Abraham Lincoln

The University of Illinois is commemorating the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth throughout the year of 2009. Activities honoring President Lincoln that are suitable for the whole family include interpretive dance recitals, exhibition openings, and a reenactment of a presidential press conference. All of the events honor our 16th president’s commitment to preserving the union, educating the public, and ending slavery, and the S-Collection would like to present a variety of our newer acquisitions of fictional and nonfictional accounts of the life and times of Abraham Lincoln. A guide to Lincoln resources in the S Collection can be accessed here, as well.

BIOGRAPHIES

Burchard, Peter.
Lincoln and Slavery. 1999.

A biography of the sixteenth president which focuses on the issue of slavery and the importance it had throughout Lincoln’s life from his early days as a lawyer through his presidency.
[Education S Collection SB. L736bur]

Dunn, Joeming W.
Abraham Lincoln. 2008.

Includes a timeline of Lincoln’s life, websites for further reference, and biographical source information written in the format of a graphic novel.
[Education S Collection SB. L736duf]

Magoon, Kekla.
Abraham Lincoln. 2008.

Includes timeline, places to visit when organizing a Lincoln road trip, websites for additional resources, and glossary.
[Education S Collection SB. L736mag]

Phillips, E. B.
Abraham Lincoln: From Pioneer to President. 2007.

Honest Abe, The Great Emancipator, The Martyr: Abraham Lincoln was perhaps America’s greatest President. He is also deeply beloved by many, who are inspired by Lincoln’s unwavering sense of justice and willingness to fight for his beliefs. Young readers will marvel at Lincoln’s path to greatness from his humble beginnings as a poor Illinois rail splitter up through his election as America’s 16th President, and into the dark days of the Civil War leading to his tragic assassination. In addition to background on his childhood and his marriage to Mary Todd, numerous sidebars provide simple explanations to relevant historical events such as the Dred Scott Decision and the Mexican Wars.
[Education S Collection SB. L736ph]

FICTIONAL ACCOUNTS OF OUR 16TH PRESIDENT

Burleigh, Robert.
Abraham Lincoln Comes Home. 2008.

Told through the eyes of a young boy, the sober mood of the country after the Lincoln assassination is presented as he and many other mourners wait to pay their respects to their fallen president as Lincoln’s funeral train travels from Washington, D.C., to Springfield, Illinois, in 1865.
[Education S Collection Q. SB. L736burl]

Hines, Gary.
Thanksgiving in the White House. 2003.

Young Tad Lincoln is excited about the new national holiday until he learns that the cook plans to serve Jack the turkey as the main course for Thanksgiving dinner.
[Education Q. S.H589t]

Hopkinson, Deborah.
Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek: a Tall, Thin Tale (Introducing His Forgotten Frontier Friend). 2008.

In Knob Creek, Kentucky, in 1816, seven-year-old Abe Lincoln falls into a creek and is rescued by his best friend, Austin Gollaher.
[Education S Collection Q. SE. H77a]

Osborne, Mary Pope.
After the Rain. 2002.

In her diary, a ten-year-old girl writes about her family’s experiences living in Washington, D.C., in 1864-65, during which time the Civil War comes to an end and President Lincoln is assassinated. Includes historical notes.
[Education Storage S.Os1af]

Pinkney, Andrea Davis.
Abraham Lincoln: Letters From a Slave Girl. 2001.

A fictional correspondence between President Abraham Lincoln and a twelve-year-old slave girl that discusses his decision to write the Emancipation Proclamation.
[Education Storage S.P6562a]

Rabin, Statin.
Mr. Lincoln’s Boys: Being the Mostly True Adventures of Abraham Lincoln’s Trouble-Making Sons, Tad and Willie. 2008.

Tad and Willie Lincoln are the sons of Abraham Lincoln who treat the White House like a playground, aggravating everyone except their indulgent father.
[Education S Collection Q. SB. L736ra]

St. George, Judith.
Stand Tall, Abe Lincoln. 2008.

