The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery

By Eric Foner

Five out of Five Stars

It is safe to say that out of all the American Presidents to date, Abraham Lincoln, the countries sixteenth and first Republican president, is the most revered. Along with keeping the United States of America one by not allowing various Southern states to succeed from the Union, he is also The Great Emancipator, the President who freed the slaves, freeing America of its greatest sin, something the Founding Fathers failed to tackle when they formed the new nation.

My relationship with Abraham Lincoln started early in life, when in grade two I stumbled across a children’s book recounting his life. Since that time, I’ve read quite a lot on the man and imagine I will continue to do so in the future. As America’s most revered President, I found, from time to time, there is a backlash; people determined to explain why Lincoln is not as great as is thought. On the question of slavery, there are many instances people can bring up to prove he was not as pure in his emancipation of the slaves as has been suggested. Amongst those was his belief in colonization, namely in freeing the slaves, sending them somewhere other than America to live. Of course they fail to mention that his plan for colonization, which he considered into his Presidency, was not mandatory, but an option for freed slaves.

The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery, a winner of the Pulitzer Prize by historian Eric Foner, is a fascinating look at Lincoln and slavery warts and all. Rather than support the iconic status and legend of Lincoln, Foner’s examination of the man brings him down to earth, humanizing him.

Slavery is the key topic of this examination of Lincoln; no other issues are explored, and as such, Foner is able to provide us a look at the evolution of Lincoln’s thoughts on the issue. From the start, Lincoln knew slavery was wrong, that no man should be allowed to enslave another, especially based on skin color. He knew it was wrong, but as a man of the 19^th Century, it would not be expected that he fully believed the Black man was the equal to the White man. It wasn’t until his Presidency that Lincoln came in contact with learned Black men and developed an appreciation for their character and intellect, and the possibility of their equality of citizenship.

                                                                                                   

Demonstrating Lincoln’s evolution of thought is where The Fiery Trial truly excels; and it is that ability to grow, learn and adapt that made him so great. America’s sin of slavery tore the country apart, resulting in a Civil War, one of the bloodiest wars ever fought by Americans. Insight into Lincoln’s thought process, and his own intellect is a revelation. When the South succeeded from the Union, many Northern abolitionists believed the President should immediately free the slaves, and when he didn’t, criticized him harshly. What they didn’t understand was Lincoln’s belief that Northerners, even abolitionist Northerners, would not be willing to fight a war with the South simply to free the Black man; they would not willingly spill blood for that cause, so he had to coach the conflict not in terms of ending slavery, which he truly believed it would, but as important to keep the nation whole. He knew he’d have to wait for the right time to issue an Emancipation Proclamation and did so accordingly. Jumping the gun might have resulted in a far different America than we know today.

The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery is a very accessible book; Foner writes simply, but effectively, and mines his topic thoroughly. In the world of Lincoln books, he has created one that should not be missed. It is brilliant in focusing on a man struggling with one of the greatest questions of his day, and accomplishing a difficult task during a very difficult time. In reading about Lincoln’s struggles with slavery, warts and all, I have to admit my opinion of the man has not faltered, but instead increased. This is definitely a book worth reading and a MUST read for admirers of Abraham Lincoln.

Re-Thinking the Sex Pistols’ Johnny Rotten, aka John Lydon

Today’s generation is media savvy. With broadcast and cable TV offering them a wealth of channel options, to the Internet where information, both true and false, is so easily decimated, finding information about anyone or anything is really at their fingertips. Based on this, today’s generation could never understand the arrival of the punk band, the Sex Pistols on North American shores during the late Seventies.

I remember back to that time; I would have been around twelve, and the headline in one of the daily newspapers mentioning the Sex Pistols and their arrival in America, or maybe in Canada, I don’t quite remember. Looking at that headline, it almost seemed like we were being invaded by an unruly horde. The band had as its title that three letter word, ‘sex’ which those of us old enough knew was significant, but also young enough to not quite understand. News of the band hitting North American shores was both titillating, for some unknown reason, and terrifying, for some unknown reason. Back in the day, all we had was that newspaper coverage, there were no computers to go look up the band and find out more about them. This lack of information gave the band its edge and its mystique and made their journey from Britain to America (or Canada) not only newsworthy, but strangely thrilling.

I remembered this feeling, and my generation’s naivety, due to a lack of news resources, recently, as I embraced the Internet and watched some interviews with John Lydon, formerly Johnny Rotten, lead singer and songwriter for the Sex Pistols, and afterwards the band Public Image Limited. John Lydon has released another autobiography, Anger Is an Energy: My Life Uncensored and has done some interviews to promote it. I’d read his other autobiography, Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs which I really enjoyed, and found quite surprising during my read, having discovered that there was more to Lydon that I’d ever imagined.

