Who Was Marie Curie? by Megan Stine

Who Was Marie Curie? by Megan Stine, 106 pages

I did not know much about Madame Curie before I read this book, but this book covered every detail of her life.  From when she was growing up at home in Poland to when she studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, Marie was always the smartest in her class.  Not only was she smart in science, but also in math.  She was a brilliant scientist who married Pierre Curie, a fellow scientist.  They both worked together and worked very hard to discover radium.  Marie Curie went on to win two Nobel Prizes.  But unfortunately, the radium had made her very sick and she died at the age of 66.

Who Was Jane Austen? by Sarah Fabiny

Who Was Jane Austen? by Sarah Fabiny, 107 pages

The Who Was series of books are biographies written for children.  But, actually they are just as informative for adults as they are for children.  I have never read any of Jane Austen's novels but this book about her life makes me want to put them high on my reading list.  It was hard for a young woman in the late 1700s to get an education let alone any kind of career.  Someone bought the rights to her first novel but never published it.  Her first novel was not published until after her death.  Jane did go on to get her books published and Emma became one of her most famous novels.

Library on Wheels by Sharlee Glenn

Library on Wheels by Sharlee Glenn, 51 pages

This was such an inspiring story about Mary Lemist Titcomb who started the first bookmobile, even before there were motorized cars.  Mary was sent to school at the time when most women studied to become nurses or teachers.  After she finished her higher education she went on to try and become a librarian after starting out as an apprentice.  She worked her way up to head of a library.  She began to wonder how she could get more books out in the hands of farmers who lived quite a distance from the library.  Therefore, she came up with the idea of the first book mobile.  I was surprised to learn how many miles the bookmobile covered and that each family was allowed to check out thirty books.  This was a very fascinating read for all ages.

Who is Ralph Lauren? By Jan O'Connor

Who is Ralph Lauren?  By Jan O'Connor, 107 pages

This was a fascinating children's book on the life of Ralph Lauren. Ralph Lauren was the child of Jewish immigrants. He grew up fascinated with the movies and high style. Ralph began his career designing ties and then worked his way up to designing stylish clothes.  He went on to become a world famous fashion designer who designs the United States Olympians opening and closing ceremony wardrobes.

Who Was Milton Bradley? by Kirsten Anderson

Who Was Milton Bradley? by Kirsten Anderson, 117 pages

I love these Who Was...? biographies.  Although, they are written for kids, these books are great reads for adults too.

Milton Bradley was a young man born in 1836 from Maine who moved to Massachusetts to find more lucrative work.  Milton was a brilliant inventor and printer.  He is considered the father of modern board games.  Not only did he invent the Checkered Game of Life which later became known as the Game of Life in the 1960s, he also developed a lot of educational products. He developed educational toys for kindergartners and also created game packages to entertain the troops. Milton Bradley was truly a creative man!

Who Was Rosa Parks? by Yona Zeldis McDonough

Who Was Rosa Parks? by Yona Zeldis McDonough, 106 pages

This was a fascinating account of Rosa Parks life.  Many of the facts in this book I was not aware of.  For instance, in Montgomery Alabama in the 1940s, there were fifty-thousand African Americans but only thirty-one of them were registered to vote. Rosa fought hard for her right to vote.  She had to take a test only given to black people and in Alabama, you had to pay a poll tax of $1.50 a year to vote which was alot back then. Rosa was a heroine.  By refusing to give up her bus seat, she played an important part in the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Who Is Bill Gates? by Patricia Brennan Demuth

Who Is Bill Gates? by Patricia Brennan Demuth, 105 pages

I did not know much about Bill Gates before I read this book.  Of course, I knew he created windows and was behind Microsoft. But, I had no idea he dropped out of Harvard.  He did, however, eventually receive an honorary degree from Harvard in 2007. Nowadays, Bill and his wife Melinda spend their time running their foundation to fight poverty and polio worldwide.

Who Was Paul Revere? by Roberta Edwards

Who Was Paul Revere? by Roberta Edwards, 105 pages

What I really like about this series the Who Was? and Who Is? books is that not only do you find out more about the person your reading about, but you learn about the period of history they went through.  This was especially true with this book.  I had always wondered how Paul Revere became famous for the phrase "The British are coming, the British are coming."  But, Paul Revere also did so much more with his life.  And, maybe the least known fact of all was that Paul Revere's ride became so famous because Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote a poem about it.

Who Was Pablo Picasso? by True Kelley

Who Was Pablo Picaso?  by True Kelley, 105 pages

If you are interested in Pablo Picaso or modern art, you may want to read this book.  This book illustrates Pablo's professional as well as personal life.  Pablo had a very fascinating life.  He created over fifty thousand pieces of art!  He was creating works of art up until the time of his death at age ninety-one.  Pablo had many children, grandchildren, and many woman in his life. His art changed with the world.  The book also includes many black and white pictures of his art. This was a great book!

Who Was Dr. Seuss? by Janet Pascal

Who Was Dr. Seuss? by Janet B. Pascal, 103 pages

Who Was Dr. Seuss? was another very informative and interesting read on how Dr. Seuss became the wonderful author he is. It is interesting to note that while at Dartmouth College, he was voted least likely to succeed.  This book lets us know how he was inspired to wrote certain stories. The cat in The Hat was written using first grade sight words, and the book Green Eggs and Ham was written using only 50 words. This book is a must read for all Dr. Seuss fans!

Who Was Walt Disney? by Whitney Stewart

Who Was Walt Disney?  by Whitney Stewart, 106 pages

Who Was Walt Disney? is a very good book for children as well as adults if they are a fan of anything Disney.  This was a very interesting read about Walt's life. It includes the history of Disney films, Disneyland, Disney World and Epcot, as well as Walt's personal life.  I especially liked the timeline in the back of the book.

Bull's-Eye: A Photography of Annie Oakley by Sue Macy

Bull's-Eye: A Photography of Annie Oakley by Sue Macy, 64 pages

Bull's-Eye was a fascinating biography about the life of Annie Oakley. I became interested in Annie Oakley when I visited Bass Pro Shop in Springfield, Missouri and saw a display of her shooting skills. Annie Oakley led a fascinating life.  She grew up in Ohio shooting game to provide food and money for her family after her father had died.  She grew up in poverty and was sent at a young age to live elsewhere at which time she experienced horrible abuse.  At her first shooting match when she was a teenager, she met her husband Frank Butler. He was about ten years older than her at the time, but she won the competition. Annie and Frank continued to compete and perform their show.  In 1885, they joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show run by "Buffalo Bill" Cody.  They would travel with the show around the world for the next seventeen years.  Annie Oakley is a fascinating and admirable lady who was a great part of American history.

Anne Frank Her Life in Words and Pictures by: Anne Frank

Anne Frank, Her Life in Words and Pictures 215pgs
This is a great little book that gives a brief look into the who, what, when, where and why of the popular Miss Anne Frank.  With pictures to go along with the story line one gets a good look at the life of one child and those around her during the turbulent years before and during the war.