The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Opposing Viewpoints

School Library Journal

Gr 5-9-- A prologue outlines known facts about each event and poses focal questions or mysteries that remain unresolved. Both volumes successfully pique readers' interest in their topic and provide clear retellings of major theories. Almost every double-page spread includes at least one black-and-white reproduction of a historical piece of related artwork, portrait, or photograph. Sidebars in the extra-wide margins contain either captions or quotations from sources being cited; while they may distract from the flow of the text for some readers, browsers will find them interesting. O'Neal does not present any new information about Lincoln's assassination, but the reading level, attractive format, and topic interest make the title a worthwhile addition. In The Lost Colony , the illustrations are primarily of dramatized scenes; they are generally clear, well placed, and relevant to the text. There are no period maps and/or timelines, and readers may be slightly confused when Schouweiler cites one historian as maintaining that the Chesapeake Indians were extinct by 1607 but subsequently blamed by Powhatan for the slaughter of the missing colonists. --Rosie Peasley, Empire Union School District, Modesto, CA