Creative Minds Biographies
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audiobook
(2)
Demanding Justice
A Story About Mary Ann Shadd Cary
by Jeri Chase Ferris
read by Debi Tinsley
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Mary Ann Shadd Cary spent her entire lifetime fighting for justice and equality for African Americans. Born a free African American in the 1820s, Cary started schools for black children and wrote books and articles. She was also the first black woman to publish a weekly newspaper and to enter law school. Never afraid of offending anyone, Cary demanded justice for herself and for her fellow African Americans. JERI CHASE FERRIS is the award-winning author of eleven Lerner biographies for children and young adults. She specializes in biographies of women and minorities―people who have done great and important deeds, but have been overlooked in history―for example: Go Free or Die: A Story about Harriet Tubman, Demanding Justice: A Story about Mary Ann Shadd Cary, Arctic Explorer: A Story about Matthew Henson, What Are You Figuring Now?: A Story about Benjamin Banneker, and With Open Hands: A Story about Biddy Mason. Jeri retired from a 30-year teaching career in order to write full time and travels all over the United States and the world to research and collect information on her subjects. In addition to writing, she is a frequent speaker at schools and conferences, bringing history to life through the lives of these remarkable women and men. Her current novel is not a biography but is historical fiction, a survival story set in WWII Russia (USSR).
audiobook
(1)
Civil Rights Pioneer
A Story About Mary Church Terrell
by Gwenyth Swain
read by Debi Tinsley
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Mary Church Terrell grew up after the Civil War with many opportunities. Although she received an excellent education and had a distinguished teaching career, Mary grew up African American in a segregated country. There were opportunities she did not have. Always determined, she joined the fight for equal rights. By lecturing, picketing, and writing she made her voice be heard and helped to end segregation. Gwenyth Swain is the author of more than two dozen books for young readers. A two-time winner of a Minnesota Book Award for children's nonfiction, she loves history and historical fiction. Ms. Swain runs the middle school and high school libraries at Twin Cities Academy in St. Paul. Formerly, she was a costumed history player at historic Fort Snelling, a soda jerk, and a bookstore clerk.
audiobook
(0)
Revolutionary Poet
A Story About Phillis Wheatley
by Maryann N. Weidt
read by Debi Tinsley
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Taken from her family in Africa at the age of seven, Phillis Wheatley arrived in Boston as a slave in 1761. After she was purchased by the Wheatley family, Phillis quickly learned to speak and read English. The bright young girl soon began writing poetry. By 1771, her poems had been published in newspapers all over the colonies, and critics were praising the "extraordinary negro poetess." In this engaging biography, author Maryann Weidt tells the story of how a young slave girl in revolutionary Boston became an internationally famous poet and the first black American to publish a book.
audiobook
(1)
Mark T-W-A-I-N!
A Story About Samuel Clemens
by David R. Collins
read by Michael Beck
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Samuel Clemens grew up in a child's paradise--Hannibal, Missouri. There, mischief added humor to everyday events as Sam encountered the folks who would one day reappear as Huck Finn, Aunt Polly, and Becky Thatcher in his books, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. At eighteen, Sam left Hannibal to seek his fortune. He became a newspaperman and story writer. Then, always a restless spirit, he tried his hand as a steamboat pilot (where he took a liking to the riverboat call "mark twain"), a soldier, and a gold prospector. All the while, Sam collected tales to tell on stage and recount in his many books. David Collins invites readers into the fabulously exciting, endlessly entertaining world of "America's Greatest Humorist"--the beloved Mark Twain.
audiobook
(1)
The Wizard of Sound
A Story About Thomas Edison
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Michael Beck
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In 1877 a young man developed a way to reproduce sounds so they could be heard again and again. This young man, Thomas Edison, has since been heralded as one of the world's greatest inventors. This inspiring biography details the creation of Edison's favorite invention, the phonograph. Young readers will also discover that Edison did not allow his handicap (he was hard of hearing) to slow him down.
