Book Review - Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman

TITLE: Lincoln: A Photobiography

AUTHOR: Russell Freedman 

PUBLISHER: Clarion Books
PUBLICATION DATE: November 16, 1987

FORMAT: Softcover, 150 pages
GENRE: Biography, Non-fiction
ISBN: 9780395518489

A description of the boyhood, marriage, and young professional life of Abraham Lincoln includes his presidential years and also reflects on the latest scholarly thoughts about our Civil War president. A Newberry Medal Book.

MY REVIEW: 

I read this biography aloud to my children, which won the 1988 Newbery Medal.

Abraham Lincoln was a man who came from meagre beginnings. His poor family lived in a log cabin in Kentucky, and his family moved to Indiana when he was seven years old. He was largely self-taught, and he was rarely spotted without a book in his hand. He had an interest in politics from the age of 23. He schooled himself in law and passed the bar in 1837. He married Mary Ann Todd, who many considered was above his social class. The upper-class citizens laughed at his unrefined manner of speaking and gangly appearance.

Freedman gives us an inside glimpse into the life of Abraham Lincoln. We learned a lot about Lincoln’s personality, and we were amused that he preferred to let his children run amuck in the White House. He did not have a firm disciplinary hand towards his children, and he was never one to deny his children anything. 

“It is my pleasure that my children are free, happy, and unrestrained by parental tyranny. Love is the chain whereby to bind a child to its parents.” – Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln and his wife were both absolutely devastated when two of their sons died in early childhood: Eddie died at the age of three years in 1850, and Willie died at the age of 11 years in 1862.

Freedman takes us through all of Lincoln’s political career right up until his assassination. The photographs had a huge impact on our understanding and aided in taking us back to this time period.

This is a fascinating book about Lincoln, and I highly recommend it!

MY RATING:

4 stars!! It was really good, and you should add it to your TBR list!

This book qualifies as: 
#23 for my 2013 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
#23 for my 2013 Read-a-Latte Challenge
#11 for my 2013 Let Me Count The Ways Reading Challenge: Book Version
#10 for my 2013 Where Are You Reading? Challenge
#10 for my 50 States Challenge 2013    
#10 for my 2013 Quick Fix Challenge  
#14 for my New Authors Challenge 2013
#14 for my 2013 Reading Challenge: First-Reads    
#11 for my Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2013
#11 for my 2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
#12 for my Embarrassment of Riches Reading Challenge 2013
#10 for my 2013 Dusty Bookshelf Challenge
#8 for my 2013 Award Winning Books Reading Challenge  

#2 for my 2013 Nonfiction Reading Challenge

#2 for my 2013 Nerdy Non-Fiction Reading Challenge
#2 for my 2013 Non-Fiction/Non-Memoir Reading Challenge  

#2 for my 2013 This isn't Fiction Reading Challenge 
#20 for my Monthly Mix-up Mania: 2013 to 2015 Edition     
Letter L for my 2013 A to Z Reading Challenge  
#11 for my Retreat's Reading Bingo 2013 Challenge
#21 for my Five-Year Reading Challenge: A Non-Fiction Adventure   
#36 for my Newbery Project  
#4 for my Take Control of Your TBR Pile: March 2013
#2 for my Spring Reading Thing 2013

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