Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind and American Friendship by Russell Freedman
Copyright June 2012
Which readers? 4th and up
Though one was born a slave and one was born the son of a poor white farmer, Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass had many things in common. They both had to fight for their educations, they read many of the same books, and they both had to struggle with setbacks while becoming leaders in the fight to abolish slavery. When they finally meet, they become not only allies in the fight to free the slaves, but they also become true friends. There are a few pleasant surprise events at the conclusion of this book that make the ending very satisfying.
Russell Freedman is a prolific and much awarded author of non-fiction for children. I read my first Freedman book, Lincoln: A Photobiography, in my first children's literature class in college in 1996, and I have been a fan ever since. His books are so thoroughly researched, but his strong narrative skills keep the older elementary crowd engaged. I was a bit wary going into this one since it seems to retread his earlier Lincoln book, but it is a shorter volume that just takes a close look at this relationship. Young readers will be drawn in by the story of Douglass's determination to free himself and the excitement of his harrowing escape. There are also great opportunities for classroom discussion of debate and interpersonal skills as Douglass struggles with his mixed feelings about Lincoln as a friend vs. Lincoln's pace at freeing the slaves. As with all Freedman books, this one contains many pictures, artwork from the time period, excellent access features, an author's note, and bibliography. This looks like a longer book than it actually is. It has very wide margins and big pictures.
First Mothers by Beverly Gherman and Julie Downing
Copyright September 2012
Which readers? Strong second grade readers+. Interest level through sixth+.
This book gives short 1-2 page biographies of each presidential mother. Gherman just hits the highlights here with the basic info and high interest facts. Downing's illustrations include engaging portraits, cartoon panels, and short entries of biographical information on items of interest in the margins (such as, Virginia Clinton Kelley's info seems to be printed on a page of her diary).
This book gets very mixed reviews on Goodreads. Apparently one of the death dates is wrong, and people complain that George Washington's mother is treated with disrespect. Maybe so. But I think kids will LOVE it. The facts are very interesting, and it reads quickly. Gerald Ford's mother sat in the same church pew for years, and she died there one Sunday while waiting for the service to begin. George H. W. Bush's mother hit a home run in a softball game when she was nine months pregnant. This is not an exhaustive tome that will be of great use for a middle school research project. But I think kids will like it, and I think they will read it by choice.
White House Kids by Joe Rhatigan
Copyright July 2012
Which readers? Third grade +
This book is divided into four chapter such as "The First White House Kids" and "The Best Playground Available" and also includes appendices about what happened when the kids grew up and information about the presidents and first ladies. The pages are very colorful and have lots of insets, sidebars, photos, graphics, lists, etc. The layout and design of this book remind me of the VERY popular Guinness Book of World Records. The facts given are high interest, and I think kids will enjoy this title. And, it includes lots of little tidbits about one of my favorites, Alice Roosevelt, of What to Do About Alice fame.
Presidential Pets by Julia Moberg
Copyright July 2012
Which readers? Second grade +
This book once again goes through each president, as First Mothers did, and gives information about the pets and the presidents. The subtitle on the cover is "The weird, wacky, little, big, scary, strange animals that have lived in the White House," and there is quite a cast of characters to be discussed here. There are alligators (more than one president had alligators!), silkworms, elephants, and many more. The layout of each page is the same: poem, list of presidential stats, interesting facts, and accomplishments of the presidents. Except for the poems, everything is in bulleted lists. The illustrations are very cartoonish, and do not appeal to me personally. Some things are presented as facts, and then when I read further I find that these are more rumor than documented occurances. That being said, I think kids would like it, and I would purchase it for an elementary library.
The House that George Built by Suzanne Slade
Copyright July 2012
Which readers? Preschool+
This picture book tells the story of George Washington building The President's House, which was later renamed The White House by Theodore Roosevelt in 1901. It alternates between lines of poetry that are a spin-off on the The House that Jack Built nursery rhyme, and short narrative paragraphs. All of this could be read for older children, or just the poetry could be read for preschoolers. The book does mention that some of the work was done by slaves whose masters were paid for their work, which I think is always important to acknowledge when discussing The White House with children. We don't have to dwell on it, but it should be part of the discussion. The water color illustrations in this book are brightly colored and detailed.
An old favorite...
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary by Candace Fleming
Copyright October 2008
Which readers? 4th grade+
This is an absolute favorite of mine. I don't think it quite gained the popularity that it could have. The information is in the format of a scrapbook. It includes newspaper clippings, photos, their letters, and pictures and drawings, as a scrapbook would. I found it compelling and a great read.
She also did a scrapbook about Eleanor Roosevelt which is equally wonderful. I would say that it is more of a young adult title because it covers her bisexuality and the high likelihood of their open marriage.
(And as an aside....Candace Fleming is one of those fun, unpredictable children's authors that I love to watch. You never know what she will come out with next. She has these two great scrapbook NF titles, and then she has picture books, series fiction for middle grades, historical pictures books, other award winning NF, and more. Her picture book fairy tale Clever Jack Takes the Cake was one of my favorites on the Bluebonnet list last year. Her new picture book, Oh No!, can be sung along to the tune of 'Frog went a'courtin.' I am fascinated with anyone who is this broad and unpredictable.)
And on a personal note....
Presidential books are of particular interest to me because my youngest child has had an obsession with presidents - particularly the presidents on Mount Rushmore - for several years. It started when I read him Adler's George Washington biography when he was four.
He was off and running, and he just could not devour enough information about these presidents. We went through about a three month phase where he would ask me with exasperation every day at preschool pick-up, "Is TODAY the day we can go to Mt. Vernon???"
There are lots of presidential books at this level, and I think we read all of them between the library, ordering on Amazon, interlibrary loan, and Half-Price Books. I will just share my very favorite here.
We have read this book at least two hundred times! This little early reader tells about what a curious seeker for knowledge TJ was, and then it tells the story of his trip to France where he made so many discoveries such as ice cream, macaroni and cheese, and the fact that tomatoes will not kill you. They called the tomatoes "love apples" in France, and it is not revealed until the end of the book that "love apples" are tomatoes. Henry loves this book so much, and he still calls tomatoes "love apples" and laughs when we are at the grocery store. Such sweet memories.
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