Mitchell lives in Otonabee, and she taught English literature at Trent University in the 1970s and 1980s.
audiobook
(5)
Go Free or Die
A Story About Harriet Tubman
by Jeri Chase Ferris
read by Debi Tinsley
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
For the first twenty-eight years of her life. Harriet Tubman lived as a slave on a southern plantation. Finally, with the help of a Quaker woman, she was able to escape to Philadelphia by way of the Underground Railroad. After her escape, Harriet began her quest to help free other slaves. Over a ten-year period she led more than three hundred people through the Underground Railroad. In Go Free or Die, young readers will learn about this courageous woman who refused to be a slave and who fought for freedom for everyone. JERI CHASE FERRIS is the award-winning author of eleven Lerner biographies for children and young adults. She specializes in biographies of women and minorities―people who have done great and important deeds, but have been overlooked in history. Jeri retired from a 30-year teaching career in order to write full time and travels all over the United States and the world to research and collect information on her subjects.
audiobook
(2)
Discovering Nature's Laws
A Story About Isaac Newton
by Laura Purdie Salas
read by Jonathan St. John
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Sir Isaac Newton changed the world with his many discoveries and inventions about mathematics, science, optics, and physics. Although he was brilliant, Newton felt no need to publish his ideas or to inform his fellow scientists of the amazing discoveries he made. Because of this, his discoveries were often disputed. Despite the controversy that often surrounded him, Newton made astounding advances in his efforts to understand how nature worked. His legacy lives on through inventions such as microscopes, eyeglasses, telescopes, and cameras. Laura Purdie Salas is the author of more than 135 books for kids, including If You Were the Moon, Lion of the Sky, the Can Be? series, and Bookspeak! Poems about Books. Poetry and rhyming nonfiction books are her favorite things to write. Laura loves to do author visits, writing workshops, and teacher inservices. Read more about Laura and her work at laurasalas.com.
audiobook
(1)
Science Fiction Pioneer
A Story About Jules Verne
by Tom Streissguth
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
When Jules Verne was born in 1828, his family had his future planned out for him. They expected him to become a lawyer, but he dreamed of writing. He started out writing more traditional poetry and plays, but then he began to create a new, unconventional kind of fiction. It combined adventure, the modern world of science and invention, and his personal view of the future. With fantastical characters, spaceships to the moon, and deep-sea submarines, his books told of things that would not actually occur for decades. Tom Streissguth lives in Minneapolis and works as a writer and editor. He has written more than twenty-five non-fiction books for young people, including biographies and books on history and geography. His volumes in the Biography® series include Legends of Dracula, Jesse Owens, Queen Cleopatra, Jack London, and Edgar Allan Poe. Mr. Streissguth has also written several VGS titles including Argentina in Pictures, Costa Rica in Pictures, and Brazil in Pictures as well as scripts for television.
audiobook
(0)
Writing for Freedom
A Story About Lydia Maria Child
by Erica Stux
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Lydia Maria Child grew up in the 1800s reading countless books. She defied the idea that girls weren't supposed to fill their minds with ideas and stories. They weren't supposed to write their own books, either, but that is exactly what Lydia Maria did. Although she gained remarkable success as a writer for children and adults, she sacrificed everything when she took up her pen against slavery. Lydia Maria believed that slavery was wrong--and she wasn't afraid to say so. As a result, her courageous words changed her life and helped change the course of American history.
audiobook
(1)
Fighting for Equal Rights
A Story About Susan B. Anthony
by Maryann N. Weidt
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Born a Quaker, Susan B. Anthony grew up being taught that women were equal to men. During her lifetime, she was a teacher, a newspaperwoman, and an activist. She worked to further many causes such as the temperance, the abolitionist, and women's rights movements. Although she didn't live to see her dreams of women's suffrage come true, her tireless dedication to the cause was crucial to its success.
