Miller, Sarah. Hanged! Mary Surratt & The Plot to Assassinate Abraham Lincoln. Random House, 2022. 978-9-593-19156-0. 333 p. $18.99. Grades 9-12.

While the name John Wilkes Booth is infamous in American history, the name Mary Surratt is less well known today. Yet in 1865, they were equally famous, their names appearing in the paper with others, all connected to the same crime–the plot to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. Mary Surratt was a widow and devout Catholic who owned and ran a boarding house in Washington, D.C. It was in this boarding house the conspirators involved in the plots to assassinate President Lincoln and other government officials regularly met. Surratt’s son, John Surratt, was a friend of John Wilkes Booth and an active member of the conspiracy. But was Mary? The government certainly thought so. In the days following the assassination, she was arrested and, despite the fact that she was a civilian, put on trial in front of a military tribunal. Newspaper coverage of the time was harsh, often prejudicial to the accused (and sexist in their descriptions of Mary). Despite sometimes wildly conflicting witness statements, Mary Surratt was found guilty of conspiracy, sentenced to death, and executed. Questions have lingered ever since about Mary’s guilt or innocence. Author Sarah Miller (The Border Murders) examines Mary Surratt’s life and story in Hanged! Mary Surratt & The Plot to Assassinate Abraham Lincoln. Numerous primary source documents (newspaper articles, letters, trial transcripts, photos) are incorporated throughout the text.

THOUGHTS: This title is an example of nonfiction at its best. Readers quickly will find themselves immersed in Mary’s story, on the scene in the boarding house as she is arrested and later, listening to witnesses at the military tribunal. Will appeal to readers of biography, true crime, history, or those with an interest in the Civil War era. An excellent choice for those researching the assassination of President Lincoln and the related conspiracy. 

973.7 Civil War          Elizabeth Henry, Lampeter-Strasburg SD