George Saunders brings a moment of history to life in his imagination of Lincoln in the Bardo. He places his story around the event of Willie Lincoln's death. The boy awakens in the Bardo, a liminal space between the material world and the afterlife. In this place, spirits have the choice to pass on or linger. Willie makes a couple of friends and lingers, hoping to somehow to be able to resurrect with his father's help. For his part Lincoln returns to the cemetery to retrieve something forgotten. After a kind reverend helps Willie. As father and son finally reunite, they see one another -- only to learn that Lincoln has also died.
Saunders reimagines Lincoln's death in a much more personal way. By exploring the toll of his son's death upon the president, Saunders reveals some motivation where death is welcomed. This is perhaps a salve to the national tragedy which was the man's death. While Willie remains the protagonist and primary focus, his plot line serves to explain the historical event of his father's death as well as to humanize this historical figure after the loss of his son.
