I finished reading Lincoln: Portrait of a Marriage last night. It was a fascinating look at Abraham Lincoln through the lens of his marriage to Mary Todd. To say it was a tumultuous marriage is an understatement. While both held love and affection for one another there were enough differences to make for an uneasy undercurrent of stress that built through the years. The presidency and stress of the Civil War, along with the death of their sons Willie and Edward took a toll. Daniel Mark Epstein is a poet and his sensitivity in trying to explain and understand this couple is remarkable writing. Compare this marriage with other presidential marriages (John and Abigale Adams and Ronald and Nancy Reagan come easily to mind) and you have an good way to study the people who occupy this office. Reading this at the beginning of the Obama administration gives me a lens to view the incoming first couple. Using the marriage, at least what you can discern, may be a more accurate measure of the man than any other method. This is book two for the year.