The Groundbreaking, Chance-Taking Life of George Washington Carver and Science and Invention in America

The Groundbreaking, Chance-Taking Life of George Washington Carver and Science and Invention in America

Written and Illustrated by: Cheryl Harness

"Harness presents Carver as a man who, regardless of constant hardship and racial prejudice, persevered to become a beloved teacher and devoted scientist. From the beginning, she puts his life in historical context by looking at the effects of racism on his career choices and by talking about the achievements and beliefs of his contemporaries, many of whom he knew. The author raises challenging questions throughout, especially when she discusses debates over whether Carver was truly a great scientist or more a public thinker who promoted science to help better understand the world. The lively prose style conveys his sense of passion and adventure about the man and his intellectual pursuits, and the simple black-and-white drawings add a further sense of drama. This is not just a good choice for biography assignments; it's also a strong recommendation for a nonfiction read-aloud and as a way to interest fiction readers in biography."

School Library Journal Review

Online Resources:
http://people.pppst.com/george-washington-carver.html

The Race for Space: The United States and the Soviet Union Compete for the New Frontier

The Race for Space: The United States and the Soviet Union Compete for the New Frontier

Written by: Betsy Kuhn

"When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik in 1957, America was set on a new trajectory that led to Apollo 11 astronauts walking on the Moon, an emphasis on science in schools, and a fascination with space. This book discusses and shows with clear photographs this period in US history."

Notable Trade Books for Social Studies

Online Resources:
http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/

Viktor Frankl: A Life Worth Living

Viktor Frankl: A Life Worth Living

Written by: Anna S. Redsand

"With clarity and insight, the author relates the life of Viktor Frankl, a pioneer in psychotherapy and a Holocaust survivor—who looked to the future regardless of the horrors of the present. Author’s Note and Sources,Bibliography, Index, Further Reading."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/frankl.html
http://www.logotherapyinstitute.org/life-and-works.html

Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium

Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium

Written by: Carla Killough McClafferty

"Marie Curie's story has fascinated and inspired young readers for decades. The poor Polish girl who worked eight years to save for tuition at the Sorbonne in Paris became one of the most important scientists of her day, winning not one but two Nobel Prizes. Her life is a fascinating one, filled with hard work, humanitarianism, and tragedy. Her work with her husband, Pierre (the study of radioactivity and the discovery of the elements radium and polonium) changed science forever. But she is less well known for her selfless efforts during World War I to establish mobile X-ray units so that wounded French soldiers could get better care faster.

When she stood to profit greatly from her scientific work, she chose not to, making her methods and findings known and available to all of science. As a result, this famous woman spent most of her life in need of money, often to buy the very elements she discovered. In this new biography, Marie Curie's life and work are given a fresh telling, one that also explores the larger picture of the effects of radium in world culture, and its exploitation and sad misuse."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/articles/curie/

Of Numbers and Stars: The Story of Hypatia

Of Numbers and Stars: The Story of Hypatia

Written by: D. Anne Love
Illustrated by: Pam Paparone

"The daughter of mathematician Theon, Hypatia grew up on the northern tip of Egypt in the great city of Alexandria in the 4th century A.D. Unlike most girls of her time, Hypatia learned to read and write, and as she grew older was tutored in mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy. In time, word spread of her brilliance and scholars from all over the world came to her seeking her advice and opinions in these subjects. Records of her fame as a teacher can be found in the writings of Socrates. One of her most famous students, Synesius, developed the astrolabe under her direction."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://www.agnesscott.edu/lriddle/women/hypatia.htm
http://www.philosophyslam.org/10_21.html

John Muir: America's First Environmentalist

John Muir: America's First Environmentalist

Written by: Kathryn Lasky
Illustrated by: Stan Fellows

"Wilderness adventure is an essential part of this big, handsome picture-book biography of a pioneer environmentalist who was entranced by storms as much as by the small things in the wild places he cherished. Lasky's clear prose quotes liberally from diary entries Muir recorded as he walked from Wisconsin to the Gulf Coast of Florida in 1867, tracked glaciers in Alaska in 1870, and later served as guide to the famous, including President Theodore Roosevelt, who founded Yosemite National Park. True to Muir's vision, Fellows' spacious double-page watercolors show the beauty of the wide landscapes in storm and sunshine as well as the tiny details in a single meadow. Back matter includes a bibliography of Muir's quotes and a note about the work of the Sierra Club, which Muir founded in 1892. A good starting place for science and biography projects."

Booklist Review

Online Resources:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/secretary/kids/pioneers/muir.htm
http://www.notablebiographies.com/Mo-Ni/Muir-John.html

Antoni Van Leeuwenhoek: First to See Microscopic Life

Antoni Van Leeuwenhoek: First to See Microscopic Life

Written by: Lisa Yount

"This straightforward biography presents the life and achievements of the scientist who helped revolutionize the study of microscopic life. Leeuwenhoek was a fascinating man, however, and his unique path to scientific fame emerges to make this a lively read. He was a cloth merchant early in life, but his natural curiosity led him to make his own microscopes and begin his investigations. He lacked formal scientific training, so his own words about his work are very accessible and often amusing. His experiments also had a very human, personal element, as shown in the disgust he revealed when observing lice multiply on his leg over several days. The black-and-white illustrations include some of Leeuwenhoek's own work."

School Library Journal Review

Online Resources:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/redgold/innovators/bio_leeuwenhoek.html
http://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Anton_van_Leeuwenhoek

Einstein: Visionary Scientist

Einstein: Visionary Scientist

Written by: John Severance

"Chronicling the life of one of science's greatest minds, this book follows Einstein's life from his birth in Germany through his childhood in Austria to his death at Princeton. In an inviting, easy-to-read format, the text covers not only the scientist's professional career, but also includes a substantial amount of information on his personal life. Einstein is depicted as a brilliant man often frustrated and distracted by the people and events around him.

The well-chosen, black-and-white photographs complement the printed matter, as do the numerous reminiscences and quotes from Einstein's friends and family. Severance does a superb job of relating the historical events of World War II and conveying how strongly they affected Einstein's views and work. While acknowledging that a good background in mathematics and physics is needed to completely understand Einstein's concepts of space-time, the author makes the theories comprehensible and accessible to general readers and offers students a valuable tool for reports. A balanced and thorough look at a visionary and his place in history."

School Library Journal Review

Online Resources:
http://www.einstein-website.de/z_kids/biographykids.html
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/ein.html

Inside the Hindenburg

Inside the Hindenburg

Written by: Mireille Majoor
Illustrated by: Ken Marschall

"The giant airship Hindenburg offered passengers both luxury and speed - crossing the ocean in an unheard-of two and a half days. But on May 6, 1937, it crashed to the ground in flames. Now, thanks to breathtakingly realistic paintings by renowned Titanic illustrator Ken Marschall, we can step inside the greatest airship ever built and relive the adventure of its fateful final voyage."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://www.vidicom-tv.com/tohiburg.htm
http://www.weather.com/outlook/videos/the-cause-of-the-hindenburg-crash-12493#12493