Genre: Biography

Biography genre

Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, LONG WALK TO FREEDOM, offers a glimpse into the mind of a great leader, admired across the globe for his dedication to the struggles against apartheid in South Africa. Now the youngest readers can discover the remarkable story of Mandela’s long walk from ordinary village boy, to his dynamic leadership of the [...]
Other Descriptors: Africa, Primary (Gr. K-3), South Africa » Themes: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution

When China’s Communist Party detained Ji-li’s father, the 12-year-old was faced with the most difficult choice of her life. She could denounce her father and break with her family, or she could refuse to testify and sacrifice her future in her beloved Communist Party.
Other Descriptors: China, Intermediate (Gr. 4-8) » Themes: » Leave a comment

Zlata’s Diary: A Child’s Life In Sarajevo

When Zlata’s Diary was first published at the height of the Bosnian conflict, it became an international bestseller and was compared to The Diary of Anne Frank, both for the freshness of its voice and the grimness of the world it describes. It begins as the day-today record of the life of a typical eleven-year-old [...]
Other Descriptors: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Young Adult (Gr. 9-12) » Themes: , , , » Leave a comment

Lang Lang: Playing with Flying Keys

HE STARTED LEARNING to play the piano when he was three years old in Shenyang, China. Today he is one of the world’s most outstanding pianists. In this engrossing life story, adapted by Michael French, Lang Lang not only recounts the difficult, often thrilling, events of his early days, but also shares his perspective on [...]
Other Descriptors: China, Intermediate (Gr. 4-8) » Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

Wildly Romantic: The English Romantic Poets: The Mad, the Bad, and the Dangerous

Meet the rebellious young poets who brought about a literary revolution. Rock stars may think they invented sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but the Romantic poets truly created the mold. In the early 1800s, poetry could land a person in jail. Those who tried to change the world through their poems risked notoriety—or courted [...]
Other Descriptors: England (UK), Young Adult (Gr. 9-12) » Themes: , , » Leave a comment

Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates

On an island called Puerto Rico a boy named Roberto Clemente dreamed of nothing but winning at baseball. With no money–but plenty of determination–Clemente practiced on muddy fields with a glove made from a coffee sack. Little League became minor league, which turned into winter league and, finally, he made it to the major leagues! [...]
Other Descriptors: Caribbean, Picture Book, Primary (Gr. K-3), Puerto Rico » Themes: , , , » Leave a comment

Silent Observer

“I was born, like my seven brothers and sisters, in a house atop a hill overlooking lovely Bras d’Or Lake”. So begins Christy MacKinnon’s story of life as a little girl in 19th-century Nova Scotia, Canada. Through wonderful images created with her own words and her watercolors, she tells of a simple, charming life on [...]
Other Descriptors: Canada, Intermediate (Gr. 4-8), Picture Book » Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai, winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize and founder of the Green Belt Movement, grew up in the highlands of Kenya, where fig trees cloaked the hills, fish filled the streams, and the people tended their bountiful gardens. But over many years, as more and more land was cleared, Kenya was transformed. When [...]
Other Descriptors: Kenya, Picture Book, Primary (Gr. K-3) » Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

Secret World of Hildegard

Hildegard von Bingen composed hymns and symphonies, painted glorious pictures, compiled books on medicine, and wrote religious revelations of such ethereal beauty that they inspired the respect of Popes and kings–all in the Dark Ages when most people were illiterate and women were disdained. Now Jonah Winter teams up once again with his mother, [...]
Other Descriptors: Germany, Primary (Gr. K-3) » Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

This is how wars are fought now: by children, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s. Children have become soldiers of choice. In the more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them.What is war like through the eyes of [...]
Other Descriptors: Sierra Leone, Young Adult (Gr. 9-12) » Themes: , , , , , , » 1 Comment
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      Exploring a Sense of Belonging through Literature

      We are excited to announce a special children’s literature mini-conference on Thursday, March 11, 4:00-9:00 p.m. in the Kiva, College of Education, University of Arizona. The conference is free and open to the public and Professional Development Credit is available for teachers.

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