Biography

Chasing King’s Killer: The Hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Assassin by James L. Swanson

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Scholastic

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Summary:  After James Earl Ray assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4, 1968, he was able to elude an international manhunt for more than two months.  James Swanson, author of Chasing Lincoln’s Killer and other books about assassins, tells the stories of Martin Luther King, Jr. and James Earl Ray leading up to the moment their lives intersected.  He then goes on to detail the desperate attempts to save King’s life, and Ray’s escape to Canada and London, where he was finally arrested.  The impact of the assassination on the country and the FBI’s tenacious hunt for the killer (despite J. Edgar Hoover’s hatred of MLK) are also detailed. There are plenty of photos throughout the text and over 100 pages of back matter, including places to visit, timelines, source notes, extensive bibliographies divided by topics, and a very complete index.  384 pages; ages 12 and up.

Pros:  A gripping history (I was almost late for work as I approached the moment of the assassination and didn’t want to put the book down) that is also extremely well documented.  The reading lists are complete enough to use for an entire college class. Even reluctant readers will get caught up in the narrative.

Cons:  This length of the book may be off-putting to some readers, which is unfortunate; with all the photos and back matter, it is really a pretty quick read.

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The Secret Kingdom: Nek Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Claire A. Nivola

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Published by Candlewick

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Summary:  Nek Chand grew up in a tiny village in the Punjab region of Asia, collecting stories from family members and the traveling minstrels who visited during holidays.  Those stories inspired him to create his own world from rocks, sticks, and clay.  As a young man, he was forced to leave his home in 1947 when the Punjab was divided into India and Pakistan, and those who practiced the Hindu religion had to leave Muslim Pakistan.  Nek settled in the city, but longed for his home.  He found a deserted plot of government land and created a secret kingdom from trash that he found along the roads.  He kept his creation hidden for 15 years until government officials discovered it and threatened to tear it down.  When people from the city came to see it, though, they knew it was a work of art worth saving.  They convinced the officials to preserve it, and have continued to do so following Chand’s death in 2015.  Includes an author’s note about Nek Chand and an extensive bibliography.  48 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  A fascinating story of an artist who worked to create his vision without much hope of ever profiting from it or even being able to share it with others.  The beautiful illustrations bring the story to life, including a foldout page with photos of the actual “secret kingdom”.

Cons:  A map of the region and additional historical information about India and Pakistan would have been useful.

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Rising Above: Inspiring Women in Sports by Gregory Zuckerman with Gabriel and Elijah Zuckerman

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Published by Philomel Books

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Summary:  When I reviewed the book Rising Above in 2016, one of my “Cons” was that it only included one woman.  From my lips to the Zuckermans’ ears, apparently, because they’re back with more inspiring sports stories, this time profiling 10 women in 9 chapters (Serena and Venus Williams share).  A variety of sports is included: gymnastics, soccer, basketball, baseball, track, surfing, and mixed martial arts (a sport I was blissfully unaware of until I read this book). The common element in all the stories is the difficulty each athlete had to overcome to reach her full potential.  These include racism (Wilma Rudolph), losing a limb (Bethany Hamilton), an eating disorder (Ronda Rousey), and being one of the only females in a sport (Mo’ne Davis in Little League). An afterword summarizes the personality traits that helped all of these women succeed. Includes an extensive bibliography and an index.  224 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  Based on the heavy circulation of the first book in my libraries, I have no doubt this one will fly off the shelves.  Even non-sports fans like myself can’t help but be inspired by these athletes’ stories.

Cons:  My other “con” for the first book was that there were no pictures, and that remains true for this one.  I had never heard of some of these women, and had to keep going to YouTube for visuals.

