Book Review of The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary

1.     Bibliography

Fleming, Candace. 2005. The Lincolns:  A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary. New York:  Schwartz & Wade Books.  ISBN  0375836187

2.     Plot Summary

The Lincolns:  A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary affords the reader an otherworldly, vivid view into the inner-workings of the lives of Abraham and Mary Lincoln.  The reader is able to truly study the developmental influences of both figures to an exacting degree, which yields an uncanny perceptivity into their adult lives and decisions.  The harsh realities of unmitigated diseases such as typhoid, cholera, and milk sickness, as well as the heightened dangers of childbirth at this time in American history, coupled with the obstructions which hindered educational and economic access, create a period in history that deeply barraged many early Americans with profound hardship and grief.  The Lincolns were no exception.  As they entered the political realm, Abraham carried his hatred for slavery with him, as his law partner William Herndon recalled, “Against this inhumanity his sense of right and justice rebelled.”  Mary shared this intense hatred for slavery, and they were destined to bring America to the state of abolished slavery across the nation.  Indeed, the reader learns that Abraham’s copy of his favorite book Aesop’s Fables was habitually by his side, where he no doubt garnered the wisdom of “the tale of the lion and the four bulls with its moral:  A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand.”  Fleming’s book equally tells the story of two positively brilliant figures in American history who carried the burden of a chasmically factional nation and succeeded in delivering this nation to a state of maturity that would ultimately allow it to begin to truly heal and thrive.

Reading level 8.6,

Interest level 3rd-12^th grades

3.     Critical Analysis

                                   

Fleming’s painstakingly accurate research and writing is evidenced on every page of this finished work; indeed, she includes in her Acknowledgments section that every fact is verified by retired professor Dr. Herbert Lasky, Eastern Illinois University.  Further, Fleming is a respected biographer of other titles, such as Our Eleanor (2005) and Ben Franklin's Almanac (2003).  Her Notes and References for The Lincolns:  A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary are impeccably completed.  Replete with documentable dialogue, Fleming's work succeeds in telling the objective, authentic stories of Abraham and Mary Lincoln's lives and how they intertwined in a love story that was true, complex, and loyal (Vardell 266).

The organization of this masterful work, a traditional scrapbook style, proves very intimate and personal.  Readers will find themselves getting completely engrossed in the reading, unaware of the passing of time.  Fleming’s logical, chronological layout lends an orderly, authoritative manner to the book.  The introduction and chronology of both lives prefaces the biography, and reference aids such as chapters, subheadings, and an index serve the reader well in his or her study of Abraham and Mary Lincoln.  A section in the end pages offers additional print and electronic resources for further study, a beautifully written supplemental explanation regarding the research, and exhaustive notes for all of the references contained in the biography.

Regarding the design of this treasure of a book, Fleming includes “A Note on the Type” to inform the reader that the typeface Old Times American, an old fashioned typeface, is used, which results in an attractive, authentic feel for the text of Fleming’s work.  Moreover, the black and white photos and black print on large, white background is intriguing and rather gives the sense that one is thumbing gingerly through old, original historical documents found in a long-forgotten trunk in an attic from antiquity.  The layout certainly supports and enriches the delivery of the subject matter, and the included maps prove fascinating and richly enhance the overall value of the text.

Fleming states in her section in the end pages that offers additional information about the research process for the book that her five years of researching and writing this biography allowed her to “[feel] the Lincolns begin to take shape for [her].  They began to form in [her] heart and in [her] mind until they were no longer merely historical figures but human beings, solid and concrete.”  With her alchemical, precise, and compassionate writing abilities, Fleming breathtakingly succeeds in transferring this coming to life to the reader of her work.

This biography will powerfully open minds, change lives, and shape decisions of young readers to be more conscientious, steadfast learners, helpers, builders, leaders, and redeemers in their lives and in our world—a must read for all students….

Vardell, Sylvia M. 2019. Children's Literature in Action:  A Librarian's Guide (Third Edition). Santa Barbara:  Libraries Unlimited.

4.     Review Excerpt(s)

Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Excellence in Children's Literature, 2009

Cybils Award, 2008, Finalist, Non-Fiction Middle Grade and Young Adult

Flora Stieglitz Straus Award, 2009

Los Angeles Times Book Prize, 2008, Finalist, Young Adult Literature

Norman A Sugarman Children's Biography Award, 2010, Honor, Children's Biography Award

Orbis Pictus Award, 2009, Honor Book

From Children's Literature:  "This book needs to be a definite addition to any school library."

From Kirkus Reviews:  "The scrapbook technique, used previously in Our Eleanor (2005) and Ben Franklin's Almanac (2003), remains fresh and lively, a great way to provide a huge amount of information in a format that invites both browsing and in-depth study."

5.     Connections

For a history connection, students could also read a biography of Frederick Douglass and/or Russell Freedman’s Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass:  The Story Behind an American Friendship (ISBN  0547385625) and discuss, analyze, and write reflections upon the connections, collaborations, and conflicts between Lincoln and Douglass.

For an additional history connection, students could read and study the Underground Railroad and read a biography of Harriet Tubman, discussing the abolitionist movement in American history and Mary and Abraham’s anti-slavery beliefs and convictions.

For an English connection, students could read, discuss, and write response essays on Walt Whitman’s poem “Oh Captain! My Captain!” and discuss and analyze the profound role of Lincoln upon the history of America.

For a history or social/women's studies lesson, students could discuss and analyze the proposed role of the American housewife as early Americans evolved from lives lived primarily in rural, prairie settlements to more industrialized, mercantile-based communities and how Mary’s life and behavior were scrutinized from this popularized, caricatured perspective.

For an ethics lesson, students could discuss ethics in law practice, as relates to Mary Lincoln’s insanity trial; ethics in journalism (and the evolution of such) could also be discussed as related to the media’s portrayal of the Lincolns and compared/contrasted with other significantly factional periods in American and world history.