LYNN — Local author Robert A. Foster has worn many hats in his lifetime, including those of a musician, widow, historian, and author.
In his debut book, “Blue is Just a Word: The Civil War Within,” Foster takes readers through a true account of his life, covering topics such as death, the moral lessons of the Civil War, and music.
“My wife passed away when my daughter was a baby, so I wrote the book for me, so that my daughter would better have the chance to know her mother,” Foster said. “So the story is kind of about how American history has saved my life after my wife died. I went off the deep end and I like to think I came back somewhat.”
Foster said he had always been entranced by history, as his mother was a history teacher in Lynn during his childhood.
Although he was curious about the subject, he did not pursue history at a scholarly level, and instead spent time in London, working as a session bassist for Charisma Records.
“I’ve rubbed elbows with rock stars and now I’m rubbing elbows with prominent history professors, and it’s just been an amazing journey,” Foster said.
Foster made his way back to Lynn following the death of his wife.
“I came back here and just kind of settled down and went off into obscurity. Then, I joined these history clubs and didn’t say a peep for about three years, and then one day, I started asking questions,” Foster said.
Now, Foster is the vice president of the city’s General Lander Civil War Roundtable, vice president of the Lincoln Group of Boston, and a lifetime member of the Lincoln Forum of Gettysburg.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Foster said he traveled up to Maine and down to Virginia, giving talks on the Civil War and other topics in American history.
“People were saying, ‘Geez, you ought to write a book about what you’re talking about,’” Foster said. “I never in a million years thought I would, but I did.”
Foster’s book was published by Book Architecture, located in Boston and Providence, which was founded and is owned by editor Stuart Horwitz.
“(Horwitz) said he wanted to work with me because I’m the only author he knows that can put Keith Richards and Abraham Lincoln in the same sentence and get away with it,” Foster said.
Foster used the hats he has worn throughout his life to encapsulate in the book what it means to be enslaved.
“Abraham Lincoln once said that, ‘Slavery is a cancer hidden deep, deep, within the American Constitution.’ So, I use that analogy to compare how my wife got enslaved by cancer, and watching her die,” Foster said.
Although the book features dark themes, Foster said it is still filled with humor and hope.
“It seems to make people happy at the end, even though they’re holding a handkerchief the whole time reading it,” Foster said.
“Blue is Just a Word: The Civil War Within” is available for purchase on Amazon.
