“David J. Kent, a man of science and of history, has skillfully combined his knowledge of both to write a masterful treatise on Lincoln’s scientific mind. His book fills an important gap overlooked by most Lincoln biographers. Historians have grappled with trying to understand Lincoln’s superior intellectual and analytical powers. Kent provides an answer in this engaging book. This is fascinating reading and long overdue.”--Edward Steers, Jr., author of Blood on the Moon and Getting Right with Lincoln.

“David J. Kent has melded deep research, genuine expertise, and a fine way with an anecdote to produce a study that fills a long-missing niche in the Lincoln literature.”--Harold Holzer, winner of the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize

“The man known as the Great Emancipator and Savior of the Union was also, as David Kent’s illuminating study shows, a science geek, amateur astronomy buff, patent holder, science lecturer, and Modernizer in Chief.”--Michael Burlingame, Ph.D., author of Abraham Lincoln: A Life and The Black Man’s President

“This is the first in-depth study of Abraham Lincoln’s interest in technology and science and how that interest impacted his life and his Presidency. As Kent demonstrates, Lincoln was a catalyst for some of that transformation wrought by science and technology.”--Marc Rothenberg, Ph.D., Editor, The Papers of Joseph Henry, and past Historian, National Academy of Sciences

“David J. Kent’s invaluable history shows us how Lincoln’s fire of genius fused science and statesmanship to create a ‘new birth of freedom.’”--Sidney Blumenthal, author of three books of a projected five-volume political life of Abraham Lincoln: A Self-Made Man, Wrestling with His Angel, and All the Powers of Earth.

“Lincoln's establishment of the National Academy of Sciences alone is a story no one today should miss. Overall, this book is a thrill to read.”--James M. Cornelius, Ph.D., Editor, Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association

“In an era when science and technology have come under attack, Kent's volume is a very sobering reminder how crucial they were not only to Lincoln but to the country's well-being then, as well as now.”--Jason H. Silverman, Ph.D., Ellison Capers Palmer Jr Professor of History Emeritus, Winthrop University; Book Review Editor, The Lincoln Herald

“Lincoln: The Fire of Genius is a unique exploration of Lincoln’s intellectual foundations, and an essential book to read to understand the entirety of our greatest president.”—Jason Emerson, author of Lincoln the Inventor and Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T. Lincoln