Abe's Fish: A Boyhood Tale of Abraham Lincoln

Bryant, J. (2009). Abe's fish: A boyhood tale of Abraham Lincoln (A.J. Bates, illus.). New York: Sterling.

Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Picture Storybook
Age Recommendation: 5-12 years

If your children didn't know who Abraham Lincoln was before reading this book, they will afterwards, and they'll want to know even more about him. Based off of Abraham Lincoln's childhood during the War of 1812, this story is a perfect reflection of the strong character that defined one of America's greatest presidents and how it was molded. The story begins with young Abe going out into the woods with the hopes of helping his father chop some wood, but the axe is too heavy for him to be of any use so he gets sent back home. Dreading the fact that he'll probably have to help his sister pick berries, Abe is reluctant to head back, yet when he gets there his mother instead asks him to go fishing. Abe doesn't hesitate to meet his mother's request and heads to the river where he successfully catches a big fat fish. My favorite part is at this point in the story as he begins to head home: "Abe had one worm left. He rolled it in a damp leaf and, smiling to himself put it in his pocket. A nice surprise for Sarah's pillow tonight." I simply love the boyishness of that line. Continuing on, as Abe is heading down the road home he comes across an American soldier who looks worn and hungry. Abe wrestles with himself, but in the end decides that the soldier probably needs the fish more than him and gives the fish to the man. The soldier graciously thanks him and continues down the road, but just then Abe yells "Hey---wait!...Did you find freedom?" The soldier replies, "I reckon I did see it sometimes...But other times it seemed a long way off." Abe goes home and his family is disappointed that there's no fish, but are certainly proud of his selflessness.

I absolutely loved this book. The watercolor illustrations were stunning, and I loved the fact that the text was always surrounded by a log border, which was so fitting to both the story and the life of Abraham Lincoln. I recommend this book to children ages five to twelve. They'll enjoy the illustrations, yet more importantly they'll learn an important moral lesson within the story. They'll learn about freedom and selflessness, and hopefully their curiosity about Abraham Lincoln will be sparked so that they'll go on to learn more about this great American leader. Teachers and librarians should seek to add this to their collection as it would make a great aid in teaching American history, and parents should add it to their home collection simply because it's such a wonderful book. Overall, this book's a real gem.

Bryant, J. (2009, April 1). Abe's fish: A boyhood tale of Abraham Lincoln [A book review of Abe's fish: A boyhood tale of Abraham Lincoln]. School Library Journal. Retrieved May 6, 2010 from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6648615.html?q=abe%27s+fish.

Bryant has many positive things to say about this book, especially the artwork, saying "Bates's lively watercolors have rich detail, depicting Abe as a boy in a coonskin hat, still too small to lift his father's ax. The full-spread, sepia-toned paintings capture his rustic lifestyle, the Kentucky landscape, and the reactions of Abe's family to his generosity." Whereas Bryant did not describe the plot, he did describe the story as a Good Samaritan story, which is entirely appropriate since that is the very biblical reference which came to young Abe's mind as he pondered giving the fish to the soldier. In addition, Bryant believes the boyishness of Lincoln to be captured well, which I absolutely agree with: "Additional details reveal a boy who can be a prankster, wishes he were taller, and ponders the meaning of words like 'freedom'." Overall, he described the book to be "a worthy addition to the iconic portrait of a man so lauded by history," and I deem this review to be worthy as well.