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Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes Went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery by Sandra Neil Wallace, illustrated by Bryan Collier

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Published by Simon and Schuster

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Summary:  Growing up in segregated North Carolina, Ernie Barnes wasn’t allowed to go to art museums.  He loved to draw, though, and his mother often took him with her when she worked at a wealthy lawyer’s house so that Ernie could see the paintings hanging on the walls.  In high school, his size caught the attention of the football coach, and he did well enough on the team to earn 26 college scholarships.  After college, he played professionally, but his first love was always art.  In 1964, he quit football to pursue painting full time, eventually winning fame for his portrayal of sports scenes (he was the official artist of the 1984 Olympics) and African Americans that he remembered from his childhood.  Includes an historical note, notes from the author and illustrator, and a substantial list of additional resources.  48 pages; grades 1-5.

Pros:  The large, beautiful illustrations by Bryan Collier pay homage to Ernie Barnes, and include copies of some of his work.  Barnes’s story is an inspiration to follow your dreams.

Cons:  Although a few of Barnes’s works are reproduced with the endnotes, Sugar Shack, one of his most famous that is mentioned several times in the notes, isn’t shown.

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Girl Running: Bobbi Gibb and the Boston Marathon by Annette Bay Pimentel, illustrated by Micha Archer

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Nancy Paulsen Books

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Summary:  Bobbi Gibb had to wear a skirt to school, and she wasn’t allowed to join the track team.  But when she got home, she headed outside to run as much as she liked.  Bobbi grew up near Boston, and after seeing the Boston Marathon one year, she decided to train.  Running in nurses’ shoes (there were no women’s running shoes at the time), she sometimes covered 40 miles in a day; yet her application for the marathon was rejected with a letter saying “women are not physiologically able to run twenty-six miles”.  Undaunted, Bobbi bought herself a baggy sweatshirt and some boys’ running shoes and snuck into the 1966 race.  Other runners cheered her on, as did spectators along the course.  Despite painful blisters from her new shoes, Bobbi crossed the finish line after three hours and twenty minutes, 124th in a field of over 400 racers.  The final page shows Bobbi leading other female runners across a field emblazoned with the names of other women winners of the Boston Marathon.  Includes an afterword and brief bibliography. 32 pages; grades K-4.

Pros:  Readers will be inspired by Bobbi’s hard work and perseverance in challenging the status quo and achieving her goal.  Unique mixed media collage illustrations often include place names to show the routes that Bobbi ran when she trained and in the marathon.

Cons:  A photo or two with the afterword would have been a nice addition.

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Brave Jane Austen: Reader, Writer, Author, Rebel by Lisa Pliscou, illustrated by Jen Corace

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Published by Henry Holt and Co.

Summary:  Jane Austen grew up in England at a time when women received little education, and marriage seemed like the only way to get ahead.  Her family was poor, and when they did manage to send her to school, she learned only what she would need to know to become a good wife.  But Jane was observant and she loved to read.  As she grew older, she began to write about the people she saw around her, poking fun at them and the conventions of the day.  Her first book, First Impressions, was rejected by a London publisher, but she continued writing, even turning down a marriage proposal to live life on her own terms.  Finally, she published Sense and Sensibility, soon followed by First Impressions which was renamed Pride and Prejudice.  She died at age 41 in 1817, the same year two more of her books, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey, were published.  Includes biographical information, Jane Austen quotes, others’ quotes about her work, and sources of additional information.  48 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  Quite a thorough look at Jane and her times, placing her and her work in the context of her era.  The gouache illustrations are charming and bring the time period to life.

Cons:  Most kids won’t have any idea who Jane Austen is or be familiar with her work.

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Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly with Winifred Conkling, illustrated by Laura Freeman

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Published by HarperCollins

Summary:  In case you haven’t read the original book, the young readers’ edition, and/or seen the movie, this picture book tells the story of four women who worked for NASA between 1943 and 2007.  Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden were all good at math.  Very good.  This refrain is repeated throughout the story, as each one is shown overcoming the barriers in place for them at school and later on at NASA.  But they succeeded, and their work helped launch the space program and eventually send men to the moon.  As they looked to their careers after that dream had been fulfilled, “Dorothy, Mary, Katherine, and Christine knew one thing: with hard work, perseverance, and a love of math, anything was possible.”  Includes a timeline, additional biographical information about each woman, a glossary, and an author’s note.  40 pages; grades 1-5.