Growing up poor in the backwoods of Kentucky and Indiana, Abraham Lincoln lost his mother before he was ten. But Sally Johnston, who married Abe’s father a year later, brought a library of books to their log cabin home and turned young Abe’s life around.
[Education S Collection Q. SB. L736st]

LINCOLN ACTIVITIES FOR YOUTH

Herbert, Janis.
Abraham Lincoln for Kids: His Life and Times With 21 Activities. 2007.

Providing a fresh perspective on one of the most beloved presidents of all time, this illuminating activity book tells the rich story of Abraham Lincoln’s life and details the events of his era. Highlighting Lincoln’s warm, generous spirit and impressive intellect, the guide teaches children about his fascinating life story, his struggles at the onset of the Civil War, and his relevance in today’s world. Activities include delivering a speech, holding a debate, drawing political cartoons, and making a stovepipe hat or miniature Mississippi River flatboat. Lively sidebars, abundant photographs and illustrations, and fun projects help to kick the dust off old Honest Abe. Also included are selections from some of Lincoln’s most famous speeches and documents, as well as a resource section of Web sites to explore and sites to visit, making this a comprehensive Lincoln biography for young readers.
[Illinois History and Lincoln Collection Q. 973.7 L63BH415a]

NONFICTION

Carey, Charles W.
The Emancipation Proclamation. 1999.

Discusses the reasons for Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and its impact on the institution of slavery and on the course of the Civil War.
[Education Storage S.973.714 C188e]

Denenberg, Barry.
Lincoln Shot!: A President’s Life Remembered. 2008.
Researched, Written, Illustrated, and Designed the National News Staff.

Conceived as a one-year anniversary newspaper edition of Lincoln’s assassination, this brilliant, beautiful, and bold biographical portrait of Abraham Lincoln mimics 19th-century newsprint, combining pen and ink drawings with archival photography, and period typography with articles surveying Lincoln’s life.
[Education S Collection F.SB. L736den]

Harness, Cheryl.
Young Abe Lincoln: The Frontier Days, 1809-1837. 1996.

Briefly presents the life of this famous president from his birth until the age of twenty-eight.
[Education Storage Q. SB. L736har]

Fleming, Candace.
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary. 2008.

Though Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln’s backgrounds differed considerably, both were intellectuals who shared interests in literature and politics, as well as a great love for each other.
[Education S Collection Q. SB. L736fl]

Rappaport, Doreen.
Abe’s Honest Words: The Life of Abraham Lincoln. 2009.
Told in accessible, absorbing prose, and brought to life in powerful illustrations, this powerful portrait of a great American president shines a light on the passion for humanity that defined Lincoln’s life.
[Education S Collection SB. L736r]

Sullivan, George.
Picturing Lincoln: Famous Photographs That Popularized the President. 2000.

Examines some of the famous photographs taken of President Abraham Lincoln, discussing the circumstances under which they were taken and how these images were used.
[Education Storage SB. L736sul]

Presidents and the White House

In honor of the election of Barack Obama, the United States’ first African-American president, the S-Collection presents a sampling of some of our children’s books about the presidency. What is the job of the president? What’s it like to live in the White House? Why is it called the White House, anyway? The following titles explore life in the White House, past and present.
Nonfiction
Aldridge, Rebecca.
The Presidency. 2004.
Surveys the person and the office of the president of the United States, covering such aspects as its history, the role of the first lady, the vice presidency, life in the White House, and campaigning.
[Education Storage S.352.23 Al248p]

Bausum, Ann.
Our Country’s Presidents. 2001.
Historical details of US presidents including the dramatic results of the 2000 election.
[Education S Collection Q. S.973 B328o]

Grace, Catherine O’Neill.
The White House: An Illustrated History. 2003.
Explores the history, architecture, and symbolism of the White House, which serves as a museum, office, ceremonial site, and a home to presidents and their families.
[Education Storage S.975.3 G753w]

