Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters: A Novel
As the fourth child of seven from her parents’ marriage, and with an additional nine half-siblings born from her father’s second marriage, Mary Lincoln was blessed with many close relations. In Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters, Jennifer Chiaverini tells Mary’s story through the eyes of four of them: her two elder sisters Elizabeth and Frances, her younger sister Ann, and another much younger half-sister, Emilie. The novel focuses on a particularly challenging time in Mary’s life: the period in 1875 when her sanity was questioned, and she was institutionalized by her only surviving son, Robert.
Different sisters narrate different chapters of Mary’s troubles from their own perspectives, as well as revisiting the family’s story from 1825 when Elizabeth, Frances, Mary and Ann’s mother died. It’s a complex but successful structure as the family’s ties and rifts are explored through the personal lens of sibling rivalry and emotion, as well as a wider historical perspective as the Civil War sees members of the family on opposing sides of the conflict.
Each sister has a different way of dealing with Mary: sometimes mothering, sometimes managing, supporting or challenging. All have sympathy for her troubles, ranging from the assassination of her husband, the loss of two sons and the rift with her eldest son over her insanity trial, but their very human exasperation and frustrations make this a vivid and engrossing account. Mary’s excessive spending and her willful and at times dangerous behaviour are a cause of mutual concern for her sisters, and they are not always in accord in how to respond to her.
Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters is a stand-alone novel which complements her previous examination of Mary’s life, Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, told from the point of view of her erstwhile confidante Elizabeth Keckley. Readers can enjoy both books in whatever order they choose.
