The Hammer and the Anvil Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and the End of Slavery in America

by Zimmerman, Dwight Jon; Vansant, Wayne; McPherson, James M.

• ISBN13: 9780809053582
• ISBN10: 0809053586
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-07-17
• Publisher: Hill and Wang

Summary

The entwined lives of Lincoln and Douglass and the end of slavery With a foreword by the Pulitzer Prize -- winning historian James M. McPherson, The Hammer and the Anvilpresents in full-color illustrations the history of slavery, the Civil War, and emancipation through the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The talent behind the book includes Dwight Jon Zimmerman, an award-winning author of military history and graphic novels; the historian and consultant Craig Symonds, winner of the Lincoln Prize; and the artist Wayne Vansant, illustrator of Marvel Comic's The 'Nam and the highly regarded nonfiction graphic history from Novel Graphics The Vietnam War. Together they tell the story of two men who defined their era. Possessed of a deep antipathy to slavery as a young man on the free-spirited American frontier, President Lincoln wrestled repeatedly with the dilemma the peculiar institution presented. Douglass, a brilliant runaway slave, sought to force America to confront its original and gravest sin. Driven by conviction to great words and deeds, each man helped to make the nation we live in today. The Hammer and the Anvil is an ideal introduction not only to two iconic Americans but also to the most compelling moments in American history.

Author Biography

Dwight Jon Zimmerman is the coauthor with Bill O’Reilly of The New York Times bestseller Lincoln’s Last Days. He is the author of The Vietnam War: A Graphic History and the co-executive producer of the Discovery Channel’s miniseries First Command. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Wayne Vansant is the illustrator of The ’Nam and The Vietnam War: A Graphic History, among many other works. He lives in Mableton, Georgia.

James M. McPherson is the George Henry Davis 1886 Professor of History, Emeritus, at Princeton University. He is the author of numerous award-winning books on the Civil War, including Battle Cry of Freedom, which won the Pulitzer Prize.

Table of Contents

“An utterly ingenious graphic history of one of the most important stories in American history—the strikingly parallel lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln that eventually converged in friendship. Powerfully illustrated and written, The Hammer and the Anvil highlights for young readers, and anyone interested in graphic stories, the central debates of the Civil War era and of our own time: race, freedom, citizenship, state versus federal government, and the meaning of the American Dream.” —John Stauffer, author of Giants: The Parallel Lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln

“A highly original, historically accurate, and utterly irresistible take on the lives and contributions of those two giants, Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. This book raises the genre of ‘graphic history’ to a new level. Dwight Jon Zimmerman and Wayne Vansant have produced a page-turner that will engage young readers, and no doubt delight their parents, too.” —Harold Holzer, Chairman, Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation

“Engaging and insightful . . . A compelling look at two of the most important figures in American history.” —Publishers Weekly

“An ingenious telling of the most important story in our nation’s history through the lives of the two greatest Americans of the nineteenth century, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Students, teachers, and general readers—even those who think history is not for them—will find this an exciting, compelling read. A brilliant work!” —James G. Basker, President of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

“The Hammer and the Anvil makes the extraordinary moment that brought Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln together accessible to young students. It’s an eye-opener.” —Ira Berlin, author of The Making of African America