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FORMAT: 3 CDs, Unabridged NARRATOR: Will Patton
Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the conspirators and the manhunters, CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER is a fast-paced thriller about the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth: a wild twelve-day chase through the streets of Washington, D.C., across the swamps of Maryland, and into the forests of Virginia.
EXCLUSIVE BONUS MATERIAL: Features fascinating facts from this time in history!
Drawn from Swanson's 2007 adult work, Manhunt, this adaptation offers younger audiences a chronological, sometimes graphic play-by-play of Lincoln's assassination and the pursuit of his murderer and cohorts. An ever-increasing cast of characters in the 1865 conspiracy fills the pages, from assassin John Wilkes Booth to the Union sergeant who ended Booth's life in a burning tobacco barn. The narrative, peppered with some editorializing, jumps between Washington, D.C., and Booth's countryside hideouts: "Booth's leg was throbbing painfully. He needed a doctor.... At the Petersen house, Abraham Lincoln would soon have more doctors than he could ever want, but little use for any of them." While Swanson's 14 brief, descriptive chapters tell a riveting story, the myriad details and jumping back and forth can at times feel whipsawing. Still, this smartly designed work, printed in sepia ink and featuring well-integrated news clippings, playbills, portraits, period artwork and other extras, should appeal to students of Lincoln and the Civil War, but also attract newcomers to the subject. Ages 12-up. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Gr 5 Up
This volume is an adaptation of Swanson's Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer (HarperCollins, 2006). Divided into 14 chapters and an epilogue, the sentences are shorter and chapters are condensed from the original but the rich details and suspense are ever present. Lacking are a bibliography and a notes section. Excellent black-and-white illustrations complement the text. Devoted to the South, John Wilkes Booth had planned to kidnap Lincoln and hold him hostage, but when that plan did not materialize, he hatched his assassination plot. Co-conspirators in Washington, Maryland, and Virginia helped him escape and evade capture for 12 days before being surrounded in a barn and killed. Readers will be engrossed by the almost hour-by-hour search and by the many people who encountered the killer as he tried to escape. It is a tale of intrigue and an engrossing mystery. With the approaching bicentennial of Lincoln's birth, this is a most welcome addition to all libraries.-Patricia Ann Owens, Wabash Valley College, Mt. Carmel, IL
HONESTLY-WRITTEN
Posted February 26, 2012
Chasing Lincoln's Killer is a a very good book. Actually one of the best books I have ever read. If i had to say what age group this is for I would say 10 up. If some one were to ask me if i would read another book by this author I would definatly say "YES". Because James L. Swanson is a really good writer. The type of reader that this is for is a person who likes historical and some action. This book is good to read for many reasons like for a book report, just for fun, want to learn, and possibly a book club
5 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.MaryAnnCNY
Posted March 27, 2010
Our 5th grader's teacher was reluctant to allow her to do a report on the Lincoln Assassination stating that there wasn't a lot of material out there at her grade level. Well, this book proved that theory wrong. Our daughter started reading this book and the next thing you know I was sitting there reading it with her.
The book tells the story in a way that the targeted age group can understand and grasp the story. She was engaged and always excited about turning the page to find out what happened next.
Everything from the photos of the actual wanted posters to the real photos of the individuals involved in the assassination truly brought the story to life. Even the effect of the cream-colored pages and the brown-shade added to the photos to give them a dated look added to the overall presentation of the book.
I would highly recommend this book for any student in the 5th to 8th grade range who is interested in this topic. Our daughter was so excited to put the report together and the necessary poster board as well.
And the final result? Grade A! Teacher's comments? "A wow paper and poster!" She also told us that while others were doing their presentations about the Civil War our daughter was able to relate many of the other topics to hers and made the discussions much more lively!
A special thank you to James Swanson for taking the sophisticated writing of his book for adults and convert it into a great read for middle grade students!
I highly recommend this book!
Thank you!
Mary Ann
5 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Posted November 11, 2012
This is an amazingly good read i thought it was going to be a horrible book because my teacher was making me read it. But once i started i just couldnt put it down. Well... until the class ended.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 26, 2012
Chasing Lincol's Killer I personally think that the book was so good that they should make a movie about it if they already haven't. This book is good for any age from 10 up. if some one were to ask me if the book moved I would have to say "Yes" becauseonce you read a good book just like this you aren't going tonot have different feelings from when you first read this. And I get the chance to read another book by this author I would take it.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 23, 2013
I found the book very interesting. I was just amazing! But i have one question...the page numbers on the nook for chasing lincoln's killer is very different then the page numbers on the actual book. Is this a different verson than the one on a regular book? Help would be much appreciated. Thanks!
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 22, 2012
I love this book this book gives great details and important facts. I recomend that everyone reads this book. For a research paper or just for entertainment its a great book for all to read .
