Abe Lincoln : The Boy Who Loved Books

The first thing I noticed when looking for a children's biography book on Abraham Lincoln was Kay Winter's Abe Lincoln, The Boy who loved books. This book has wonderful pictures with vivid colors and kid-friendly portraits of Abe Lincoln as a boy. The illustrator, Nancy Carpenter, does a magnificent job bringing the book to life. Children of all ages will enjoy reading this book and realizing that a love of books, as Abraham Lincoln did, can change a persons life and move him or her to become a great person...maybe even the President of the United States.

I am a teacher who is writing a liturature based reading program with a committee of teachers and Superintendents. My Lesson guide is called "Heroes" and Abe Lincoln is the focus of the theme for this series. This book is a great information book written in language that students can enjoy and understand. I am using it for background information and to get examples for modeling how a biography can be written. The book tells about Abe as a young boy and all the experiences he went through. Children are able not only to read the level of writing, but also identify with some of the struggles Abe went through as a child. I enjoyed this book and my niece read it and liked it, also.

This is a wonderfully written biography about Abe Lincoln that is very accessible to young children. The emphasis on books and the role they played in shaping Abe Lincoln makes for a wonderful and meaningful read. The fact that Abe Lincoln was so absorbed in books as a young boy is a great example to young boys (and girls!) of today. The illustrations are also beautiful, helping to make this book a real winner.

This is a wonderful biography written by Kay Winters about the United States 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. The vocabulary is kid-friendly, especially for children in grades kindergarten through second. In addition, the oil paintings on pastel can really enhance the reader's interest. Most importantly, the emphasis of how Abe Lincoln enjoyed reading, and used it to his advantage is a great encouragement for young readers!

ABE LINCOLN: THE BOY WHO LOVED BOOKS is a delightful biography and a welcome addition to the body of children's books about our 16th President! With colorful, lyrical language, author Kay Winters tells the story of young Abe's boyhood from an important perspective, emphasizing at every turn his love of books, his passion for reading, and his eagerness to learn. Winters' narrative, beautifully supported by Nancy Carpenter's appealing illustrations, describes Abe as a "bookish boy" who practiced writing his letters in the dust, who loved spelling bees and spinning yarns, who carried a book in his back pocket even as he plowed, stopping at the end of each row to read a page. And at the end of the story, we find President Abraham Lincoln sitting by the fire in the White House...reading a book. As the book jacket says:
He loved books.
They changed his life.
He changed the world.
What I value most about this biography is that it gives young readers the opportunity to identify with a hero who is "bookish" and makes the connection between a love of reading and the empowerment of one person to change the world.