audiobook
(3)
Tales for Hard Times
A Story About Charles Dickens
by David R. Collins
read by Jonathan St. John
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
As a small boy, Charles Dickens worked in a dark, musty London warehouse, pasting labels onto pots of boot polish. He tried not to listen to his grumbling stomach or the rats squeaking on the stairs. His dream was to escape that misery one day and become a fine, educated gentleman. Through his gift for writing, that day did come for Dickens. But he never forgot what it was like to be poor. He wrote stories about London's lower classes--tales that made people laugh, cry, and work to improve their social conditions. By the time of his death, Charles Dickens had become one of the most popular English writers ever. Step into nineteenth-century London and the life of Charles Dickens in this exciting book. David R. Collins's exciting biography and David Mataya's powerful illustrations bring this master storyteller to life. David R. Collins is a published author and a narrator of children's books and young adult books. Some of the published credits of David R. Collins include George Washington Carver: Man's Slave Becomes God's Scientist, Cesar Chavez (Just the Facts Biographies), J. R. R. Tolkien (Just the Facts Biographies), and The Time Travelling Cat & the Tudor Treasure.
audiobook
(2)
Listening to Crickets
A Story About Rachel Carson
by Ransom Candice
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
From the time she was a very young girl, Rachel Carson felt a bond with nature. Growing up in Pennsylvania, she spent hours exploring meadows and woods, dreaming of seeing the ocean. As Rachel grew older, she combined her gift for writing with her love of nature, producing award-winning books about the sea. But her best-known achievement was the publication of Silent Spring, an account of the dangerous effects of pesticides on plants and animals. With Silent Spring, Rachel helped create a movement to ban these harmful chemicals. Her findings helped to assure that future generations would be able to dream about the ocean and listen to crickets. Candice Ransom is the author of 150 books for children. She holds an MFA from Vermont College and an MA in children's literature from Hollins University. She currently teaches in Hollins University's graduate program in children's literature.
audiobook
(2)
We'll Race You, Henry
A Story About Henry Ford
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Michael Beck
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Henry Ford loved mechanical things: springs and gears, cogs and wheels, and things that clicked and ticked and turned. One hot summer day in 1876, Henry and his father were riding to Detroit in their farm wagon. Suddenly there was a huffing-puffing monster heading straight toward them. It was a road-roller, and it was lumbering down the road all by itself. That was the day Henry started thinking about horseless riding machines--and he never stopped. In We'll Race You, Henry, young readers will discover the origins of one of the most popular cars of all time--the Model T--as well as the daring side of its inventor and the early days of automobile racing.
audiobook
(2)
Beyond Little Women
A Story About Louisa May Alcott
by Susan Bivin Aller
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
More than a century after Louisa May Alcott wrote them, classics such as Little Women, Little Men, and Jo's Boys continue to be read and treasured by readers around the world. Alcott began writing as a young girl and dreamed of becoming a rich and famous author. Despite supporting her entire family with the proceeds from her writings, she was able to achieve her dreams and became one of the best-known and admired writers of her time. Susan Bivin Aller is the author of several other biographies for Lerner, including Beyond Little Women: the Story of Louisa May Alcott and Mark Twain. She has also written about the lives of Juliette Low, Madam C. J. Walker, Sitting Bull, Tecumseh, Christopher Columbus, Ulysses S. Grant, and George Eastman for the History Maker series.
audiobook
(3)
Mr. Blue Jeans
A Story About Levi Strauss
by Maryann N. Weidt
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In 1847 an eighteen-year-old immigrant arrived in New York. He had little in his pockets and no knowledge of English. However, by 1874, people throughout the United States knew him as the man who made blue jeans with copper rivets. Even now Levi Strauss's name lives on as a mark of quality and style. In Mr. Blue Jeans, Maryann N. Weidt presents the history of this hardworking man, as he struggles through long, grueling days as a peddler and challenging times as a young businessman. His honesty, integrity, and generosity stand out as clearly as his name, making this rags-to-riches story well worth listening.
audiobook
(2)
Musical Genius
A Story About Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
by Barbara Allman
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
A musical prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart began playing the piano and composing when he was just three years old. Able to play multiple instruments, among them the piano and violin, Mozart spent much of his youth touring European courts with his family. From the time he was three until his death just thirty-two years later, he produced a huge volume of musical works. Among them the famed operas The Magic Flute, The Marriage of Figaro, and Don Giovanni.
