From the category archives:
Katherine Stinson Otero, High Flyer by Neila Skinner Petrick, illustrated by Daggi Wallace (Pelican, 2006)
High flyer, indeed. Stinson was the fourth woman in the U.S. to earn a pilot’s license and performed throughout the world. But when she was denied permission to fly for the armed services in WWI, she raised money for the effort by flying in exhibitions.
The U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission posts a bio of Stinson on their site.
Artist in Overalls: The Life of Grant Wood by John Duggleby (Chronicle, 1996)
A picture book biography about the man who grew up to paint American Gothic showcases his love of the Heartland and determination to paint his own way.
Going Back to Iowa: The World of Grant Wood looks at Woods’ world and work.
Looking at Lincoln by Maira Kalman (Penguin, 2012)
This picture book biography chronicles the high and low points of Lincoln’s life thru the eyes of a contemporary child narrator.
Much has been written about Lincoln. For Life Facts and links to teacher resources, American Presidents.org is a helpful source.
What to Do About Alice? How Alice Roosevelt Broke the Rules, Charmed the World, and Drove her Father Teddy Crazy! by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham (Scholastic Press, 2008)
Alice Roosevelt had an appetite for life. She had spark. And verve. Because her father was the president of the United States, her enthusiasms were well documented. Thank goodness. Among other things, young readers will love knowing she had a snake named Emily Spinach and that she interrupted her father’s second term swearing in ceremony.
Learn more about Alice Roosevelt at the Theodore Roosevelt Association.
A Wizard from the Start: The Incredible Boyhood & Amazing Inventions of Thomas Edison by Don Brown (Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010)
This daydreamer didn’t sync with school so Edison’s mother taught him at home. He made a lab in the cellar. He was a huge reader. Telegraph lessons led to a job as an operator. He devoted all his time to his inventions and invent hie did—the electric storage battery, motion picture camera, electric light bulb-1,093 patents in all!
At a site hosted by Rutgers, you’ll find The Edison Papers, a collection of over five million pages of documents. Search Edison’s bio, patents, inventions and other related materials.
