Genre: Biography

Biography genre

Drawing from Memory

By Book Importer | Published: January 18, 2012

Caldecott Medalist Allen Say presents a stunning graphic novel chronicling his journey as an artist during WWII, when he apprenticed under Noro Shinpei, Japan’s premier cartoonist DRAWING FROM MEMORY is Allen Say’s own story of his path to becoming the renowned artist he is today. Shunned by his father, who didn’t understand his son’s artistic [...]

Other Descriptors: Asia, Graphic Novel, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Japan » Themes: , , , » Leave a comment

Dan Eldon: Safari as a Way of Life

By Book Importer | Published: December 12, 2011

Photojournalist Dan Eldon left behind much more than the astonishing illustrated journals that would form The Journey is the Destination when he lost his life at age twenty-two while on assignment in Somalia. He also bequeathed a life story that has inspired students, teachers, artists, and creative activists—as well as a forthcoming film, an apparel [...]

Other Descriptors: Africa, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Kenya, Somalia » Themes: , , » Leave a comment

A Girl Named Faithful Plum

By Book Importer | Published: December 12, 2011

In 1977, when Zhongmei Lei was eleven years old, she learned that the prestigious Beijing Dance Academy was having open auditions. She’d already taken dance lessons, but everyone said a poor country girl would never get into the academy, especially without any connections in the Communist Party of the 1970s. But Zhongmei, whose name means [...]

Other Descriptors: Asia, China, Intermediate (ages 9-14) » Themes: , , , , » Leave a comment

Django: World’s Greatest Jazz Guitarist

By Book Importer | Published: November 7, 2011

Born into a travelling gypsy family, young Django Reinhardt taught himself guitar at an early age. He was soon acclaimed as the “Gypsy Genius” and “Prodigy Boy,” but one day his world changed completely when a fire claimed the use of his fretting hand. Folks said Django would never play again, but with passion and [...]

Other Descriptors: Europe, France, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Picture Book » Themes: , , , , » Leave a comment

Charles Dickens: England’s Most Captivating Storyteller

By Book Importer | Published: November 2, 2011

See the world of Charles Dickens spring to life in his fascinating notebook. Excerpts from his personal letters, guides to his major works, and enthralling facts about his life and times—including Dickens’s own amazing rags-to-riches story—are accompanied by fascinating new illustrations, drawings from the original books, and photographs from the period.

Other Descriptors: England (UK), Intermediate (ages 9-14) » Themes: , » Leave a comment

A Boy Named Beckoning: The True Story of Dr. Carlos Montezuma, Native American Hero

By Book Importer | Published: October 13, 2011

This story reveals the life of a Native American boy named Wassaja, who was kidnapped from his tribe and sold as a slave. Adopted and renamed Carlos Montezuma, the young boy traveled throughout the Old West, bearing witness to the poor treatment of Native Americans. Carlos eventually became a doctor and leader for his people.

Other Descriptors: Intermediate (ages 9-14), Picture Book, United States of America » Themes: , , , , » Leave a comment

The Fabulous Flying Machines of Alberto Santos-Dumont

By Book Importer | Published: September 26, 2011

While the Wright Brothers were gliding over Kitty Hawk, the charming Brazilian Alberto Santos-Dumont was making his own mark on the history of flight.
Alberto loved floating over Paris in his personal flying machine called a dirigible. He would tie it to a post, climb down, and spend the day shopping or meeting friends for coffee. But he [...]

Other Descriptors: Europe, France, Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9) » Themes: , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

J. R. R. Tolkien

By Book Importer | Published: September 7, 2011

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien’s novels were strongly influenced by his childhood both in South Africa, where lions prowled and wild beasts roamed, and in the English countryside, where he imagined that elves and gnomes dwelled. J. R. R. Tolkien wrote many stories, studied languages–even inventing one of his own–and founght bravely in World War I. [...]

Other Descriptors: England (UK), Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9) » Themes: , , » Leave a comment

When I Was Puerto Rican

By Book Importer | Published: September 7, 2011

Esmeralda Santiago’s story begins in rural Puerto Rico, where her childhood was full of both tenderness and domestic strife, tropical sounds and sights as well as poverty. Growing up, she learned the proper way to eat a guava, the sound of tree frogs in the mango groves at night, the taste of the delectable sausage [...]

Other Descriptors: Americas, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Puerto Rico, Young Adult (ages 14-18) » Themes: , , , , , » 1 Comment

Sundiata: Lion King of Mali

By Book Importer | Published: August 15, 2011

The story of Sundiata, who overcame physical handicaps, social disgrace, and strong opposition to rule Mali in the thirteenth century.

Other Descriptors: Africa, Mali, Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9) » Themes: , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment