Combining history with horror, this creature-slashing thriller casts the 16th president of the United States as supreme vanquisher of the undead. Produced by Tim Burton and directed by Timur Bekmambetov, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (not yet rated) premieres in theaters on June 22, 2012, in traditional and 3D formats. The film is based on Seth Grahame-Smith’s bestselling mashup novel of the same title (Grand Central Publishing, 2010), and the author also penned the screenplay. Benjamin Walker stars as Lincoln, a man equally adept at making soul-stirring speeches, wisely leading a war-torn nation, and brutally wielding a fine-honed ax against all manner of viscous vampires. As a boy, his mother was murdered by just such an abhorrent fiend, an incident that powers his passion to destroy each and every member of this blood-sucking brethren and their human allies-southern slave owners. Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Mary Todd Lincoln; Jimmi Simpson portrays Josh Speed, Lincoln’s friend; and Dominic Cooper takes on the role of Henry Sturges, Lincoln’s enigmatic monster-hunting mentor.
Teens can sample the movie’s mix of historical detail and gruesome and graphic action by checking out a trailer at the 20th Century Fox website. Other videos are available at IMDb’s dedicated page, including a featurette that mixes film footage with commentary from Burton, Bekmambetov, and Grahame-Smith, who make comparisons between the portrayal of the film’s protagonist and classic superhero origin tales.
Book Tie-in
Grand Central Publishing has reissued Grahame-Smith’s novel (2012; Gr 10 Up) with a movie-poster cover, showing Lincoln sitting in repose, his face hidden by his familiar stovepipe hat, clutching a large-size ax in one hand, the whole scene eerily backlit by a luminous full moon. Like the author’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Quirk Bks., 2009), this book cleverly blends the familiar with the ferociously fantastical, but rather than re-imagining a literary work, this time the author takes on history itself. Real-life events, motivations, and achievements are reexamined in light—or dark—of the astounding discovery that Lincoln spent much of his life waging a clandestine war on the undead. The account is filled with lengthy quotes from Lincoln’s secret journal (hidden away for more than a century and recently stumbled upon by Grahame-Smith), which candidly documents his never-ending efforts to slaughter supernatural enemies in thorough and often grizzly detail. Having settled in this country long ago, vampires have maneuvered themselves into positions that afford great power-and easy hunting of human prey—and it does not take long for Lincoln to perceive the connection between the villainous undead and the evil institution of slavery. His personal vendetta expands into a national agenda, as he enters the political arena and embraces his true purpose in life: “…to free men from the tyranny of vampires.” Filled with dark humor and wit, the fast-reading narrative deftly and imaginatively interweaves true facts with gothic underpinnings and slash-’em-up action. Archival photos, expertly altered via Photoshop, add to the effect. The novel is also available as an unabridged CD Audio book.
True Tales for the Curious
Suggest some solid nonfiction titles about Lincoln and his time period to movie fans who are interested in exploring the history behind the horror. Ideal for booktalking, these titles feature eye-grabbing formats and lively recountings, and make great summer reads for teens.
With an eye for highlighting facts both historically relevant and intriguing, Candace Fleming presents The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary (Schwartz & Wade, 2008; Gr 6 Up). The oversize pages pair numerous archival images (photos, paintings, engravings, newspapers, documents, and more) with engagingly written, thoroughly researched text to provide an insightful and intimate portrayal of the couple. Enticing subheadings make browsing a breeze, and readers can pause over such topics as “Growing Up with Slavery” (Abraham was “raised in a household that despised” the institution while Mary’s father was a slaveholder), newlywed Mary’s life as a hardworking housewife (including her recipe for white cake), her wartime efforts to aid “contraband” (former slaves who flocked to Washington, D.C., and were living in appalling conditions), the origins of Lincoln’s beard, and the contents found in his pockets on that fateful day.
Written by Barry Denenberg and illustrated by Christopher Bing, Lincoln Shot: A President’s Life Remembered (Feiwel and Friends, 2008; Gr 6 Up) is another oversize visual stunner. Presented as a special memorial edition of “The National News” published one year after the assassination, the book is designed to look like a 19th-century tabloid, complete with headlines, reproductions of archival photos and documents, maps, and period advertisements, all set against a water-stained buff-colored backdrop. “Articles” about the president’s death and the fate of his assassins are followed by a chronological look at his life and career. Drawn in by the book’s handsome layout and riveting images, readers will discover an account both well-written and interesting.
Filled with evocatively described events, interesting details, and unrelenting suspense, James. L. Swanson’s Chasing Lincoln’s Killer (Scholastic, 2009; Gr 6 Up) offers an absorbing recounting of the president’s assassination and the ensuing 12-day manhunt for John Wilkes Booth and his co-conspirators. The story unfolds at breakneck speed, and a you-are-there sense of time and place is created through the numerous quotes incorporated into the text from prim
ary materials including letters, manuscripts, newspapers, and other sources (there are no citations). Archival photos and documents appear throughout, and reproductions of engravings originally showcased in contemporary periodicals provide dramatic images of the events and the way they were perceived at the time. This engrossing true-crime tale will keep readers on the edge of their seats. The book is also available in unabridged audio CD format. Teens may also be interested in Swanson’s Bloody Times: The Funeral of Abraham Lincoln and the Manhunt for Jefferson Davis (Collins, 2011).
Rick Geary’s nonfiction graphic novel vividly describes The Murder of Abraham Lincoln (NBM, 2005; Gr 7 Up) through a striking combination of succinct narrative and clean-lined black-and-white drawings. Well-organized chapters chronicle a 62-day period, beginning on March 4, 1865, with Lincoln’s second inaugural address, spanning the assassination and aftermath, and culminating with his burial in Illinois’s Oak Ridge Cemetery on May 4. The details and images are memorable, including Lincoln’s dream about his own death, the single-shot derringer pocketed by Booth, the removal of the president’s brain during an autopsy (the dislodged bullet clatters into a basin), and the initials carved into Booth’s right hand as a child that helped to positively identify his body. The present-tense retelling builds the drama, as does the shifting perspectives of the artwork-a close-up of the assassin’s eye as he peeks through a hole at his soon-to-be victim, or a view from above of the mortally injured president laid diagonally across a bed at the Petersen boarding house. Harrowing, packed with facts, and impossible to put down, this book makes an accessible introduction to history.
Publication Information
GRAHAME-SMITH, Seth. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Movie Tie-in ed. Grand Central. 2012. Tr pap. $14.99. ISBN 978-1-4555-1017-7; Mass mrkt. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-1-4555-1018-4; CD Audio version. $17.98. ISBN 9781611132151 (Hachette Audio).
FLEMING, Candace. The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary. Schwartz & Wade. 2008. PLB 28.99. ISBN 978-0-375-93618-0; Tr $24.99. ISBN 978-0-375-83618-3.
DENENBERG, Barry. Lincoln Shot: A President’s Life Remembered. illus. by Christopher Bing. Feiwel and Friends. 2008. Tr $24.95. ISBN 978-0-312-37013-8; pap. $12.99. ISBN 9780312604424.
SWANSON, James. L. Chasing Lincoln’s Killer. Scholastic. 2009. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0439-90354-7. Audio version. $29.95. ISBN 978-0545118132.
_____. Bloody Times: The Funeral of Abraham Lincoln and the Manhunt for Jefferson Davis. Collins. 2011. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-06-156089-7.
GEARY, Rick. The Murder of Abraham Lincoln. illus. by author. NBM. 2005. Tr $15.95. ISBN 978-1-56163-425-5; pap. $9.95. ISBN 978-1-56163-426-2.
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About Joy Fleishhacker
