A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln

Picture Book Biography

by David A. Adler

Follows the life of the popular president, from his childhood on the frontier to his assassination after the end of the Civil War.

Genres: Biography, History, Picture Books, Childrens, Nonfiction, Civil War, American History

32 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1989

About the author

David Abraham Adler is an American children's author. He was born in New York City, New York in 1947. He graduated from Queens College in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in economics and education. For the next nine years, he worked as a mathematics teacher for the New York City Board of Education, while taking classes towards a master's degree in marketing, a degree he was awarded by New York University in 1971. In that same year, a question from his then-three-year-old nephew inspired Adler to write his first story, A Little at a Time, subsequently published by Random House in 1976. Adler's next project, a series of math books, drew on his experience as a math teacher. In 1977, he created his most famous character, Cam Jansen, originally featured in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds, which was published that year.

Adler married psychologist Renee Hamada in 1973, and their first child, Michael, was born in 1977. By that time Adler had taken a break from teaching and, while his wife continued her work, he stayed home, took care of Michael, and began a full-time writing career.

Adler's son, Michael S. Adler, is now the co-author of several books with his father, including A Picture Book of Sam Adams, A Picture Book of John Hancock, and A Picture Book of James and Dolly Madison. Another son, Edward, was the inspiration for Adler's Andy Russell series, with the events described in the series loosely based on adventures the Adler family had with Edward's enthusiasm and his pets.

As of November 2008, Adler has three sons and two grandsons. He lives in Woodmere, New York.

(source: Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Details the life of Lincoln from birth to death with heavier emphasis on the adult years. Each page focuses on some major event in his life. Language and sentence structure are appropriate for children in grades 1-3. Cartoon like illustrations are done in colorful pastel shades. The page where Lincoln's death is mentioned shows Booth pointing a gun at Lincoln's head. While factual the visual is very unexpected and jarring. Additional reference aid: list of important dates. Adler has authored several biographies of American historical figures.

[Ginta · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln” is a picture book complete biography of Abraham Lincoln written by David Adler.

In the book the illustrations of Lincoln’s life tie in beautifully with the text. For example, Adler writes that in 1858 Lincoln was chosen by the new Republican party to run for the United States Senate and in 1860 he won the race for the presidency. The pictures done by illustrators John and Alexandra Wallner tie in succinctly with Adler’s text.

Abraham Lincoln is considered one of the United States best presidents. Children (and adults) have an interest in learning more about him. The picture book biography is written in a way that is easy for children to read and the illustrations help children better comprehend the text.

My rating for this book is four stars. The book is not a completely balanced portrait of Lincoln. However, aspects of Lincoln’s life that are left out of the book are too involved and not quite appropriate for children. Adler does include triumphs and failures related to Lincoln’s presidency that are important in providing a portrait of Lincoln that children can understand and relate to.

It is a good book for children to read as part of a social science history lesson or to read for their own entertainment to learn more about the president.

[Christine Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a biography about Abraham Lincoln. It talked about his life from the beginning to the end. It starts off by talking about his childhood where he would build houses and boats with his father and other men in the town. It talked about the places he moved to, what he did in his free time, what he did before entering the political world, what he did when he was in the political world and then what he achieved. It mentioned all of the events in his life until it reached the end of the story.

This book shows a detailed but short method about what Abraham Lincoln did in his child and what he achieved when he was President of the United States. Children are able to know what he did for our country and how things would have been a lot different if he had not done the things that he did when he was president. The illustrations were well drawn out as they showed pieces of history but were appropriate for children. There were some double page spreads included and the text were consistent through out the story as they were on the image but in a neat format either on the top or the bottom of the page. Overall, it was nice biography that can easily be taken in to learn about Abraham Lincoln.

[Cassidy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book follows the story of Abraham Lincolns life. It starts off with when he was born and then starts his childhood off at 7 years old. It talks about how many times he moved, his interests, and all of the things he helped build. When Abraham was in New Orleans he saw his first slave trade, which horrified him and he could not forget it. He was very interested in law and soon became a lawyer, which in turn made him run for public office. Abraham Lincoln always spoke out against slavery, soon after he became president 11 of the states withdrew, which then began the civil war. The book talks about how he went on to free slaves. The book ends with talking about his assassination. The end of the book also lists the important dates of Abraham's life. The art in this book is really cool because some of it takes up 2 pages and it looks like it was done with colored pencil. I gave this book 5 stars because it was very informative and even mentioned things that I did not even know. I also liked that they listed the important dates at the end, this makes it easier for the kids that read it to keep track.

[Hang · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picture book biography follows the life of the popular president, Abraham Lincoln. The book goes from his childhood to his assassination after the Civil War. The book is written for a young audience and is very easy for children to read along to. The biography was fairly detailed and I believe it is appropriate for children. The book was pretty informative and I learned a few things about Abraham that I didn't know before. I like the use of descriptive language and how clear the word choices were.

The illustrations were very nice and I enjoyed how it looked like it was created with colored pencils. But I especially liked how the illustrations can help younger readers to comprehend the text better. I also liked the double-page spreads throughout this short read. I think this was a decent biography that can help students to better understand this famous president of our past.

[Jill Westerbur · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book a 4 star rating as I found it was done really well from the illustrations to the detail.

This book was extremely informative about Lincoln and his life. I liked the book a lot. It used very descriptive language that drew the reader in. I thought that the word choices were vivid and yet still very clear to the reader. I found this book to be the most accurate about Lincolns life and the other events. It was the most detailed out of the three "A Picture Book of" books. I thought that this book was a very good biography that was able to teach children the information. The main idea of this book was to teach children about Lincoln's life in a way that is interesting to the reader and encourages them to learn the information.

[Samantha Beaujour · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. None.
2. 3rd-5th grade.
3. This book outlines the life of the 16th president Abraham Lincoln. It shows his humble beginnings on the frontier, and it even talks about his assassination after the war. There are themes of hard work, honesty, integrity and leadership.
4. All of the information is pretty accurate, from birth to assassination. Books like this are good to start off lessons or allow students to read about real historical figures. It also has pictures which help keep the attention of the reader.
5. Previously reading about George Washington, compare and contrast him with Abraham Lincoln, create a hat like Lincoln and do a reenactment based on the book.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre: Non-fiction
Grade Level: Lower or Upper Elementary (K-3)

This is a great book detailing the life of Abraham Lincoln from birth to death. It begins by briefly describing his childhood and then gets into his involvement with politics at an older age. I think it was very straightforward and talks about his life in a way that young children will understand. In order to learn about who Abraham Lincoln was, one must understand the time period. Therefore, I think this book explains the history well too. I think could use this as a read aloud book when discussing the presidents with my kindergarten class. Overall, I would give this book 3 stars.

[Kisha Diaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awards: I didn't find any awards

Grade level : 1-5

Summary: This book starts with when Lincoln was born till when he died that faithful day at the theater. This book provides good insight into the life of Abraham Lincoln.

Review: This book is a great guide to know about a president life. This book would be great to read to students on Lincoln birthday. The book has great details and illustrations that add to the story.

In class use: Good in History and or Social Studies lesson

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book for getting this information out to students in a fun new way. This book provides hard facts paired with beautifully illustrated pictures. This book starts out by explaining where Abraham Lincoln grew up and how he was raised and goes on to talk about his amazing work he did as the President of the United States. This is a non fiction book that is fun and will keep the students attention. It is best suited for students around the fourth grade reading level.

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful overview for elementary aged children. I read this book to my 3rd grade son as we are studying Abraham Lincoln this week. He has a short attention span so I must find books that have pictures to help him retain the information. Beautifully illustrated and will hold your child’s attention.

[Evan Teter]

This book about Abraham Lincoln may not be exactly accurate, this is something I would likely need to do more research on. However, if it is for the most part accurate, I think this would be a good book to have in my classroom because it has some cool illustrations and goes through his whole life. This book could be for students probably starting in second grade.

[K.C. Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This abbreviated biography tells of the life of Abraham Lincoln from birth to his assassination. Smaller details, such as the names of his four sons are included. About the only personality clue is one page where it talks about him being sad about slavery. The book does not overwhelm with information. A timeline of important dates in Lincoln’s life is included in the back of the book.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little more detail from Abraham Lincoln's life and presidency than in some of the previous books about Lincoln that we have read recently. Good ratio of text to colorful illustrations. Some difficult concepts are touched on, but need further discussion by teachers/parents for better understanding.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not the most entertaining book, this is probably a good book to use to teach a Kindergarten to First grade aged child about Abraham Lincoln. The illustrations aren't going to win any prizes, but the information is brief and concise.

[Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Jenn Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Schu · Rating 3 out of 5]

David Adler tells a short story of the highlights of Abraham Lincoln's life in A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln. The book has lovely illustrations, and the narration of the book is well-executed. I recommend the picture books to young readers interested in Abe Lincoln.

[PB childrens lit. class · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good picture book biography. Kids will learn a lot about Abraham Lincoln, the narrative is interesting and the illustrations are well done.

[Monica Hocking · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good resource for basic information!!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great informational book about Abraham Lincoln.

[Daniel]

It was in english

[Conor Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

The punctuation and grammar in this book are atrocious. I cannot believe this was released for the “school market”. Let’s hope that editor is no longer working.

[Ammie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is growing on me. Sometimes it's nice to just have a simple biography.

[Wahyu Awaludin · Rating 4 out of 5]

good

[Emily Pinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about Abraham Lincoln and the impact he made on America.
This book had very kid-friendly pictures. I enjoyed reading about Abraham Lincoln as if I were a child.
I would introduce this to my students when talking about past presidents of the United States.

