Abraham Lincoln: The Making of America #3

Abraham Lincoln is often taught as a role model to young students, as someone to emulate. But history is often messy, unclear, and often ambiguous, especially for historians studying Lincoln. The question becomes, how do you present such a complicated person to young people, and especially in an educational format? This new book by Teri Kanefield works to do that. Even though Ms. Kanefield is not a historian, she is an excellent writer. She brings to life Abraham Lincoln and the era he grew up in, how his family had to move, and the election of Andrew Jackson and its impact. She writes in a style that is informative and should keep young readers, her target audience, engaged. These type of books are not meant to break new ground or to cover minutiae; they are made to engage young students in late elementary/middle school and help them learn history and not be bored by it. It is a fast read, and your child will be able to learn about this great president. My only problem is with some of the editing. There are occasional digressions exploring larger issues, and they take away from the flow of the book.