From the monthly archives:
Elie Wiesel, writer, humanitarianPaths to Peace: People Who Changed the World by Jane Breskin Zalben (Dutton, 2006)
Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner 1986 Wiesel is highlighted in this important collective biography about peacemakers.
Read a riviting interview with Wiesel on the Academy of Achievement-A Museum of Living History web site.
Miguel de Cervantes, writerLives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt Harcourt, 1994)
Most famous for his book Don Quixote, Cervantes takes the stage in this collective biography.
The Cervantes Project hosted by Texas A&M University offers bio info, images, bibliographies and more.
Shake, Rattle and Roll: The Founders of Rock & Roll by Holly George-Warren, illustrated by Laura Levine (Houghton Mifflin, 2001)
The ultimate showman, Lewis was raised in Louisiana and started playing the piano at age eight. In 1956 his careet took off.
Lewis’ Official Web site offers additional information. Or visit the Rock and Roll Fall of Fame to read more about this 1986 inductee.
Samuel Adams, politicianA Picture Book of Samuel Adams by David A. Adler, Michael S. Adler, illustrated by Ronald Himler (Holiday House, 2005)
From childhood to the Boston Tea Party to signing the Declaration of Independence, Adams and the 1700s are center stage.
Read up on Adams and others associated with The American Revolution.
Johnny Appleseed aka John Chapman, ecologist Johnny Appleseed by Steven Kellogg (HarperCollins, 1988)
Kellogg blends fact with fiction in this story about an American icon. I love the illustrations—big and lush.
Note: There are many, many books published about Johnny Appleseed. This is one of my favorites.
Read an article about Chapman from Harper’s New Monthly Magazine from 1871 posted on Cornell’s web site.
George Gershwin, composerLives of the Musicians: Good Times, Bad Times (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Harcourt, 1993)
Gershwin wrote Broadway show tunes galore. Thanks, George (and your brother, Ira, too,) for Rhapsody in Blue, Swanee, I Got Rhythm and more.
Visit the Official Web site of George and Ira Gershwin.
Ray Charles, musicianThe Blues Singers: Ten Who Rocked the World by Julius Lester, illustrated by Lisa Cohen (Jump at the Sun/Hyperion, 2001)
What would we do without Georgia On My Mind? In this collective biography of ten greats, Ray Charles soars.
Ray Charles.com highlights the man, the music, the legacy, the movie and more.
