1861: The Lost Peace

By Jay Winik

From award-winning historian and New York Times bestselling author of April 1865: The Month That Saved America Jay Winik, a gripping account of the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln's decision to go to war against the Confederacy.

1861: The Lost Peace is the story of President Lincoln's far-reaching, difficult, and most courageous decision, a time when the country wrestled with deep moral and political questions of epic proportions.

Through Jay Winik's singular storytelling, listeners will learn about the extraordinary Washington Peace Conference at the Willard Hotel to avert cataclysmic war. They will observe the charismatic and farsighted Senator JJ Crittenden, the tireless moderate seeking a middle way to peace. Lincoln himself called Crittenden "a great man" even as Lincoln jousted with him. They'll be inside and among Lincoln's cabinet--the finest in history--which rivaled the executive in its authority, a fact too often forgotten, and they will see a parade of statesmen frenetically grasping for peace rather than the spectacle of the young nation slowly choking in its own blood. A perfect audiobook for the historically inclined, with haunting overtones to our current political climate.

Jay Winik is an American historian and New York Times bestselling author, known for his award-winning April 1865: The Month That Saved America and celebrated for his innovative tellings of history. Winik is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and sat on the board of trustees of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. He graduated from Yale College with honors, and holds a Masters from the London School of Economics with distinction, as well as a PhD from Yale University.

Read by Arthur Morey

• Format: Audio CD
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0F627CNSK
• ISBN13: 9798228570191
• Release Date: May 2025
• Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
• Length: 1 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.7" x 5.3"