Throughout his life and political career, Abraham Lincoln often agreed to disagree. Democracy demanded it, since even an adversary had a vote. The man who went on to become America's 16th president has assumed many roles in our historical consciousness, but most notable is that he was, unapologetically, a politician. And as Steve Inskeep argues, it was because he was willing to engage in politics–meeting with critics, sometimes working with them and other times outwitting them–that he was able to lead a social revolution. Inskeep illuminates Lincoln's life through sixteen encounters, some well-known, some obscure, but all imbued with new significance here. Many of his greatest acts came about through his engagement with people who disagreed with him–meaning that in these meetings, Lincoln became the Lincoln we know.