[Anaese Vega · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade/Interest Level: Primary/Upper Elementary (2nd-5th grade)
Reading Level: Fountas-Pinnel M
Genre: Biography/Picture Book

Main Characters: Abraham Lincoln
Setting: Illinois
POV: Narrator

Summary:
This is a picture book about the life of Abraham Lincoln. It takes the readers through his life, beginning with his birth in 1809. It talks about how his family, including his sister Sara lived on a farm in Kentucky where he was born and how the family moved from Kentucky to Indiana and then to Illinois in 1830, 12 years after his mother died. It also talks about Abe’s physical appearence, how he was tall and thin but very strong. Abe spent his early years helping his dad on the farm and built a boat to travel on the Mississippi River in 1831. Abraham wasn’t too fond of the idea of slaves, he didn’t like they were treated as property and this left a mark in his heart. Abe Loved talking about politics and joking around. He went to law school and when he graduated, he moved to Springfield and fell in love with Mary Todd, and they had four children. In 1858 he ran for U.S. Senate and won, then in 1860 he ran for president and won. The book also covers what Abe did while he was president such as; The Emancipation Proclamation and his position during the civil war. It ends with his death explaining how John Wilkes Boot shot and killed him when he and his wife were at a theater.

Classroom Use/Theme:
I would definitely use this book to go along with an Illinois theme. Abe Lincoln is such a powerful man, he was for and against some very powerful issues and it would be a good text to use to explain to students about who he was.

[Chloey Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little Abe was morn in a small village and lost his mother very young. His "angel" was his step-mother who Abe was very fond of and raised him well. The story tells of Abraham's journey through life very briefly beginning from first breathe to last. It tells of how Abraham got into office and got involved into politics. As well as his quant little family filled with strapping young boys. All seems to be wonderful for Mr. Lincoln until the night he decided to go to a play with his beloved wife.
The illustrations were darling in the story. One imagines Abe Lincoln as a sweet, caring young boy which is exactly how he was depicted. The illustrations weren't super simple but they weren't to complex. The color scheme was a soft pallet which allowed for a general feeling of warmth run through as you read the story. When a plot twit occurred the images became darker but the author was sure to now display anything that may be upsetting to his general audience. The illustrations were easy to follow, well related to the text, and allowed the reader to make their own unique connections.
The story is a valid example of a well executed biography for children. The story line was easy to follow with engaging illustrations. It was about a famous person, Abraham Lincoln, who almost everyone knows and is taught about at a young age. Also, there aren't details not important mentioned or just straight life facts about him. The story line presented includes some aspects may not have heard before as well as keeps the story simple and not a pain to read all the way through.

[Ziwei Cheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a historical story book, which is talking Abraham Lincoln’s entire life from his birth to his death. The whole book mostly uses pictures to tell people Lincoln’s story.
Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809 in Kentucky. When he was young he always helped his older sister with farm work. They walked to school everyday. When he was nine, his mom was dead and then he had a step mother later. His step mother was very good to Abraham. He even called her “my angel mother”. Abraham loved books. He always walked many miles and borrowed books. When he saw slave-markets he felt really bad and could not forget what he saw. So he decided to help those slaves. He decided to free all the slaves and he did it. Unfortunately, when he became the president, he got shot by someone.
To sum up, in this historical book about Abraham Lincoln’s whole life, the background colors are blue and orange. Blue means calm and passive whereas orange associated with the scene of fall season. The whole book uses pictures showing people the original environments about Lincoln’s life. In this way, readers can easily understand Lincoln’s entire life.
This book is very suitable for the students to read. It’s simple, easy without common. The contents are simple and easy to understand. What is more, the background pictures are helpful for students to have better understanding of the Abraham Lincoln’s life story.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a consensus among historians that the selection of the best U. S. president ever is a contest between George Washington, Franklin Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. Washington was a figure that unified a new nation in the early years; Roosevelt saw the nation out of the depression and to victory in war while Lincoln managed to hold the country together through a bitter and very bloody civil war.
This is a brief history of Abraham Lincoln, his life of hard work and love of learning as he rose from living in a one-room cabin he helped build to his becoming a lawyer, running for office and failing and finally being elected president when the country was falling apart. The level of the text is roughly that of the second grader and the organization is where approximately two sentences are captioned under the image of the page. The images are colorful and drawn in great detail.
It is an excellent primer on the life of one of the greatest U. S. presidents of all time. He rose from humble beginnings and through his love of learning and reading rose to the highest office in the land. This is a lesson that is important and timeless.

This review appears on Amazon

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book talks about Abraham Lincoln's life. It begins at his childhood and moves quicly to his political career. I thought it was really interesting when it said tat he hadn't seen slaves in chains until he went to New Orleans as a young man. I was surprised to read that. It explains why he was so against slavery, he wasn't numbed of it like everyone else was. he saw it for what it really ws. The only thing I didn't like about this book is how quickly it moved form his childhood to his political career. I know most everything about his political career, but I was hoping to learn more about his childhood. However, I guess this is for the kids, and the students that read this will probably be learning this information for the first time. I would definitely have this in my classroom.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

In honor of President Lincoln's 203rd birthday, we decided to read this story. It's a colorful biography that offers the basic facts and events of his life, without overwhelming the reader with too many details. We enjoyed learning about his love of reading and the rustic way in which he lived when he was young.

This is only the second book we've read in the Picture Book Biography series by David A. Adler, but I'm sure we'll read more.