Shelly's Book Journal

I listened to the first half of this book in audio, and finished it up by reading. This is the story of Lincoln's Assassination told in a diary type format, starting with the final days of the war in Virginia and ending with the fate of the conspiracy.What I liked: I always enjoy learning new things about American history, and O'Reilly's telling of this tale looks at this very famous event in a little different light, painting a portrait of Booth and his vanity, showing us small details of the actor's life. There are new things here for me. The format is interesting and compelling.What I didn't like: As much as I enjoy the readability of the non fiction novel approach, I also miss the quotes and the footnotes that are found in true non fiction history reads. O'Reilly also has some facts wrong in the book. And although we see the depth of Booth's hate, we don't come to know and love Lincoln as we should. I expected more on how the Assassination changed America Forever, since that is part of the title. I kept expecting the book to get better, and it really didn't. O'Reilly hints of the conspiracy involved, but doesn't get into it. Which is quite frustrating.I'd recommend the book to anyone who wants a quick account of the last days of the Civil War and the Assassination, in a more readable format, someone who might not be a fan of in depth historical non fiction.