Abraham Lincoln Comes Home by Robert Burleigh, Wendell Minor (Illustrator)

From the Publisher

When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, the country grieved for the courageous president who had guided them through the Civil War. Over the course of thirteen somber days, people paid homage as Lincoln’s funeral train made its way from Washington, D.C., to Springfield, Illinois. In moving prose and stunning paintings, a young boy experiences the deep feelings evoked by the death of a major historical figure, during a time of great change in the country.

Children's Literature

Burleigh sets his historic tale at a dramatic, emotional time. Abraham Lincoln has been assassinated, and Luke and his father are riding in a buggy through the night to meet the funeral train as it passes through town. The father and son join the many people who have lit bonfires and are waiting. As the train approaches, torches are lit. Luke feels the ground tremble. He sees tears on his father's cheeks. The train passes. When it is all over, Luke remembers it all as he falls asleep in the buggy on his father's shoulder. Minor's gouache and watercolor, detailed, naturalistic, double-page paintings in muted colors convey the somber emotions of the occasion. The several views of the funeral train's locomotive with its flags and flowers supply an impressive visual continuity as it appears along the route. The portraits of Luke enhance the solemnity. The end pages reproduce the flags that were encountered along the way. There is a map, copious notes, and additional facts, which help put the story into historic context. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz

School Library Journal

Gr 1-4

Following Lincoln's death, his body was taken back to Illinois for burial. Burleigh focuses on one boy's perceptions as he and his father travel through the night by horse-drawn carriage to see the funeral train pass. Full-spread images capture the cool night and the hot bonfires, the solemnity of the locals, and the grandness of the train. Both artist and writer researched the trains, engines, and events surrounding Lincoln's final journey; they use an original image of the paper flags waved at mourning processions for endpapers and offer more information and additional resources on the title-page verso. Minor's gouache watercolors capture the prairie as well as multiple perspectives of the train, while Burleigh's prose is almost poetic: "Past speeches and silence. Past black drapes, heaped roses, archways of green leaves, and the sound of muffled drums." The result is sensuous with sounds, sights, and the emotion of the event. Lincoln is ennobled in this historical picture book.-Janet S. Thompson, Chicago Public Library

Product Details