Harris, Nancy.
What’s a President and Vice-President? 2007.
Part of the First Guide to Government series, this title explains the interactions of the executive, judicial, and legislative branches.
[Education S Collection Call Number: S.352.230973 H24w]
Fiction
Harness, Cheryl.
Ghosts of the White House. 1998.
George Washington’s ghost pulls a girl out of her school White House tour and takes her on a personal tour of the building, introducing her to the ghosts of previous presidents and to the history of the White House and of the United States.
[Education Remote Storage S.973.099 H226g]

Leiner, Jane.
First Children: Growing up in the White House. 1996.
Anecdotes from the lives of children who have lived in the White House from the time of George Washington to the present (1996).
[Education Storage Q. S.973.099 L533F]

O’Connor, Jane.
If the Walls Could Talk: Family Life at the White House. 2004.
Funny, surprising stories and more about the most famous home in America and the extraordinary families who have lived in it.
[Education S Collection S.973.09 Oc55i]
Presidents of the Past
Armstrong, Jennifer.
Thomas Jefferson: Letters from a Philadelphia Bookworm. 2000.
An educated, inquisitive young girl in Philadelphia corresponds with President Thomas Jefferson about current events, including the Lewis and Clark expedition, new inventions, and life at Monticello.
[Education Storage S.Ar573t]

Gutman, Dan.
Mr. Macky is Wacky! 2007
Mr. Macky dresses up as Abraham Lincoln to get the students at Ella Menty School excited about their Presidents’ Day oral reports.
[Education S-Collection S. G985mr]

Sandak, Cass.
The Tafts. 1993.
Examines the private life and political career of the only president to also serve as Supreme Court justice and describes the influence of his wife, Nellie.
[Education Remote Storage S.973.9120922 T125S]

Strasser, Todd.
Abe Lincoln for Class President. 1995.
When Max uses his friend’s computer to do a last-minute President’s Day assignment, he accidentally triggers a time machine that brings Abraham Lincoln into the present.
[Education Storage S.ST812AB]
Presidents of the Future?

DiPucchio, Kelly.
Grace for President. 2008.
When Grace discovers that there has never been a female U.S. president, she decides to run for school president.
[Education S-Collection Q. SE. D626g]

Perkins, Mitali.
First Daughter: White House Rules. 2008.
Once sixteen-year-old Sameera Righton’s father is elected president of the United States, the adopted Pakistani-American girl moves into the White House and makes some decisions about how she is going to live her life in the spotlight.
[Education S-Collection S. P419fd]

Smith, Lane.
Madam President. 2008.
A little girl imagines what her day would be like if she were President of the United States.
[Education S-Collection SE. Sm618m]

Thomas, Helen and Chip Bok.
The Great White House Break Out. 2008.
With his mother as president, the rules and restrictions become too confining, until the day that Sam and his pets, Warren the cat and Leonard the rat, decide to escape and explore Washington D.C.
[Education S-Collection SE. T3614g]
New to the S-Collection
McCollough, David, ed.
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. 2008.
More than one hundred leading authors and illustrators donate their talents to a collection of essays, personal accounts, historical fiction, and poetry which looks at America’s history through the prism of the White House.
[Education S-Collection Q. S.975.3 Ou78]

Elections!

As the presidential campaign season enters its last few weeks, the political process is constantly in the news. The following books can interest everyone from budding politicos to anyone who has ever wondered “what does it take to be the President?”

Picture Books

Christelow, Eileen
Vote! 2003.
Using a campaign for mayor as an example, shows the steps involved in an election, from the candidate’s speeches and rallies, to the voting booth where every vote counts, to the announcement of the winner.
[Center for Children’s Books: S.324.973 C461v]

Cronin, Doreen
Duck For President. 2004.
When Duck gets tired of working for Farmer Brown, his political ambition eventually leads to his being elected President.
[Education S Collection: SE. C881d]

DiPucchio, Kelly
Grace For President. 2008.
When Grace discovers that there has never been a female U.S. president, she decides to run for school president.
[Education S Collection: Q. SE. D626g]

Smith, Lane.
Madam President. 2008.
A little girl imagines what her day would be like if she were President of the United States.
[Education S Collection: SE. Sm618m]

