I am always looking for new ways to introduce our kids to concepts of history and science -- not just the facts, mind you, but the context as well.

What Lincoln Said -- written by Sarah L. Thomson, illustrated by James E. Ransome -- does precisely that. Taking some basic facts about the 16th president's life, Thomson weaves quotes attributed to him -- typically, one quotation per each two-page spread -- to provide some notion of his thoughts at each major milestone.

The book begins in Lincoln's youth, one the day he earned his first dollar rowing a couple of passengers out to a steamboat, and carries him through his work as a lawyer, his entry into politics and the turbulent Civil War years. The book ends, not with his death, but with his signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, which Lincoln believed would be the reason he might be remembered. "If ever my name goes into history, it will be for this act," he said, "and my whole soul is in it."

It's a fast read, and Ransome's colorful, caricature-like illustrations kept my children's eyes on the pages. What Lincoln Said is a nice way to introduce young kids to Lincoln, the Civil War and the struggle surrounding slavery in the U.S.