In this breakneck review of one year of the early 20th century, author Jim Rasenberger reverses the old dictum about journalism being the first draft of history. For him, it’s the last word. Rasenberger, a contributor to the New York Times, looked at every page of that paper’s 1908 run and made forays into newspapers from the provinces. The result, America 1908, is a work with all the breadth and heft of, well a daily newspaper. Then as now, journalism was incapable of understanding the significance of day-to-day happenings and how important (or soon-forgot) they might be.

Of the events mentioned in the book’s subtitle ( The Dawn of Flight, the Race to the Pole, the Invention of the Model T, and the Making of a Modern Nation ) only the first was reported firsthand by journalists. The strange and mysterious story of Adm. Peary and Dr. Cook and the drive to the North Pole, Henry Ford’s Model T, the dark years of racial apartheid Rasenberger must take from sources written long after the events of 1908. Factual depth and interpretive range never get in the way of good stories. Nor should they. The author set out to chronicle quixotic and fabulous adventures, and he does. In May, there’s the appearance on the streets of Chicago of one Bertha Carlisle, wearing a tight-fitting, hip-hugging sheath dress. Late summer witnessed the famous episode of Fred Merkle, who failed to tag second base in a decisive game between the Cubs and the Giants, costing his New York club the world championship. We have a three-page account of one of President Theodore Roosevelt’s point-to-point hikes through Rock Creek Park, over under, through obstacles, but never around them. Two pages follow on the return of the Great White Fleet, Roosevelt’s declaration to the world of American naval superiority. The best part of the book is devoted to the Wright brothers, their invention of the airplane, and their intrepid proof to the world of the capability of what they called their machine. Here, the book soars. We are in the cockpit as the modest mechanics from Dayton, Ohio, tip the gossamer wings, climb, dip, turn and set humankind free of gravity.

During the 28-year period between the start of the War for Independence in 1775 and the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, decisions were made, or avoided, that established the foundation for much that was to follow, for good or ill, in American history. Virtually every one of the major decisions came after vigorous, and often bitter, discussions. In his glorious American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic, Joseph Ellis argues that the success of the founders was partially attributable to their ideological and even temperamental diversity. Unlike revolutions in other parts of the world, in America there was never a one-man despot. The American founding was, and still is, a group portrait, Ellis writes.

American Creation focuses on six significant moments with several recurrent themes. First, that John Adams was basically right that the founders were pragmatists, for the most part making it up as they went along. Second, that Washington was correct when he claimed that space was a priceless asset; Ellis believes the most original political contributions made by the founders were offered in response to that unique condition. Third, that controlling the pace of political and social change was critically important. The founders opted for evolutionary rather than a revolutionary approach, Ellis writes. [T]he calculated decision to make the American Revolution happen in slow motion was a creative act of statesmanship that allowed the United States to avoid the bloody and chaotic fate of subsequent revolutionary movements in France, Russia, and China, he argues. However, he adds, thinking that the issue of slavery would die a natural death, proved a massive miscalculation. Ellis believes that the period between 1786 to 1788 is possibly the most creative moment in all of American political history. The climax occurred at the Virginia Ratifying Convention in the summer of 1788 where James Madison and Patrick Henry engaged in what Ellis says is most likely the most consequential debate in American history. In a nutshell, Madison maintained the notion that government was not about providing answers, but rather about providing a framework in which the salient questions could continue to be debated. The Constitution, in which federal and state authority contend for supremacy, becomes like history itself, an argument without end. Ellis notes that George Washington felt that a truly just Indian policy was one of his highest priorities, that failure on this score would damage his reputation and stain the nation.’ But even Washington, with the strong assistance of Henry Knox, his secretary of war, who was fully prepared to play the role of conscience of the American Revolution, could not prevail. One of the major reasons was Creek Nation leader Alexander McGillivray, who defied all the stereotypes and of whom Ellis says it is difficult to imagine a more capable and shrewd leader. Despite failure, Ellis points to the exceptional quality of leadership on both sides. Ellis’ books on early American history are national treasures. In his latest, his meticulous scholarship and superb narrative skills educate and entertain in the best sense. He is always keenly aware of both the events as they occurred as well as their place in the broader course of history. Roger Bishop is a retired Nashville bookseller and a frequent contributor to BookPage.

The coffee-table book Historic Photos of Theodore Roosevelt, with text and captions by Stacy A. Cordery, comprises 200 or so images of our 26th president’s 60 exuberant, exhilarating years. TR made significant contributions to a dozen fields of human endeavor, including natural science, exploration, organized sports and police work. Somehow, he also managed to find time to lead the famous charge up San Juan Heights, create the modern U.S. Navy, become a devoted husband and father, and write 35 books.

The photos show young Theodore peering out the window of his grandfather’s house as Lincoln’s funeral cortege moves past; the new president taking command after William McKinley’s assassination, speaking to crowds with distinctive gestures. Another photo shows the president brokering the peace that ended the Russo-Japanese War and won him the Nobel Prize for Peace.

The time for this volume is opportune. As the centennial of the Roosevelt presidency draws to a close, these pictures remind us of the capacity for life of this amazing man. The book is fittingly dedicated to Wallace Finley Dailey, curator of the Theodore Roosevelt Collection at Harvard Library.

