Abraham Lincoln: A New Birth of Freedom

Heroes of History #2

by Janet Benge, Geoff Benge

From the flag-draped presidential box, Abraham Lincoln watched the popular comedy on stage at the Ford theater. As he laughed at a funny line---Bang! A single shot rang out from a small derringer, the sound barely audible over the laughter of the crowd. Abe slumped forward, blood running from behind his left ear.

When President Lincoln died the next morning, the United States mourned as it had never mourned before. An assassin had killed the man who had led Americans through the bloody turmoil of the Civil War with an unswerving commitment to rebuilding a strong and united country.

Abe Lincoln had never set his sights on becoming president; after all, he'd grown up in a log cabin on the frontier and had hardly any formal schooling. But as the question of slavery threatened to destroy the United States, this self-taught lawyer with a sharp mind and passion for justice found himself at the center of the greatest debate the nation had ever faced (1809-1865).

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Audiobook

224 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2001

About the author

Janet and Geoff Benge are a husband and wife writing team with twenty years of writing experience. They are best known for the books in the two series Christian Heroes: Then & Now series and Heroes of History. Janet is a former elementary school teacher. Geoff holds a degree in history. Together they have a passion to make history come alive for a new generation. Originally from New Zealand, the Benges make their home in the Orlando, Florida, area.

Reviews

[Daniel Ray]

There are a lot of good gems in this short biography. His upbringing from the age of three, his days as a young man in Illinois, and his days as a lawyer and a politician. And his strong views about slavery resulting in the southern states succession from the union. And, of course, a discussion of the war and his assassination, which instantly made him a beloved president. I especially liked it because we were in DC just 2 weeks ago and saw Ford’s Theater and the room and bed where he died. He is buried in Springfield, Illinois.

[Katie Kaboom]

I read this with Jasper ! It took us a while, because neither of us could really get into it! However, I learned SO much about our former president.
Did y'all know that his children were the first to live in the white house?
And his wife? ICONIC LADY.
Anyway, he was kind of a loser (affectionate) for a good majority of his life. But people LOVED him, so jobs were just handed to him most of the time. Jasper wasn't having it since the last book we read was on Harriet Tubman and she had OPINIONS on that man lol.

[Heidi]

This story is mostly about Abe before his presidency--only the last four chapters are about that. We learned a lot of new things about him. It was a good read.

[Mallory]

This book was a great read on the life of Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President of the United States. I didn't know that his wife, Mary Todd, was so strong-headed and it was her way or the highway. His life had so many struggles and road bumps that came his way. He lost his mother to milk poisoning when he was young, and when he was married he lost two sons to disease.
Abraham Lincoln was a powerful speaker, was firm in his beliefs, and stayed with what he believed in.

[Kathryn Egly]

An amazing book! It shares the life of Abraham Lincoln. You can really feel what life was like for him. So much pain and loss, but many bright spots as well.

It gives us a peak into slavery and why he fought against it! I'm grateful for his tenacity to fight such a challenging and courageous battle.

He was a wise and honorable man! A role model to our children, ourselves and our leaders.

Great book - recommended for high school and older.

[JD']

After reading 3 books on Abraham Lincoln, "The Unknown Lincoln" by Dale Carnegie, "Team of Rivals" by Doris Kearns Goodwin and now "Heroes of History," I have decided for my 56th birthday, to grow out my beard and become the Civil War presidential impersonator being of the same height and weight as Abraham Lincoln.

[TJW]

Interesting to hear of the journey to the presidency. Overcoming many family member passings, no formal education, and moving around quite a bit helped make him a strong, honest, self-educated and eloquent leader.

[Mary Sasala]

Listened to this on tape with my kids on a road trip. Very enjoyable, very accurate introduction to Lincoln and the Civil War Era. Not childish without being overly historical. It has a perfect balance.

[Jasper]

I asked Jasper how he would rate this book out of 5 stars, and he said "tee" (Three).
I think it was very informative, but his home girl Harriett did not much care for Lincoln, so he was very biased.

[Sandi Lee]

What a fascinating man! I new little about Lincoln before reading this book and I am thankful for the sacrifices he made to protect our freedom. During our current political division, it was good to be reminded that such unrest is nothing new.

[Michael Schmid]

Listened to the audio book. Interesting to learn about Lincoln's childhood and years before the Presidency. Would have expected and liked more on Lincoln's faith.

[Erica Schrader]

Loved reading this book as a family. Engaging, interesting, and very informative. We all discovered things we’d never known about President Lincoln.

[Eunice]

Kids all enjoyed it. Funny. Sad. Good overview.

[Kelley]

Read aloud with kids

[Kim]

Another great book written by the Benge. Full of interesting facts of the life Abraham Lincoln.

[Esther Bouchillon]

Loved it!

[Patrick Porras]

Highly engaging and brief overview. I'm excited to introduce my son to this one and the rest of the series.

[Kiley]

4.5stars

Provides many details of Abraham Lincoln’s younger life. I also appreciated that this included some mention of agent Pinkerton.

[Ibtasam Umar]

Courageous Man and I really fascinated with him's quote, "I'm a slow walker not the backward walker".

[Sydney]

Born 1809 in Kentucky. Passed the bar in 1836. Had 4 children by sophisticated wife Mary. Became president in 1861. Died 1865 in DC.

[Andrea Maendel]

This book series has never held a disappointment. Definitely learned so much, and I think my favourite part was discovering the humanness of a great man of history. Lincoln was a man who faced a lot of hardships and struggles, but his greatness of character showed in continuing to get up, move forward, always seeking to better himself, his mind and his circumstances.

[Lindsey]

We found the story interesting and engaging as we learned about Abraham Lincoln from childhood to the end of his life. But it was clunky reading at times.

[Tiffany Dubas]

Good but long

[Friday Otuya]

While reading this book, I empathized with his vision, his passion, his zeal, his determination, and his resolve. Abraham Lincoln represents the saying that 'as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he'. During his first campaign, he proposed free education for all so as give every man a chance to read the Bible; that struck me. If you are committed to something you believe in, you'll achieve it. Just sustain your drive all the way. Great book for all who are interested in making this world a better place.

[Rosalie]

This book is really meant for kids I guess, but the whole series by the Benge's are so interesting and fun to read. They have a series of about 10 Heroes of History Books and 34 Christian Heroes Then and Now. each one is very interesting.In our library, lots of adults check them out.

[September]

I was obsessed with him when I was a child. Another emotional read.
Although I will say I have my suspicions that these books are written for such a purpose, with their sentimental twist.

[Bernadette]

Lincoln research for the grade 11's.

[Solveig]

Another book in our tour of Civil War history...

[Kim Deren]

Another great book by the author!

[Amy]

Didnt' get to finish! I was WAYYY ambitious in my reading goals.... We started listening to this one and were all HOOKED...but decided we needed to finish Guts and Glory first...just ran out of time.