Charles W. Carey, Jr. begins this Journey to Freedom volume on "The Emancipation Proclamation" by confronting the popular misconception that Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves. Of course, technically the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves held by territory under the authority of the Confederacy, while slaves in areas occupied by the Federal forces remained slaves. However, as Carey also points out, Lincoln's proclamation did change the reason of the war from preserving the Union to freeing the slaves. This volume covers how the fighting of the war and the political climate created an opportunity for Lincoln to move the Civil War to a higher plane. Carey also looks at the immediate and long-range effects of the proclamation, which culminated in the passage of the 13th Amendment. This volume is illustrated with historic photographs, engravings and paintings, most of which show African-Americans during the Civil War, not just as slaves but also as soldiers fighting for the Union army. The Journey to Freedom series is part of The African American Library, whose stated goal is to educate and inform children about the achievements and contributions of noted African Americans throughout United States history.

The Gettysburg Address is one of the two most famous speeches in American history, the other being Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream Speech." But Lincoln's speech is the most important oration in our nation's history because before these 271 words were uttered at Gettysburg the United States did not really pay attention to the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and the idea that "all men are created equal." At the dedication of the National Cemetary at Gettysburg Lincoln declared that those who died did so in defense of that proposition. From that point on, all of the advances in civil rights in this country can be tied to the Gettysburg Address. When the nation was founded "men" meant free, adult, white, male, property owners. Consider today what is meant by "men" when we talk about equality in this country and you have an idea of what Lincoln set in motion. Without Lincoln's speech and the Union winning the Civil War, King would never have given his speech.

The only real shortcoming of "Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln: The Story of the Gettysbug Address" by Jean Fritz is that it fails to address the significance of the oration beyond the idea that it was a speech to remember. Fritz focuses on the story, both in general terms of the Civil War and the importance of the Battle of Gettysburg, and the specifics of the occasion for the speech, including the sickness of Lincoln's son Tad and the lengthy oration by Edward Everett. The complete text of the speech is provided at the back of the book, which is a Level 3 All Aboard Reading book aimed at grades 2-3. The illustrations are mostly watercolors by Charles Robinson although there are also some historic photographs of Lincoln and his son. The important thing is that here is a book that tells the story of a great American speech and at least introduces to young students the idea that words can make a difference in the history of a nation.

. . .from an author (Balsiger) whose own "unbiasedness" has been repeatedly called into question -- not only by skeptics, but by fellow Christians as well.

Don't bother.

Frankly I have never understood why there is such a big question about why John Wilkes Booth killed Lincoln. Isn't it obvious? Abraham Lincoln violated eleven constitutional rights and civil liberties over the course of the Civil War, including but not limited to having his troops burn southern crops, forcing families into starvation and attacking citizens on southern streets. If we are so eager to execute people like John Walker Lindh, why not the president of the United States for a much more serious crime than that one Lindh committed? This book is, for the most part, hogwash. The writers present no decent evidence that Booth was part of a larger Confederate/Union conspiracy. As for this David E. George nonsense, the fact that a birth certificate was found among George's posessions in Enid saying that he was born in 1844 should be enough to discount this little theory. The simple fact of the matter is that John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln for crimes against the Constitution, he made good his escape, and was eventually shot by federal troops outside of Bowling Green, Virginia two weeks later. Books such as these portray Booth as a weak-minded, misguided youth. There is no great mystery here.

Some people find a lot of faults with the theories contained in this book. I agree with ever word! Lincoln was basiclly murdered for the same reason Kennedy was- too many greedy politicians and businessman were making money off of two wars 100 years apart,and they didn't want the money flow to end, and when these greedy [people] saw that these two great presidents were going to end these idiotic bloodbaths, they arranged to have them killed; purely and simply! This book, once you read it 2 or 3 times, will horrify you because you will see what a truly great man Lincoln was, and what wonderful things he could have done for this country, very possibly with a third term in the white house;. But as hard as it is to find, try anyway-it's well worth it; it's fascinating reading!