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted September 22, 2012
Chasing Lincoln's killer starts out with the assasination of president Lincoln. You follow Booth and Herold from Ford's theatre to Mudd's farm, to captain coxs house, to the jones farm, to the pine thicket all the way to garrets farm to the hanging of the conspiritors. Too bad there are only five stars, I would give it seven stars
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 11, 2011
Chasing Lincoln's Killer
"Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L Swanson, it's the tail of John Wilkes Booth (the man who assassinated President Lincoln). It was one the best books I have ever read. Once I started reading I couldn't put it down. The beginning was ok but once you got to like the second chapter it was awesome. In the end they should have put more detail. It only took me like two days to read it because it was so good. All the detail in the book made the read even better. It's a good read for any 7th grade or up. I sagest that you are into history or you won't like it as much. They describe the way that John Wilkes Booth is feeling I so much detail when he is in pain you can feel the pain. At the end of the book you actually feel sorry because he's trapped in the silo and can't escape because he went through all of that, falling off the stage, dealing with the pain, and staying in the wild for almost a week. Also when they went to kill the vice president all that they had to go through and still didn't kill him. This is why this is one of my favorite books that I have ever read.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 12, 2011
This book taught me so much about Lincoln's killer and I went from knowing nothing to knowing all the details. This story teaches you a lot but is also just a fun, gross, and action-ish book to read for fun. I just couldn't put it down! This is probably for children 9-12.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER is a third-person narrative about the events that happened on that fateful night of April 14, 1865. <BR/><BR/>The story follows John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, through his planning and committing of the murder and then through his flight from Washington, D.C,. to safety in the south. <BR/><BR/>With this book, the reader learns of both Booth's struggles and of the lucky breaks he received in the actual action of killing the beloved President of the United States. The reader also learns of events that took place following the assassination. <BR/><BR/>James Swanson writes an intriguing non-fiction story. In the Note to the Reader, the author states that every event in the book is factual and that all of the quotes are taken from letters, manuscripts, newspapers, and other sources. No quote is produced by the author. <BR/><BR/>For anyone wanting to know the facts about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, this book is exactly what is needed. For teenagers, CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER is more helpful and interesting than anything your history textbook could tell you about James Wilkes Booth and his successful assassination of President Lincoln.
2 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 23, 2013
This book is very good. It included some things that i never even knew. I highly recommend this book fo anyone who is looking for a fast-paced adventure!!:)
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 18, 2013
Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn
1 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.WSofSOA
Posted October 20, 2010
If you love history books than this is a great book for you. I do not like reading very much but reading this book was no problem. To me his book is different from most books about the assaination plot of president Lincoln because it has all of the details that you need to know, like the time that a certain event happened, the dates, real pictures, what actually really happened, and all of the other things that you may want to know about. It has a lot of information that I found out about that I would have never known if I never read this book. This book tells you about all of Booths other plans that he hoped to accomplish like killing the vice president in full detail. Another thing that I really liked about this book is that after Booth shot Lincoln it showed the map of his escape from the theater. I think that the author did a great job with this book in every way.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted May 12, 2013
Chasing Lincoln's Killer is a very helpful and interesting book. By beginning the book with "John Wilkes Booth awoke depressed" and describing Booth as a cold-hearted man who hated the Union soldiers, Booth's character is expressed well. Throughout the book, Booth went to many places to escape his pursuers. Swanson never made any part of the book boring or too wordy. Although the murder of Abraham Lincoln was a gruesome event, the book has no inappropriate parts and can be read by a person of any age. The book covers all parts of the event, including the accomplices in the conspiracy, and all other aspects of the manhunt. Any information needed about the murder was mentioned in this book. One thing a reader may want to know about the book is that it doesn't contain information about the childhood of John Wilkes Booth, and if you're writing about Booth's life in general, this book would only be helpful for the main event that made Booth famous. I used this book as a reference for a paper and I found all information needed to complete the assignment. The author, James L. Swanson, expresses exceptional writing abilities and can easily get a reader hooked on his writing. The book is fairly long, but it was not hard for me to read it, and I never found myself bored while reading this book. By beginning the book with "John Wilkes Booth awoke depressed" and describing Booth as a cold-hearted man who hated the Union soldiers, Booth's character is expressed well. Throughout the book, Booth went to many places to escape his pursuers. Swanson never made any part of the book boring or too wordy. Overall, this book includes valuable information on the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and is enjoyable to read.
Anonymous
Posted April 19, 2013
I love this book at my school were reading this but i have a question y is this book not a free or 3.00 book
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 13, 2013
Why get it for the nook when u have the paperback book?
0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 6, 2013
I read this book in social studies class acutally our teacher read it to us and of couse the boys liked and then it got to the point where u didnt even want to but the book down it was really good si any one is looking fir a good book about lincoln killer read this book
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 30, 2013
I am not kidding this is the best book i have ever read so far. Even over the catchin fire book i really love this it is a must read
0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 5, 2013
Chasing Lincolns Killer is a Very good book
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 29, 2013
Seems good my friend told me to look it up.By the way #13 u spelled "awesome" wrong go look it up!!
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Overview
FORMAT: 3 CDs, Unabridged NARRATOR: Will Patton
Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the conspirators and the manhunters, CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER is a fast-paced thriller about the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth: a wild ...