Wonderful basic intro to characters of the Civil War era. President Lincoln cannot find his hat anywhere, and his friends aren't available to help look for it. They are all busy with their own activities - nursing wounded soldiers, giving lectures, etc. But when he finally tracks his hat down, he makes it to Pennsylvania to speak at Gettysburg. Each two-page spread features a different historical figure, including: Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton, Sojourner Truth, Ulysses S. Grant, Thaddeus Stevens, and William Seward. On the pages with Grant we also see Robert E. Lee. There are brief biographies of all the characters as well as a timeline of major events from 1845-1881 in the back of the book.
The illustrations show iconic features of the characters - Douglass writing a book, Sojourner Truth's shawl around her shoulders, Grant's uniform and horse, and Tubman with her lantern leading slaves to freedom. Between the images and the brief text for each spread, the book is a quick and easy read - perfect to introduce the historical period, or read just for fun.
I love this book as much as the Ben Franklin title from the series. Everything from the illustrations, to the choice of characters to include, to the back matter makes them great for young history buffs, clever introductions to topics and historical figures in the classroom, and even as mentor texts for students to create their own biographical board books.
I read an e-book provided by the publisher through NetGalley.
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