The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Reiss, Mike

The Boy Who Looked like Lincoln

32 pp. | Price Stern | December, 2003 | Trade ISBN 0-8431-0271-3 $$10.99

(4) K-3 Illustrated by David Catrow. Benjy bears a striking resemblance to Abraham Lincoln--including the beard. But when he vacations at a "camp for kids who look like things," he learns to appreciate his odd appearance. The bizarre story and caricature illustrations are amusing and unsettling (other campers resemble a toaster, a pyramid, and the back end of a horse). The final joke--Benjy's brother looks like Richard Nixon--will go over the heads of most young readers.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta