Lincoln Through the Lens

Lincoln Through the Lens. Martin W. Sandler, Walker Books for Young Readers, 2008.

American political mythology gives John F. Kennedy credit for being the first president to use the power of televised images to sway public opinion. I came away from Lincoln Through the Lens ready to give Abraham Lincoln credit for doing the same with photographic images.

Martin W. Sandler points to Lincoln's deliberately mussed hair in one picture, the country lawyer's way of showing that even in his city clothes, he still knew where his roots were.

Lincoln thought a different photograph had a lot to do with his victory in 1860. In that image he's standing, using his height for added authority. "[Matthew] Brady and the Cooper Union Institute [speech] made me president," he said.

If you're at all into photography, pick up a copy of this book. It's almost as good as having the whole Life Magazine archive to pore over!

Lincoln Through the Lens is a Cybils Middle Grade/YA Non-Fiction finalist.

High School Me!

Visit Tayari Jones' blog to learn why you should post your embarrassing high school photos too!

Please note that I'm not even shying away from the bad pics. This is me turning 17.

Having makeup applied before homecoming sophomore year. (It's one of those skills I never picked up.)

Yes, it was a costume party. I loved that dress, though.Studying while on vacation. Yes, I'm a nerd. Yes, I always was. Better to get these things in the open.Junior prom. And let me tell you, I was so much more comfortable in that than the sweaty girls in their strappy dresses.Graduation day!

More about that picture

I should have read more closely when I linked to Slate's slideshow on Stanley Forman's photo taken during one of the Boston busing confrontations. The slideshow was put together by Louis Masur, and if I'd made it all the way to the author bio (Slate, one of these days we're going to have a talk about your layout) I'd have seen that Masur has just written a book on the image.

Louis Bayard reviews The Soiling of Old Glory for Salon. The rest of Forman's roll of film apparently tells a more nuanced story.

Iconic photos

Slate has a photo-essay around one of Stanley Forman's images from the Boston school integration battles. There's a bit of backstory - how many people win a Pulitzer because they showed up late? - context, and comparison to other famous images.

(I love Google. I've just learned that Forman's third Pulitzer, shared with other staff photographers, was awarded for coverage of the blizzard of 1978. Sounds like the perfect complement to a review of My Latest Grievance.)