Elizabeth Mitchell

A thrilling dive into the little–known, darker side of a revered president’s history, Lincoln’s Lie untangles the threads behind a mysterious 1864 newspaper article to reveal how Lincoln manipulated the media during the Civil War, shining new light onto today’s issues of fake news and presidential conflict with the press. In 1864, during the bloodiest days of the Civil War, two newspapers published a call, allegedly authored by President Lincoln, for the immediate conscription of 400,000 more Union soldiers. New York streets erupted in pandemonium. Wall Street markets went wild. When Lincoln sent troops to seize the newspaper presses and arrest the editors, it became clear: The proclamation was a lie. Who put out this fake news? Was it a Confederate spy hoping to incite another draft riot? A political enemy out to ruin the president in an election year? Or was there some truth to the proclamation—far more truth than anyone suspected? Unpacking this overlooked historical mystery for the first time, journalist Elizabeth Mitchell takes readers on a dramatic journey from newspaper offices filled with heroes and charlatans to the haunted White House confinement of Mary Todd Lincoln, from the packed pews of the celebrated preacher Reverend Henry Ward Beecher’s Plymouth Church to the War Department offices in the nation’s capital and a Grand Jury trial. In Lincoln’s Lie, Mitchell brings to life the remarkable story of the manipulators of the news and why they decided to play such a dangerous game during a critical period of American history. Her account of Lincoln’s troubled relationship to the press and its role in the Civil War is one that speaks powerfully to our current political crises: fake news, profiteering, Constitutional conflict, and a president at war with the press.

A True Civil War Caper Through Fake News, Wall Street, and the White House

Lincoln's Lie

Lou Aronica

Amy Stout

Betsy Mitchell

Twenty stories deal with scientific obsession, the loneliness of a space station, a secret language for the oppressed, and alien worlds

Full Spectrum 4

Describes the story of the young French artist and entrepreneur who set off for America after the Franco-Prussian War and how he envisioned, creatively funded and built the Statue of Liberty.

The Great Adventure to Build the Statue of Liberty

Liberty's Torch

Adding a new Afterword and updated information on the 2000 election and the War on Terrorism, journalist Elizabeth Mitchell discusses the high and low points of George W. Bush's life and political career.

Revenge of the Bush Dynasty

Traces the life and career of George W. Bush, and discusses what kind of president he would make

“A fascinating story.” —LeVar Burton The thrilling adventures of a slave who became known worldwide for his explorations of Mammoth Cave. If you toured Mammoth Cave in Kentucky in the year 1838, you would have been led by candlelight through dark, winding tunnels to the edge of a terrifying bottomless pit. Your guide would have been seventeen-year-old Stephen Bishop, an African American slave who became known around the world for his knowledge of Mammoth Cave. Bishop needed bravery, intelligence, and curiosity to explore the vast cavern. Using only a lantern, rope, and other basic caving equipment, he found a way to cross the bottomless pit and discover many more miles of incredible grottoes and tunnels. For the rest of his life he guided visitors through the cave, showing them how to stoop, bend, and crawl through passageways that were sometimes far from the traditional tour route. Based on the narratives of those who toured the cave with him, Journey to the Bottomless Pit is the first book for young readers ever written about Stephen Bishop.

The Story of Stephen Bishop & Mammoth Cave

Journey to the Bottomless Pit

Charismatic, a colt nobody wanted, is ridden by Antley, a jockey everybody doubted. That either could be a mere mile and a half from winning the Triple Crown would be astounding; that the two of them together are so close to racing immortality would be a fantasy . . . except that it is real.'So ran a newspaper story days before jockey Chris Antley and his horse Charismatic attempted to make history by winning the third and final race of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes. After battling depression and drug and alcohol abuse, Antley had made a stunning comeback by riding the unknown Charismatic to victory at both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. Antley's success was viewed as symbolic of the new path he was forging in his life, but his story, and his horse's, would not have a fairy-tale ending. In Three Strides Before the Wire, journalist Elizabeth Mitchell takes the reader on a fascinating journey into the world of horse racing by tracing the intertwined lives of jockey Chris Antley, trainer D. Wayne Lukas, owners Bob and Beverly Lewis, 1999 Derby winner Charismatic, and the author herself, who placed a crucial bet on the race. The adventure takes us behind the scenes of the world's racetracks, revealing the colourful history of horse racing, while also exposing the underbelly of racing scandals. The story of horse racing goes beyond the jockeys, the trainers, the owners and the swindlers. For all people, rich or poor, horse racing offers a dramatic tale that is thrilling at its best moments and heart-wrenching at its worst.

Elizabeth Mitchell

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