In interviews, both new and old, John Lydon, formerly Johnny Rotten, leader of a band that was designed to scare us due to their youthful anger and message, is a very intelligent and practical man. He is outspoken, and explained that his book is title Anger Is an Energy as when he was about seven he contracted meningitis, and was in a coma for a year, and lost his complete memory, having eventually recovered it through the disposition of anger – which seemed to help it come back faster than say a melancholy mood.

I watched quite a few clips and interviews, and found Lydon secretly (he doesn’t want to broadcast it) helps children’s charities, he is not caught up in the mythology surrounding his former band the Sex Pistols, nor the legends that have derived from it, especially the iconic status his good friend Sid Vicious attained after dying so young. A 1986 movie by writer-director Alex Cox, Sid and Nancy documents the love affair between Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen, whom Vicious was accused of killing, and whose murder trial he was awaiting when he overdosed. In an older interview with Conan O’Brien, Lydon commented he didn’t like the romanticism of the movie, as the truth was, they were both heroin junkies and there is nothing romantic to be made about that.

In watching Lydon talk and express himself, I have to admit I found him to be a music celebrity who seems to have his feet on the ground, and who hasn’t bought into all the crap surrounding that career. It was a complete departure from the mysterious Johnny Rotten, who all those years ago, in the late Seventies, seemed dangerous, a little frightening, but still intriguing and compelling. The world has changed, more information lies at our fingertips, and that breaks down the mystique that once could have been there, but that’s okay, because today, I have a new appreciation and more respect for John Lydon, and thank the good Lord he is still as angry as ever. Now all I have to do is head out to the local bookstore and purchase Anger Is an Energy: My Life Uncensored...and maybe mourn a little those days when life held a little more mystery and information wasn’t so readily available.

The Juliette Society

By Sasha Grey

Four out of Five Stars

I was initially drawn to this book by its title. Realizing it was a work of erotica, the name ‘Juliette’ immediately took me to the infamous novel, Juliette written by the Marquis de Sade; the society in Sasha Grey’s first novel is named after Juliette, the wicked alternative to the Marquis’s other infamous female character, Justine. Having just used the Marquis as inspiration for my latest novel, a thriller, I was intrigued.

While Sasha Grey has been out of the adult movie business now, longer than she was in it (based on an interview I read about her), it seems it has to be mentioned she is a former adult actress in pornographic films. While she has branched out into mainstream movies, and now writing, it really shouldn’t have to be stated, but she can take solace in the fact that both Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are still referred to as ‘Ex-Beatle...” despite the fact they’ve done so much more since then (and, yes, I know, their time as Beatles was significant).

Enough said about Grey’s past. What she’s asking us to do now is spend time with her book and the characters within. The Juliette Society follows Catherine, a college film student in a difficult and troubled relationship, who, out of frustration, and after meeting a sexually promiscuous fellow student named Anna, is dealing with her sexual fantasies and desires. Catherine is the narrator of the novel and is quite open about her sexual desires and thoughts, even to the extent of spending one chapter ruminating on male ejaculate (‘come’ not ‘cum’ in her estimation), which, surprisingly works, giving us further insights into this young woman’s thoughts.

Before I read The Juliette Society, I have to admit I did something I don’t usually do and read a few of the current reviews out there. I found a lot of criticism regarding Catherine’s literary or film references, as if the author was using them as a means of saying, “I’m intelligent...see, I’m intelligent.” I disagree, the Catherine in the book is a college film student, and if any of you have known any first or second year film students, you know they’re quite pretentious, no doubt parroting back the observations of their film professors, often to the point of being annoying. So, in this regard, it’s just good character development, and the references themselves, are excellent and used sparingly enough.

I read criticism that the book is called The Juliette Society and the Society doesn’t appear until halfway through it, and while that is so, and it doesn’t feature as prominently as I might have liked, that didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the book. I’d also read an interview in which it was mentioned Grey may be working on a sequel, so in that regard, I’m sure we’re in store for more – and I will definitely read that sequel as well.

The bottom line is, as a quick read, an erotic and explicit read, which I’m not overly familiar with, or just really isn’t my go-to genre, I enjoyed The Juliette Society. Grey is an excellent author and she has written a highly accessible read. She has a great style and I felt she had developed the character of Catherine wonderfully throughout the novel, as well as added in some interesting and colorful characters for her to interact with.

The Juliette Society didn’t satiate my interest in The Marquis de Sade, but because of that brief reference, it, or his legacy, did lead me to a book I thoroughly enjoyed and in asking me to spend any time with it, Grey has delivered on her part of the bargain by entertaining.