The title of Thomas J. Craughwell’s novel, Stealing Lincoln’s Body, immediately caught my attention and truly was the reason I decided to read it. I have always been fascinated with President Lincoln and the Civil War, yet I have never come across even the slightest mention of the plot to steal Lincoln’s body. President Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865 by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. His untimely death rocked the very broken United States of America and truly put the government’s control to the test. Eleven years after Lincoln’s death, the plot for stealing the famed President’s body from its resting place in Springfield, Illinois was developed and then carried through. A group of counterfeiters, under the…show more content… Almost all of the characters, in one way or another, has a broken moral compass and is blind to the repercussions on their actions. In my opinion, the character that I identify most closely with is John Carroll Power, the custodian. He goes beyond his duties as a custodian at the tomb of Abraham Lincoln and puts his life in danger in protecting the President’s body. Shockingly, a padlock was the only form of security protecting the President's body, so Power took it upon himself to keep a vigilant watch. John Power’s loyalty to his nation and bravery in a time of chaos is very admirable and are qualities I believe we share. Power is, in my eyes, an unsung hero of our country. Since this event is not widely known, he does not get the recognition he deserves for dedicating his life to the protection of the body President Lincoln. I believe that if I was put into a similar situation, I would have been just as loyal and trustworthy as John Power was. In addition, he showed his ingenuity and caution when he moved the President's body to the basement. Overall, I can relate to John Carroll Power the most because we have similar characteristics, trustworthiness, loyalty, and ingenuity, in times of…show more content… Before reading this book, I had never even heard of any attempt to steal President Lincoln’s body. Therefore, I was surprised that this event was not a conspiracy, but it actually happened in 1876. One would think that anything concerning President Lincoln would be known to the nation, but this is obviously not the case. I was also shocked by the very docile reactions given to the situation by Mary Todd and her son, Robert. Both Mrs. Lincoln and Robert were concerned by the situation, but not as terrified as I would have thought. Yet, this novel did not change my view on the Civil War. In fact, the novel strengthened my understanding of the extreme corruption that was occurring after the end of the war. Also, I reached a better understanding of how significant a figure President Lincoln was to the people of the time. Overall, I truly enjoyed reading the novel. It did not simply spew facts at the reader, rather the interesting plot greatly supported the information that was given. The overarching topic of the novel was very intriguing, especially for someone who has a love of American history like I do. I enjoyed reading every page of the novel and would certainly recommend it to anyone who has an inclination towards