Stier, Catherine.
If I Ran For President. 2007.
Discusses the presidential election process.
[Education S Collection: S.324.70973 St524i]

St. George, Judith.
So You Want To Be President? 2004 (Revised and Updated Edition)
This new version of the Caldecott-winning classic by illustrator David Small and author Judith St. George is updated with current facts and new illustrations to include our forty-second president, George W. Bush. Hilariously illustrated by Small, this celebration by St. George shows us the foibles, quirks and humanity of forty-two men who have risen to one of the most powerful positions in the world.
[Education S Collection: Q. S.973.099 St23s2004]

Middle Grades

Gephart, Donna
As if Being 12 3/4 Isn’t Bad Enough, My Mother is Running for President! 2008.
Preparing for spelling bees, having a secret admirer, and waiting for her chest size to catch up with her enormous feet are pressure enough, but twelve-year-old Vanessa must also deal with loneliness and very real fears as her mother, Florida’s Governor, runs for President of the United States.
[Education S Collection: S. G299a]

Gorman, Carol
Dork For President. 2002.
Having reluctantly agreed to run for sixth-grade president, Jerry, who has been trying to change his image as a dork, finds his opponent playing dirty tricks on him.
[Education Storage: S.G68d]

Howe, James
The Misfits. 2001.
Four students who do not fit in at their small-town middle school decide to create a third party for the student council elections to represent all students who have ever been called names.
[Education S Collection: S.H8382mi]

Morris-Lipsman, Arlene
Presidential Races: the Battle for Power in the United States. 2008.
Describes how election campaigns for the office of President of the United States have changed from the time of George Washington to the Bush vs. Kerry campaign of 2004.
[Education S Collection: S.324.973 M831p]

Thimmesh, Catherine
Madam President. 2004
A collective biography of women involved in politics in the United States and abroad. A story about a girl who is ridiculed for wanting to be president frames the introduction to the many women who have cleared the path that will eventually lead to a female president.
[Education S Collection: Q. S.320 T348m]

Young Adult

Bauer, Joan
Hope Was Here. 2000.
When sixteen-year-old Hope and the aunt who has raised her move from Brooklyn to Mulhoney, Wisconsin, to work as waitress and cook in the Welcome Stairways diner, they become involved with the diner owner’s political campaign to oust the town’s corrupt mayor.
[Education Storage: Education Storage: S.B326h]

Cabot, Meg
All-American Girl. 2002.
A sophomore girl stops a presidential assassination attempt, is appointed Teen Ambassador to the United Nations, and catches the eye of the very cute First Son.
[Education S Collection: S.C1125a]

McKissack, Pat
To Establish Justice: Citizenship and the Constitution. 2004.
America was founded on the idea of liberty for all. But it has not always achieved that ideal. To Establish Justice is an honest and powerful examination of the Supreme Court’s role in legalizing-or negating-civil rights for various groups. From the struggles of Native Americans at the country’s birth to the African American civil rights movement of the 1960s, from the vote for women to the internment of the Japanese during World War II, To Establish Justice shows how the Supreme Court has paved the way for both justice and discrimination, and how this important arm of our government has impacted all of our lives.
[Education S Collection: S.342.7308 M459t]

Perkins, Matali
First Daughter: Extreme American Makeover. 2007.
During her father’s presidential campaign, sixteen-year-old Sameera Righton, who was adopted from Pakistan at the age of three, struggles with campaign staffers who want to give her a more “all-American” image and create a fake weblog in her name.
[Education S Collection: S. P419f]

Schmidt, Gary.
First Boy. 2005.
Dragged into the political turmoil of a presidential election year, fourteen-year-old Cooper Jewett, who runs a New Hampshire dairy farm since his grandfather’s death, stands up for himself and makes it clear whose first boy he really is.
[Center for Children’s Books: S. Sch53f]

Lynch, Chris
Political Timber. 1996.
High school senior Gordon Foley runs for mayor at the behest of his grandfather, an old-style politician scheming to regain power while he’s in prison for fraud.
[Education Storage: S. L991P]