What if some, or even a few, of the legends that keep Lincoln’s legacy alive and vibrant for us were exposed as fabrications? In Lincoln Legends: Myths, Hoaxes, and Confabulations Associated with Our Greatest President, Edward Steers Jr., author of two highly acclaimed books on Lincoln’s assassination, raises and analyzes questions about Lincoln in chronological order. Among the things Steers considers are whether Lincoln was born in a cabin, who his real father was, whether he really said all the things he’s famous for saying, what happened to the pages missing from John Wilkes Booth’s diary, etc.

In the book’s introduction, respected Lincoln historian Harold Holzer discusses not only the legends, myths and hoaxes about Lincoln, but also the issue of factual refutations dug up by historians. He observes that the George Washington myths that Lincoln heard and read about and took as gospel truths inspired Lincoln himself to become the kind of man about whom myths are made. One might take that thought further and suppose that myths make the man: Historians will cherish facts; the people will welcome facts while cherishing myths.

One of the latest and most absorbing of the hundreds of collections of Civil War photographs is Historic Photos of Gettysburg, with text and captions by John S. Salmon. Although one photograph shows the crowd engulfing Lincoln, no close-up photograph was taken of him as he gave his famous address. Even so, his benevolent spirit pervades the 200-plus images in this book.

Seven score and a few years ago, President Abraham Lincoln brought forth upon this globe words that the world has long remembered. Phrase by phrase, the words Lincoln spoke on November 19, 1863, are rendered and illustrated in large, powerful paintings by artist Sam Fink in The Gettysburg Address. Opposite each full-page painting of Lincoln and a phrase from the address are other Lincoln quotations, along with ones about him from Walt Whitman, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Carl Sandburg and others. The prominent Lincoln scholar Gabor Boritt, who participated in the 1956 revolt against the Russians in his native Hungary, has just cause to stress in his introduction that Lincoln’s words, especially a government of the people, by the people, have become a kind of secular gospel, not only for Americans who have such a government, but for nations ever since that have fought and died to achieve it.

Stephen Berry’s astonishing claim that no book has ever before traced the saga of a single family that illustrates the often spoken phrase brother against brother makes his choice of Lincoln and his wife’s family as the subject for the first such book both ironic and welcome.

Much of the story covered in House of Abraham: Lincoln and the Todds, a Family Divided by War is well-known, especially the simple fact that three of Mary Todd Lincoln’s brothers fought (and two died) for the Confederacy, causing many to suspect her of sympathizing with the enemy and even of active disloyalty. The complex drama of life in the White House during the war years was aggravated by the lingering effect of the earlier years of marital conflicts, the stresses and strains emanating from the differing backgrounds and personalities of Abe and Mary, and illness and death in the family. Lincoln’s absence from and his melancholy presence in the home became worse during his presidency; Mary’s erratic behavior as first lady and her neurotic grief over the death of their son accelerated the forces of division within the household.

The subject and scope of House of Abraham may or may not be as original as Berry claims, but it is a very well-researched and well-written Lincoln chronicle.

In One Man Great Enough: Abraham Lincoln’s Road to Civil War, John C. Waugh, award-winning author of four other books on the Civil War, speaks to us in an intimate narrative, frequently giving voice to Lincoln through his writings, as he leads us down the long, rocky and often muddy road Lincoln took to the White House and to war.

The dramatic climax to this familiar though freshly re-imagined journey is the reconciliation between President Lincoln and his frequent debate opponent, Stephen Douglas, hours after the firing upon Fort Sumter. Enemy bullets having entered the debate, Douglas, the consummate Midwesterner, offered his support to Lincoln, the Southerner married to a Southerner, in the war effort before him. No two men in the United States parted that night with a more cordial feeling of a united, friendly, and patriotic purpose than Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Douglas, said the congressman who brought them together, not before their customary crowds debating slavery issues, but alone in the White House. Douglas died soon after, too soon.

The loss of his longtime friend and foe, writes Waugh, leaves Lincoln wondering whether he is the one man great enough to win the war, preserve the Union and end slavery.

Unique among Lincoln books is Chuck Wills’ Lincoln: The Presidential Archives, consisting of intimate photographs, personal letters, and documents that changed history. Facsimiles of documents are inserted in pockets throughout this handsome volume, which also includes ample text about Lincoln’s life. One may like to imagine parents and children handling and perusing these removable documents together: Lincoln’s handwritten Emancipation Proclamation, his marriage license, his Civil War telegram encouraging Gen. Grant to Let nothing delay . . . your military movements, the playbill for Ford’s Theatre on the night of his assassination and the poster offering a reward for the capture of his killer. The quality of the photographic reproductions is excellent.

David McCullough, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian, has improved upon his best-selling history, 1776, with 1776: The Illustrated Edition. An interactive version that includes relevant period artwork and facsimiles of historic maps, documents, broadsides, newspapers and correspondence, this beautifully designed edition adds a visual grace note to McCullough’s eloquent, moving text. The narrative is abridged from the original book, but it is no less informative the full impact of the trials of Gen. George Washington and America’s fledgling rebel army is brought startlingly to life with the addition of famous images such as Washington Crossing the Delaware and portraits of key personages like Gen. Nathanael Greene, Alexander Hamilton and Gen. Henry Knox.

Tucked throughout the book are vellum envelopes filled with removable reproductions of historical documents, most notably Washington’s letters to his wife and colleagues and recollections of the war from Continental Army soldiers. McCullough has wonderfully re-created the times that try men’s souls, not only from the American perspective, but from the viewpoint of the British commanders and Loyalists. This is a robust and insightful look into the hard-won freedom of our nation.