John Adams was an American patriot and Founding Father, and Abigail, his wife, was his most trusted adviser for more than fifty years. While John served in both Continental Congresses, Abigail managed their farm within earshot of cannon fire. She later advised her husband through amusing letters as he served as our first ambassador to Great Britain. And when John was elected America's first vice president and our second president, Abigail vowed to be his "fellow Laborer"--and she steadfastly lived up to her promise.
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From School Library Journal
Grade 1–3—The Adlers' emphasis remains on John, but Abigail is acknowledged as an important collaborator in his life and work. The straightforward text presents a chronological account of Adams's life, including his unique role in defending the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre, his varied contributions to the founding of the United States, and his service as vice-president and president. While not flashy, the text is clear and accessible to young researchers. The softly colored watercolor illustrations of serene scenes perhaps do not do justice to the many dramas in the Adamses' lives, but they do provide a sense of the time period for young readers. This serviceable title will be useful in most libraries.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
This excellent picture-book biography introduces the childhoods, courtship, and family life of John and Abigail Adams as well as their years in public service. Fine-tuned to give readers a sense of their personalities as well as their significance in American history, the succinct text uses details of daily life and short quotes from the Adams’ private letters and public pronouncements very effectively. Himler’s graceful and well-composed drawings are brightened with luminous washes. A list of important dates in the Adams’ lives, source notes, and a selected bibliography are appended to this fine entry in the Picture Book Biography series. Grades 1-3. --Carolyn Phelan
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More About the Author
I write both fiction and non-fiction. I begin my fiction with the main character. The story comes later. Of course, since I'll be spending a lot of time with each main character, why not have him or her be someone I like? Andy Russell is based, loosely, on a beloved member of my family. He's fun to write about and the boy who inspired the character is even more fun to know. Cam Jansen is based even more loosely on a classmate of mine in the first grade whom we all envied because we thought he had a photographic memory. Now, especially when my children remind me of some promise they said I made, I really envy Cam's amazing memory. I have really enjoyed writing about Cam Jansen and her many adventures. For my books of non-fiction I write about subjects I find fascinating. My first biography was Our Golda: The Life of Golda Meir. To research that book, I bought a 1905 set of encyclopedia. Those books told me what each of the places Golda Meir lived in were like when she lived there. I've written many other biographies, including books about Martin Luther King, Jr; George Washington; Abraham Lincoln; Helen Keller; Harriet Tubman; Anne Frank; and many others in my Picture Book Biography series. I've been a Yankee and a Lou Gehrig fan for decades so I wrote Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man. It's more the story of his great courage than his baseball playing. Children face all sorts of challenges and it's my hope that some will be inspired by the courage of Lou Gehrig. I am working now on another book about a courageous man, Janusz Korczak. My book One Yellow Daffodil is fiction, too, but it's based on scores of interviews I did with Holocaust survivors for my books We Remember the Holocaust, Child of the Warsaw Ghetto, The Number on My Grandfather's Arm, and Hiding from the Nazis. The stories I heard were compelling. One Yellow Daffodil is both a look to the past and to the future, and expresses my belief in the great spirit and strength of our children. I love math and was a math teacher for many years, so it was fun for me to write several math books including Fraction Fun, Calculator Riddles, and Shape Up! Fun with Triangles and Other Polygons. In my office I have this sign, "Don't Think. Just Write!" and that's how I work. I try not to worry about each word, even each sentence or paragraph. For me stories evolve. Writing is a process. I rewrite each sentence, each manuscript, many times. And I work with my editors. I look forward to their suggestions, their help in the almost endless rewrite process. Well, it's time to get back to dreaming, and to writing, my dream of a job. David A. Adler is the author of more than 175 children's books, including the Young Cam Jansen series. He lives in Woodmere, New York.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
BOTH ENTERTAINING AND EDUCATIONAL,
This review is from: A Picture Book of John and Abigail Adams (Picture Book Biography) (Library Binding)
If you're looking for a quality picture book to give to a young friend, the name of David A. Adler should be high on your list. He has written well over 100 books for young readers - our favorites among those are in his Picture Book Biography series. These books not only educate but entertain - Adler brings history to life, an initial introduction for many. A PICTURE BOOK OF JOHN AND ABIGAIL ADAMS is Adler at his best, and also the fourth collaboration between father and son. We first meet Adams as one of three sons living in Braintree (now Quincy) Massachusetts. It was here that he enjoyed being out of doors, whether it was swimming in the summer or sledding in the winter. As a young man he went with a friend to the home of Reverend William Smith, which was where he met Abigail who was "small, sickly, and just fourteen." Their initial meeting didn't impress either one of them but as John continued to come to the Smith house to borrow books from Reverend Smith's library their feelings changed. As we now know they married, and Abigail was "his most trusted adviser, his dearest friend for more than fifty years." Adler traces their lives together through the Boston Massacre in 1770 and following when John displayed great skill as a lawyer. He soon represented Massachusetts at the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, and later served as a diplomat in France, spending much of the next ten years in Europe. Throughout this time Abigail managed their home and money. Time passed, the American Revolution ended and John Adams was elected vice president serving with George Washington as president. While he was an American patriot and a great man of his time, Abigail was an amazing woman. The book includes a list of important dates, source notes, and a selected bibliography. Highly recommended. - Gail Cooke
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is an excellent overview of John and Abigail Adams for the budding historical reader!,
This review is from: A Picture Book of John and Abigail Adams (Picture Book Biography) (Library Binding)
John Adams was an outdoor sort of boy and enjoyed playing outside with his two brothers. He was born in Braintree, Massachusetts on October 19, 1735. Naturally, as an outdoorsy type, he was interested in becoming a farmer, but his father insisted he have an education and wanted him to become a lawyer. By the age of sixteen he had enrolled in Harvard and soon after he graduated he briefly taught school before undertaking a law practice. In 1759 he chanced to meet Abigail Smith who was totally disinterested in him. The feeling was mutual, but in time they grew to appreciate and care for each other quite deeply.
Later their affection for one another led to marriage and they eventually had five children. In this book you will read about their lifetime partnership and will see how two people could influence the course of history. John, of course, is the main player in this book, however, as Abigail once wrote, "No man ever prospered in the world without the consent and cooperation of his wife." The reader will learn about their personal lives, the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, John's participation in the First and Second Continental Congresses, his ten year stint in Europe as a diplomat, his years as president, and more. This is an excellent overview of John and Abigail Adams for the budding historical reader. This book naturally does not go into great detail in any facet of the Adams' lives, but I certainly was able to get a feel for their personalities. The highlights of their lives and political aspects of John's lengthy career are touched upon. This book would be an excellent stepping stone to further research on the Adams family for a young student wanting to attempt a report. The watercolors were very appealing and caught many details such as the period clothing and John's "short, overweight" physical characteristics. In the back of the book are a list of important dates, source notes, a selected bibliography, authors' notes and additional recommend website resources to explore.
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