Author Perry Fox has turned generations of family lore into his debut novel, Lincoln's Double: Friend or Foe, published this October. The book imagines the life of Fox's grandfather, Franklin James Benjamin Fox—known as FJB—a 6'5" Second Lieutenant from Madison, Florida, whose striking resemblance to Abraham Lincoln became the seed for a fictional tale of a kidnapped president and a secret double.
While the plot is fiction, its foundation is historical. FJB fought in the Virginia Peninsula, was wounded in action, and later served in the artillery. Captured in 1865, he spent months in the notorious Camp Chase prison in Ohio. These facts anchor the novel's premise: Frank Fox is plucked from the Confederate ranks and trained to impersonate President Lincoln, forcing him into an impossible choice after a failed kidnapping plot.
The announcement matters because it highlights how personal family history can illuminate broader historical truths. By weaving documented events into a thriller, Fox explores how war can transform beliefs and forge unexpected bonds. The story moves from Confederate soldier to secret body double, a journey that captures the moral complexity and human drama of the Civil War—a conflict whose legacy still shapes American identity.
Fox credits his father, Barney, with keeping the stories alive. "This story started with my father, Barney, telling me about his own father," Fox says. "The image of my grandfather, tall, like Lincoln, and deeply dedicated to his family and faith, stayed with me. I wanted to honor his memory and the experiences of so many soldiers by placing him in a story that captures the moral complexity and human drama of the Civil War."
The novel also serves as a tribute to a grandfather Fox never met. Its publication underscores the enduring power of oral history and the ways in which descendants reimagine ancestral experiences to find meaning in the present. For readers, Lincoln's Double offers a window into the Civil War's personal toll, while for the Fox family, it represents a legacy of faith, persistence, and honor carried forward into literary form.