Pros:  Many kids will recognize these women from the movies.  All are inspiring, and emphasize the importance of hard work and the exciting adventures to be found in STEM careers.  Laura Freeman illustrated Fancy Party Gowns, one of my favorite biographies of last year, and does an excellent job here portraying the four women, NASA, and outer space.

Cons:  The story of Christine Darden (who wasn’t portrayed in the movie) didn’t seem as well integrated to the rest of the book as the other three.

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Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed, illustrated by Stasia Burrington

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by HarperCollins

Summary:  From an early age, Mae Jemison dreamed of becoming an astronaut.  Her mother told her what becomes a repeating refrain in this book: “If you can dream it, if you believe it and work hard for it, anything is possible.”  At school, some kids laughed at her aspiration, and a teacher told her nursing would be a more appropriate profession.  Fortunately, her mother didn’t let her believe this, and Mae promised that one day she would wave to her parents from a spaceship.  The last page shows the adult Mae in her orange space suit and reveals that she did become an astronaut and wave to her mom and dad on Earth.  Includes a page with additional biographical information.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  An inspiring story of following your dream, illustrated with engaging round-faced characters and plenty of color.

Cons:  The biographical information is pretty thin.

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March Forward Girl: From Young Warrior to Little Rock Nine by Melba Beals, illustrated by Frank Morrison

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Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Summary:  Melba Beals, who told her story of helping to integrate Little Rock’s Central High School in Warriors Don’t Cry, recounts her early days, growing up in Jim Crow Arkansas.  At the age of three, she observed her family making the house quiet and dark each night, hoping the Ku Klux Klan would leave them alone.  She raged at seeing her beloved parents and grandmother slighted and scolded whenever they went into town, and at having to use inferior facilities everywhere, while white people got the best of everything.  As she grew up, her fear and anger turned into a determination to change things and to get out of Arkansas.  She jumped at the chance to go to Central High School, a huge, beautiful school that she had admired for years.  The main part of the book ends right before she starts high school; an epilogue describes the violent and frightening experience of integration.  The text is illustrated with drawings and a few photographs.  224 pages; grades 6-9.

Pros:  Readers will gain a better understanding of what it was like for African Americans living in the South in the 1940’s.  Beals’ conversational tone draws the reader in, and her story is so powerful and compelling (and at times, horrifying) that the book is hard to put down.

Cons:  This book is recommended for grade 5 or age 10 and up.  Be aware that there is a scene in which the KKK storms into a prayer meeting, and 5-year-old Melba witnesses a lynching from the church rafters; at age 11, she gets lost on a dark, isolated road and narrowly escapes being raped and/or murdered by a group of Klansmen.

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Be A King: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream and You by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by James Ransome

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Published by Bloomsbury

Summary:  “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve….You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.”  Martin Luther King Jr.’s words speak to children in this book showing how anyone can “be a King.”  Illustrations portraying scenes from King’s life are interspersed with others in a different style showing kids working together to paint an MLK mural.  Ideas for how to be a King include standing for peace, having a dream, and doing your very best at whatever you do.  The last page shows the kids gathered around the mural with the advice, “You can be a King.  Set your sights on the mountaintop.  Climb a little higher every day.”  An author’s note gives biographical information.  40 pages; ages 4-9.

Pros:  I liked how this book connected the sometimes abstract concepts of King’s work and speeches with concrete actions that kids can take to make the world a better place.  This would be an excellent book to use in conjunction with the day of service aspect of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.  There is a lot to look at in the illustrations, with two stories interwoven.

Cons:  Having biographical information on the pages with the pictures of King–even just a sentence or two–would have made this even more useful in helping kids understand his life.

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