When Abraham Lincoln courted Mary Todd, rejection, poverty, lack of polish and background, all tried to deter him. He was a self-taught young lawyer, plagued with debts and raised in log cabins. She was of aristocratic background and highly educated. Everyone in Springfield, Illinois, thought them badly matched. Did they just get married and live happily ever after? No. Her family interfered, told Lincoln he was unworthy. Did he believe them? Well, he broke the engagement. Then he went into such a tailspin of depression that friends thought he might commit suicide. Her family refused to let Mary go to him. She had to seem unconcerned, her witty and vivacious self. They did not see one another for 18 months. Then they resumed meeting -but in secret. This secret courtship got Lincoln challenged to a duel. Not your sweetness and light path to marriage. Were they in love? Lots of controversy about that. In Abe and Molly Frederic Hunter provides the details. A special feature of this novel is a section with extensive notes about the historical sources for this story and why Hunter interpreted them as he did.
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