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This latest addition
to the growing number of educational graphic novels
provides a superb introduction to Lincoln's presidency
for grade-schoolers. The creators go beyond the title's
scope to create a panorama of the country during the
Civil War. Though Lincoln is their lead, they present
an ensemble cast, including historical figures like
African-American civil rights pioneer Frederick Douglass
and a number of fictional characters caught up in the
era's political and racial divisions. There's Samson,
an escaped slave traveling the Underground Railroad
to freedom; Duff and his father John Alexander, who
find themselves fighting on opposite sides; and Duff's
courageous girlfriend, Mary. The authors link the characters
through the winning device of Lincoln's actual dog Fido.
The book has Fido wandering the country during the war,
trying to find his master, befriending the other characters
along the way. Fido's a pretty normal dog, but occasionally
Turner gives him an amusingly Snoopy-esque thought balloon.
And the artists persuasively convey Lincoln's genuine
goodness without sentimentality. Though the book acknowledges
Lincoln's slowness to take action against slavery, it
clearly shows the strength of his commitment to put
an end to it. Most strikingly, Turner explains that
Lincoln knows he is under continual danger of assassination
and yet he quietly and bravely continues to "do
my job." Tiwari's artwork, clearly based on Herge's
classic Tintin, is simple but conveys an epic grandeur
in its depictions of battle scenes. This book's main
audience may be children, but parents and teachers should
find it touching as well.
Publishers Weekly
The use of the graphic novel format is ideal for
conveying an historical biography in a manner guaranteed
to attract a whole new generation of young readers to the
life story of one of America's greatest presidents, making
"Abraham Lincoln: The Civil War President' an ideal
addition to family, school, and community library American
Biography collections!
Jim Cox, Midwest Book Review
Engagingly written and beautifully produced, this
colorful volume combines serious history with enough
playful action and humor to draw in even the youngest
readers.
Larry Gonick, author of Cartoon History of the
Universe
The Gossamer Books graphic novel
about Abraham Lincoln might look like a comic book, but
it's really a book with lots and lots of pictures. It's a
historical novel, but only in the fact that some of the
characters are there to give the story literary unity.
More importantly, the history is solid and will introduce
readers -- especially younger readers and immigrants ---
to this important period in American history. The book is
as readable as it is easy to look at.
Rich Gotshall, The Indianapolis Star
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