Abe's Fish: A Boyhood Tale of Abraham Lincoln - Hardcover

Inspired by four lines in an early biography about Lincoln, Bryant frames one day’s incident from a young boy’s perspective. When his mom sends him fishing as a respite from picking berries with his sister, Abe hooks a perch and can almost smell it cooking over the fire when he encounters a weary, shabby soldier. Remembering his mom’s words about being good to soldiers, Abe offers the man his fish. Dinner that night is the same old turnips and berries, but Abe’s fascination with words has grown by the soldier’s use of the word “freedom,” a word Abe correlates with his remembrance of caging a cricket. The last page reads: “Someday, Abe thought, it might be a good word to know.” A roughly hewn style using pencil and watercolor illustrations provides just the right rustic feeling and visual perspective, while blocks of text boxed with wooden sticks echo the setting. A doff of top hat to a stellar presentation that lends context to the significance of principle in a famous man’s life. Grades 2-4. --Julie Cummins

President Lincoln was once asked what he remembered about the War of 1812 and answered that what he recalled was having fished all day, catching a small fish and then giving it away to a hungry soldier returning home from the war. From this small anecdote, Bryant (River of Words) paints a picture of a boy who, while interested in playing pranks on his older sister, spends time considering the meaning of freedom and teaching himself to spell; he's a little too good to be likable. Bates (Hillary Rodham Clinton: Dreams Taking Flight) humanizes Abe somewhat, giving him the occasionally puckish expression and letting him look petulant when dealing with his sister. The unusually tall format emphasizes Abe's stature, the moral dimension of which comes across clearly. Back-matter includes information on Lincoln's childhood, frontier childhood in general and the Lincoln presidency. Ages 4–up. (Feb.)
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