The soul of America : the battle for our better angels

Summary: "This book is a well-written historical narrative of the on-going struggle within our country over the issue of civil rights. Meacham begins his book with Abraham Lincoln and takes a quote from his first First Inaugural Address: "I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature." As the title of his book implies, each president has been challenged to search for the soul of America and seek the better angels. Meacham eloquently reminds us that there are times we have failed, but inevitably, the American people regroup, rethink, and, sometimes more slowly than hoped for, ultimately choose right over wrong. Would that every American would take the time to read this book, and be encouraged by Meacham's belief that hope will again bring this country together."

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