Vinnie and Abraham - Hardcover

FitzGerald, Dawn

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1570916586 ISBN 13: 9781570916588

Publisher: Charlesbridge, 2007

Synopsis

Vinnie Ream was a small girl with a giant gift for sculpture. This story chronicles Vinnie's life from her arrival in Washington D.C. at the start of the Civil War through her apprenticeship with a famous sculptor and friendship with Abraham Lincoln. After Lincoln's assassination, Vinnie fights doubt and prejudice for the honor of sculpting the full-size statue of Lincoln that now stands in the Capitol rotunda.

About this title

About the Author

Dawn FitzGerald is a former teacher and the author of several books for children, including GETTING IN THE GAME (Roaring Brook) and JULIA BUTTERFLY HILL: SAVING THE REDWOODS (Millbrook). She lives in Pepper Pike, Ohio.

From School Library Journal

Grade 2–4—Vinnie Ream is best known for her life-size marble statue of Abraham Lincoln, unveiled in 1871 when she was only 23 years old, that stands in the Capitol Rotunda. Little information on this fascinating American sculptor has been available for an elementary audience. FitzGerald does a credible job of filling that gap. She chronicles Ream's life, including her Wisconsin childhood, the family's move to Washington, DC, at the beginning of the Civil War, and her distinction, at the age of 14, of being one of the first women hired by the U.S. Post Office. She covers Ream's apprenticeship to a prominent sculptor and her growing relationships with Congressmen who came to have their statues made, and who eventually persuaded the president to sit for her. FitzGerald puts the controversy surrounding her receipt of the commission for Lincoln's memorial statue in a context understandable by elementary students, avoiding mention of the scandalous allegations made at the time concerning how an inexperienced young woman could sway members of Congress. No mention is made of Ream's possible involvement in affecting the vote during Andrew Johnson's impeachment trial. Stock's watercolors capture the energy and excitement of both the young woman and Civil War Washington, although why the endpapers are festooned with a jumble of flowers is a mystery. An author's note discusses which aspects of the book have been fictionalized and the remainder of the woman's life. While the writing seems rushed at times, this is a good introduction.—Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
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Edition details

• Publisher: Charlesbridge
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 1570916586
• ISBN 13: 9781570916588
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 48
• Illustrator: Stock Catherine