Synopses & Reviews
Abraham Lincoln stood out in a crowd as much for his wit and rollicking humor as for his height. This Newbery Medal-winning biography of our Civil War president is warm, appealing, and illustrated with dozens of carefully chosen photographs and prints.
Russell Freedman begins with a lively account of Abraham Lincoln's boyhood, his career as a country lawyer, and his courtship and marriage to Mary Todd. Then the author focuses on the presidential years (1861 to 1865), skillfullly explaining the many complex issues Lincoln grappled with as he led a deeply divided nation through the Civil War. The book's final chapter is a moving account of that tragic evening in Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865. Concludes with a sampling of Lincoln writings and a detailed list of Lincoln historical sites.
This title has been selected as a Common Core Text Exemplar (Grades 2-3, Read Aloud Informational Text).
Review
"A realistic, perceptive, and unromanticized photobiography of Lincoln, including a sampler of quotations from his writings and speeches." Booklist, Editor's Choice
Review
"A realistic, perceptive, and unromanticized photobiography of Lincoln, including a sampler of quotations from his writings and speeches." --
Booklist, ALA, Editor's Choice
"Eloquent. . . . A human portrait of a politician honorably confronting the most vexing issues of his era. . . . This biography feels astonishly real." -- The New York Times Book Review
"Few, if any, of the many books written for children about Lincoln can compare with Freedman's contribution. . . . This is an outstanding example of what (juvenile) biography can be. Like Lincoln himself, it stands head and shoulders above its competition." -- School Library Journal
Synopsis
A description of the boyhood, marriage, and young professional life of Abraham Lincoln includes his presidential years and also reflects on the latest scholarly thoughts about our Civil War president. Winner of the 1988 Newbery Medal.
About the Author
Russell Freedman grew up in San Francisco and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. The author of over thirty-five nonfiction books on subjects ranging from animal behavior to social history, Mr. Freedman received the Washington Post Children's Book Guild Nonfiction Award in 1992. Lincoln: A Photobiography was awarded the 1988 Newbery Medal and Eleanor Roosevelt was a Newbery Honor Book in 1994. Mr. Freedman lives in New York City and travels extensively to gather material for his books.