Abe Lincoln Remembers [Hardcover]

Ann Turner (Author), Wendell Minor (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

I told Mary that tonight is a time to be happy.As we wait to go see a play, I think again of that little house, the small window, the piece of sky with two birds and one squirrel. How much has come to pass since then.

One evening in 1865 President Abraham Lincoln sits quietly in the White House. He is waiting for his wife, Mary. Tonight they will go to the theater to see a play. It has been a long time since the President has allowed himself an evening of rest.

While he waits, he thinks back on his life and the long journey from a small log cabin in Kentucky to the stately White House in Washington, a journey filled with the greatest joys and the deepest sorrows.

Extraordinarily moving text and stunning, historically accurate paintings join together to present a fictional portrait of one of the most revered figures in American history.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

From his humble beginnings in a small log cabin, young Abe Lincoln knew "that being tall is not enough to make your way in this world." He worked hard on a flatboat, in a general store, and then studying to become a lawyer, eventually making his way into politics. Along the way he married and had three boisterous sons: "They were like balls bounding down a road, and people said they had no manners or discipline. I thought happiness more important than manners, though I didn't like it when Tad drove his cart and goats down the White House hall." Deeply relieved when the Civil War is over, Abe Lincoln is finally ready to be happy on the fateful night that he sets out to Ford's Theater to see a play with his wife.

The focus of this simple picture book is not on Lincoln's death--the book concludes before Abe and Mary even leave the White House--but rather on the admirable life he led. Although many are well acquainted with the legendary story of young Abe's rough upbringing in Kentucky and his unquenchable thirst for learning, Ann Turner's fictionalized biography, told in a fresh and immediate first-person point of view, adds a sweet note of poignancy and humanity to one of America's greatest heroes. With his historically accurate paintings, award-winning illustrator Wendell Minor captures the expressions and experiences of a man who, at the conclusion of the war, sees "how sorrow has dug lines in my cheeks." (Ages 6 to 9) --Emilie Coulter

From Publishers Weekly

Minor's (Red Fox Running) stately, lifelike paintings and Turner's (Learning to Swim) anecdotal narrativeAwritten in the conversational voice of LincolnAshape an insightful portrait of this leader. The author chronologically organizes the text into accessible vignettes, each accompanied by a finely detailed illustration marked by sharp, nearly photographic definition. Turner emphasizes Lincoln's fascination with words and learning with well-chosen similes (as a lawyer, "I practiced my cases out loud as I walked,/ learning how to use words/ like a leading rein on a colt/ to take people where I wanted"), and stresses his early commitment to end slavery, his unwavering ethics and his profound anguish at the destruction and death caused by the Civil War. Cheerful moments inject some levity into the volume, as when Lincoln describes Mary Todd, the woman who would become his wife ("She was bright and brave/ like a flag cracking in the wind,/ all color, rustle, and shine"), and his son Tad's habit of driving his cart and goats through the White House hall. This well-rounded volume ends on an affecting, ironic note: As Lincoln and his wife "wait to go see a play," he thinks back on his childhood log cabin, reflecting on "how much has come to pass since then. How much there is still to be done." Ages 6-9. (Jan.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (December 26, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060275774
• ISBN-13: 978-0060275778
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 8.9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,722,559 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in a small town in Western Massachusetts to creative parents who always encouraged my writing and painting. I went to Bates College, majored in English, and spent a wonderful year abroad in Oxford, England, giving me a taste for neat Scotch, Evensong, and very old churches and buildings. I've been married long enough to break all records and have two grown children. I am especially drawn to telling stories about outsiders, rebellious girls, and people who don't fit in--as I didn't growing up. I was always a bit too loud, too passionate, moved too fast, made up too many stories, and thought that life moved just a tad too slowly for me. I love to cook, garden, swim, pet my wild Jack Russell terrier, talk to friends and my "kids," and laugh at my husband's wild, original stories. I also actually answer letters and emails sent to me by fans, and when I do school visits, I tell people--"Don't ever let anyone tell you you can't do it!"

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Remembering Lincoln, March 29, 2001

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abe Lincoln Remembers (Hardcover)

It is April, 1865, the Civil War has just ended and Abe Lincoln is sitting in the White House waiting for his wife, Mary, to finish dressing. This is a happy night and the Lincoln's are going to Ford's Theater to see a play. As Lincoln patiently waits, he thinks back over his life, his simple upbringing and how he made his way to the presidency...from the small log cabin in Kentucky with only one window, to his love of learning and going to law school, to entering politics and finally becoming president, to believing in one country, whole, not half slave, half free..... Ann Warren Turner's eloquently written "fictional biography" and Wendell Minor's beautifully expressive and detailed artwork combine to capture your youngster's imagination with poignant, quiet emotion and moving, understated text. Historical notes at the end fill in the rest of the story, including Lincoln's assassination and can be used to augment lessons and enhance discussions. Abe Lincoln Remembers is a beautifully written, thoughtful story, perfect for youngsters 5-9 and makes a wonderful addition to all home libraries.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Kids' History, January 28, 2001

By 

Ted Ficklen (Saint Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abe Lincoln Remembers (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful biography for children, especially for children who are already familiar with Lincoln's story. The illustrations are superb, the best since the Daulaire's Caldecott Medal-winning biography of 1957. Wendell Minor's paintings humanize Lincoln without sacrificing that essentail iconic quality we usually expect in a Lincoln portrait.