John Y. Simon was a giant in the field of Civil War-era history. Assembled here are Simon's renowned studies of Grant and Lincoln that examine the relationship between the president and the general. Brilliantly and articulately, Simon writes of the challenges that Lincoln and Grant faced and explains the powerful internal and external pressures that influenced their responses. He also delves into the personal lives of each man and other topics: Lincoln's relationships with his father and Ann Rutledge, the war's effect on Grant's marriage and family life, Lincoln's emancipation policy and his struggles to manage the Union generals.

Glenn W. LaFantasie appears for the Ulysses S. Grant Association and the institute for Civil War Studies, Western Kentucky University.

Part 1. Abraham Lincoln. House Divided: Lincoln and His Father -- Abraham Lincoln and Ann Rutledge -- Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, and Fort Sumter -- "Freeing Some and Leaving Others Alone": Lincoln's Emancipation Policy -- Lincoln and "Old Brains" Halleck -- Lincoln's Despair: The Crisis during the Summer of 1864 -- The Personal Sentiments of Mr. Lincoln -- Part 2. Ulysses S. Grant. Ulysses S. Grant One Hundred Years Later -- The Paradox of Ulysses S. Grant -- A Marriage Tested by War: Ulysses and Julia Grant -- From Galena to Appomattox: Grant and Washburne -- That Obnoxious Order -- The Road to Appomattox: The Generalship of Ulysses S. Grant -- Part 3. Lincoln and Grant. Lincoln, Grant, and Kentucky in 1861 -- Grant, Lincoln, and Unconditional Surrender.