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From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

A cogent narrative and nearly 100 photographs document the life of Abraham Lincoln and the times in which he lived. Through frequent use of direct quotes from Lincoln and the people who loved or hated him, Freedman manages to bring a larger-than-life historical legend down to earth, focusing on his personal ambition and sense of failure, his wit and melancholy. (Age 11 and older)

CCBC Choices 1987 © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 1987. Used with permission.

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from April 30, 2012
Freedman revisits the subject of his Newbery-winning Lincoln: A Photobiography (1987), but this time the 16th president shares billing with his friend and ally, abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The story opens with Douglass anxiously waiting to meet Lincoln for the first time to air grievances about the treatment of African-American soldiers during the Civil War. "At forty-five... he was a commanding figure, taller than most men, with a powerful athlete's build, graying hair, penetrating brown eyes and a carefully trimmed beard." Subsequent chapters detail the leaders' often parallel biographies. Both were self-made and shared a passion for reading, rising from poverty to prominence. In clear, accessible storytelling, Freedman brings the book back full circle to the pair's first meeting. Reprints of b&w photographs, engravings, political cartoons, and posters appear throughout (the most graphic of which depicts the hanging of a captured African-American soldier). Appendices, source notes, and a bibliography conclude what is not only the story of two powerful men who shaped the course of the United States, but also a brief history of the war that raged while they forged a fast but deep friendship. Ages 9â€"12. (June) â— 

From Publisher's Weekly

September 22, 1989
This Newbery Award-winning study of our 16th president is highly readable and meticulously organized. In a boxed review, PW hailed it as a ``superb, encompassing account'' of ``an intriguing, recognizable human being.'' Ages 8-12.

From School Library Journal

December 1, 1987
Gr 5 Up -Few, if any, of the many books written for children about Lincoln can compare with Freedman's contribution. More than 80 photographs and prints illustrate the crisp and informative text. The pictures have been well-placed to coordinate with the text; captions have been written with care as well. While many of the photographs are well-known, many less familiar pictures are also included. Freedman begins by contrasting the Lincoln of legend to the Lincoln of fact. His childhood, self-education, early business ventures, and entry into politics comprise the first half of the book, with the rest of the text covering his presidency and assassination. Freedman's extensive research is apparent in the liberal use he makes of quotations from original sources (letters, contemporary newspaper articles, etc.). Freedman makes clear the controversy and vilification that Lincoln engendered and endured during his presidency. A listing of historic sites open to the public and a sampler of wise and witty excerpts from Lincoln's writings complete the book. Well-organized and well-written, this is an outstanding example of what (juvenile) biography can be. Like Lincoln himself, it stands head and shoulders above its competition. Elaine Fort Weischedel, Turner Free Library, Randolph, Mass.