From the monthly archives:
American Boy: The Adventures of Mark Twain by Don Brown (Houghton Mifflin, 2003)
Brown takes readers on a journey through the childhood and life of the plucky Twain. A fitting introduction to an American legend.
The Hannibal Courier Post looks at the life and works of Samuel Clemens.
Louisa May Alcott, writerLives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Harcourt, 1994)
Based on her own childhood with her three sisters in Concord, Massachusetts, Alcott’s most famous work, Little Women was followed by other classics such as Little Men, Jo’s Boys, and Eight Cousins. Alcott also wrote works for adults.
Visit Orchard House, where Alcott lived when writing Little Women.
Lives of Extraordinary Women: Rulers, Rebels (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Harcourt, 2000)
Chinese Empress Dowager Cixi ruled her country for 47 years. It was said that she loved to read.
Fordham University posts information about the Court Life in China.
Bruce Lee, athleteBe Water, My Friend: The Early Years of Bruce Lee by Ken Mochizuki, illustrated by Dom Lee (Lee & Low Books, 2006)
A master of Kung fu, Chinese American Bruce Lee turned the West on to martial arts.
A photo and article about Lee is posted at Time.com.
Frances H. Burnett, writerLives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Harcourt, 1994)
Burnett, the author of the children’s classic, The Secret Garden, originally illustrated by Tasha Tudor, was nicknamed “Fluffy.” Who knew?
A biography of Burnett is posted on a site of an ardent fan.
Franklin Pierce, U.S. PresidentLives of the Presidents: Fame, Shame (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Harcourt, 1998)
One paragraph about the 14th president who put the first Christmas tree in the White House can be found in this collective biography.
Read Pierce’s Inaugural Address on Friday, March 4, 1853, posted on The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School.
