Flashback Four: The Lincoln Project

Gr 3–5—Four modern-day Boston tweens each receive a mysterious yellow envelope promising them "a very special, once-in-a-lifetime experience": the chance to time travel to 1863 and photograph President Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address. Things don't go quite as smoothly as planned, however, and the four find themselves knee-deep in an adventure wilder than they could have imagined. Fiction featuring Abraham Lincoln will always grab readers, and this middle grade entry into the genre should be no different; the protagonists meet Honest Abe, his firecracker son Tad, and even the infamous John Wilkes Booth. Gutman offers solid middle grade historical fiction with a briskly moving, if at times slightly rushed, story that leaves readers ready for a sequel. Non-genre fans will enjoy both its silly sci-fi flourishes and the fish-out-water humor of having 21st-century tween protagonists navigate Gettysburg's stinky 19th-century streets. Add in Gutman's broad fan base, and this will be a high-demand title. In addition, Gutman does a commendable job of at least somewhat incorporating the issues of slavery and the equality of all people at the root of the Civil War into his story, and his inclusion of a black protagonist gives the narrative additional resonance.