice to oppose Stephen A. Douglas over the expansion of slavery. Candidate Lincoln shows Lincoln's rise to national prominence. Lincoln and Douglas were both ambitious and wanted to win the Illinois Senate seat, but they valued honor more than winning an election. Their seven joint debates captured the imagination of the entire nation. Baldino's dramatization puts readers in the dense crowds and allows them to hear the heated clash of opinions. Seven different constituents provide different reactions to the political mudslinging and disagree violently about the extension of slavery.