Biography picture books
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22 Recent Picture Book Biographies of Fascinating People
It's only July and already it's a banner year for picture book biographies and narrative nonfiction centered around famous people. We pulled out recent titles that got our reviewers' attentions and became stars in the first months of 2024. Use the links for the full reviews!
ALEXANDER, Lori. Cactus Queen: Minerva Hoyt Establishes Joshua Tree National Park.illus. by Jenn Ely. Astra/Calkins Creek.
Gr 1-3–A lively picture book biography with tie-ins to Earth Day and Women’s History Month. Highly recommended.
BAUSUM, Ann.The Bard and the Book.illus. by Marta Sevilla. Peachtree.
Gr 5-10–A voluminous book centering the playwright, along with a group of people who saved him from outright oblivion, this is a sharply funny, delightful must-have for every library shelf.
BURNS, Loree Griffin. One Long Line: Marching Caterpillars and the Scientists Who Followed Them.illus. by Jamie Green. MIT Kid
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25 Wonderful Picture Book Biographies for Readers of All Ages
Picture book biographies are one of my favorite genres. They chronicle the life and times of some of the most famous people in the world, including the people behind beloved inventions. They are accessible to all levels of students – even high schoolers! Readers get a broad overview in picture book struktur, and then authors generously include ample back matter for further research and reading.
Take a look through this list of my top 25 favorite picture book biographies. You will find the stories behind the invention of the super soaker, the fascinating life of the first Black ballerina to dance for the American Ballet Theatre, the man behind ramen noodles, and so much more.
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1. TheBrilliant Deep: The Story of Ken Nedimeyer and the Coral Restoration Foundation
By Kate Messner
Get it here!
Environmental scient
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by Carol Hinz, Associate Publisher of Millbrook Press and Carolrhoda Books
I love picture book biographies, both because of the fascinating range of people featured and because of the wide range of approaches authors use in writing them. Would I have known about Isatou Ceesay’s efforts to clean up her community in the Gambia if it weren’t for One Plastic Bag? Would I have had any idea how Cherokee values shaped Mary Golda Ross’s career as an aerospace engineer without Classified? Would I have been aware that a Mexican American teen girl with a passion for woodworking made a gift for President Roosevelt during the Great Depression if not for the forthcoming Piece by Piece?
Picture book bios are a mainstay of children’s nonfiction, but there are a lot of them, which can make it hard to stand out from the crowd. What elements does a picture book bio need to be successful?
A Tight Focus
This may sound obvious, but because of the constraints of the picture book format, author