Publishers Weekly
- Publisher's Weekly
Striking folk-art paintings more than compensate for a thuddingly flat text in this picture book biography of Abraham Lincoln. Apparently written to fit the illustrations, the choppy, teacherly prose often hinders the narrative drive, as in this description of Lincoln and Mary Todd's courtship: ``Mary was twenty-one years old. Abe was thirty. Mary was popular. She liked dancing and spoke French. Abe and Mary were married.'' In this vein Kunhardt ( Pat the Cat ; Red Day, Green Day ) reports all the familiar episodes: Lincoln's childhood in a log cabin, his debates with Douglas, the assassination by ``a man who was furious at the President for freeing the slaves.'' But the paintings vivify the story, commanding attention with vibrant greens, blues, reds and yellows. No staid portraits here! Placed one to each oversize page with generous trim as if hung on a wall, they are seemingly unpolished but genuinely American, much like the man they commemorate. Ages 5-up. (Jan.)
Children's Literature
- Nancy Partridge
Kunhardt relates the life of Abraham Lincoln from birth to death in honest, simple tones. While the language is plain, with Lincoln's early years covered in a mundane way, the story actually provides lots of information, briefly explaining difficult subjects such as slavery and the Civil War. The primitive, naive style of painting is also deceptive, done in bright slightly jarring colors in a childish manner, with exaggerated perspective. The visual impact of an illustration of slaves for sale up on a podium, being looked over by white men in top hats, and another one of the Battle of Gettysburg, with little piles of soldiers lying dead on the ground, are quite evocative. The contrast between the voice and style, obviously meant for young children, and the seriousness of the content, is a little disturbing. It does, however, give a clear and accurate account of this great man's life, and the influence he had on the world. There is a copy of The Gettysburg Address at the end of the story, which is very moving and appropriate, and a timeline highlighting important events in Lincoln's life. This book should find a niche in a social studies/history curriculum.
