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Ratings: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
Genre: Biography / American History / Presidential Biography

Book Review:
Dale Carnegie is known to millions as the author of ''How to Win Friends and Influence People,'' one of the best-selling self-help books of all time. But before he wrote that classic, Carnegie wrote another book—a biography of Abraham Lincoln that reveals as much about Carnegie as it does about its subject.

''Lincoln the Unknown'' was published in 1932, four years before ''How to Win Friends.'' As Carnegie explains in his foreword, he stumbled upon Lincoln while doing research at the British Museum library. The more he read, the more fascinated he became. ''Finally I caught on fire,'' he writes, ''and I was determined to write a book about Lincoln, myself.''

Carnegie was not a historian, and he knew it. He had no urge to write a ''learned treatise for the benefit of scholars.'' But he saw a need for something different: ''a short biography that would tell the most interesting facts about his career briefly and tersely for the average busy and hurried citizen of to-day.'' That is exactly what he produced.

The book covers Lincoln's life from his humble beginnings in a log cabin through his rise in politics, his presidency during the Civil War, and his assassination. Carnegie focuses on the human Lincoln—the man behind the legend. He explores Lincoln's struggles with depression, his difficult marriage to Mary Todd, his grief over the death of his sons, and his evolving views on slavery and union. The Lincoln who emerges is not a marble statue but a flesh-and-blood human being, flawed and extraordinary.

Carnegie's background as a self-help writer is evident in his approach. He is interested in what made Lincoln effective—his patience, his humility, his ability to work with rivals, his skill with language, his moral clarity. Readers of ''How to Win Friends'' will recognize themes: the importance of understanding others, the power of persistence, the value of character.

The book is not scholarly history. It relies heavily on earlier biographies and popular accounts, and it occasionally simplifies complex events. But that's not its purpose. Carnegie aimed to inspire, not to analyze, and in this he succeeds. The book has remained in print for nearly a century, a testament to its enduring appeal.

For readers new to Lincoln, this book is an excellent introduction. It covers the essential facts in an engaging style. For Lincoln enthusiasts, it offers a glimpse into how one of America's most popular writers understood one of America's greatest presidents. And for fans of Carnegie, it shows the roots of his thinking about success and character.

''Lincoln the Unknown'' is a reminder that great lives can inspire across generations. Carnegie caught fire from Lincoln, and his book has passed that fire to countless readers. It deserves its place among the classic popular biographies of Lincoln.