audiobook
(0)
The Country Artist
A Story About Beatrix Potter
by David R. Collins
read by Helen Langford
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Tea with a hedgehog and supper with a rabbit? Beatrix Potter entertained guests that most people--certainly Beatrix Potter's proper Victorian parents--would have thought belonged in a meadow, not in a London nursery. Such unlikely companions were company for lonely Beatrix, and she spent much of her time sketching and making up stories about these small creatures. Beatrix was so well acquainted with the characters of her various animal friends that when she was older it seemed natural to write and illustrate small books about their delightful adventures. Generations of children all over the world have gotten to know and love Beatrix Potter's animal friends--Benjamin Bunny, Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, Squirrel Nutkin, Peter Rabbit, and many more. David Collins's lively text and Karen Ritz's striking illustrations combine to tell the wonderful tale of this gentle, creative woman who had a special feeling not only for animals, but also for children. David R. Collins is a published author and a narrator of children's books and young adult books. Some of the published credits of David R. Collins include George Washington Carver: Man's Slave Becomes God's Scientist, Cesar Chavez (Just the Facts Biographies), J. R. R. Tolkien (Just the Facts Biographies), and The Time Travelling Cat & the Tudor Treasure.
audiobook
(3)
The Back of Beyond
A Story About Lewis And Clark
by Andy Russell Bowen
read by Michael Beck
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In 1803, Meriwether Lewis was offered the chance of a lifetime. The president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, asked him to lead an expedition across North America, through the Louisiana Territory and Oregon Country to the Pacific Ocean. Lewis jumped at the opportunity and called on his friend William Clark to share in the command of the exploration. The two men organized a small unit of volunteers they called the Corps of Discovery. They had little idea of what dangers lay ahead in the mysterious lands. Would they be attacked by wild animals? Could they survive winter's harsh weather? On May 21, 1804, the Lewis and Clark expedition embarked on one of the greatest adventures of all time. they would change the country forever, as they traveled into the Back of Beyond.
audiobook
(5)
Between Two Worlds
A Story About Pearl Buck
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Growing up in China as the child of American missionaries, Pearl read and listened to stories from both the East and the West. A story, she thought, was a wonderful way to learn about people and places. Pearl had read and heard about America and her family there, but she had never met her American relatives. When, at the age of 10, she spent a year in America, Pearl came to understand that she was a part of two worlds. Between Two Worlds tells the story of how Pearl Buck worked to increase the understanding between the two worlds she knew.
audiobook
(2)
Pioneer Plowmaker
A Story About John Deere
by David R. Collins
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In the 1800s, the moist soil of the Midwest would stick to plow blades, stopping the farmers as they plowed. Young blacksmith John Deere knew about the problem, so he designed and built a self-scouring plow. With this small start, he founded the famous farm implement company Deere & Company and started down the road to success.
audiobook
(8)
Frontier Surgeons
A Story About The Mayo Brothers
by Emily Crofford
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In the 1870s, surgery was a crude affair performed on the patient's kitchen table. In the frontier town of Rochester, Minnesota, Dr. W. W. Mayo brought his young sons, Will and Charlie, to assist him with operations. Fifty years later, Rochester became a medical mecca as the Mayo brothers were established as world-class surgeons. With a firm belief in sharing information and learning from others, the Mayo brothers proved the benefits of cooperation in a jealously competitive field and accomplished more than any single colleague of their time. Emily Crofford gives a vivid account of the Mayos' meteoric rise to fame and their contributions as pioneers on the frontier of modern surgery.
Emily Crofford is an author of books for children.
audiobook
(3)
First Son and President
A Story About John Quincy Adams
by Beverly Gherman
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
America's sixth president and son of America's second president, John Quincy Adams lived an extraordinary life. Beginning as a young boy as secretary for his father during the peace talks that ended the Revolutionary War, Adams served his country as a diplomat, state senator, secretary of state, the president, and as a representative in congress. Through his many speeches, essays, books, and written reports, Adams helped shape America. Today, he is remembered as a great statesman, a scholar, and a poet, just as he hoped he would be. Beverly Gherman is the author of Jimmy Carter (PL) and John Quincy Adams (CM), and well as trade biographies of Georgia O'Keefe, Robert Lewis Stevenson, Norman Rockwell, and Ansel Adams.
audiobook
(3)
Fine Print
A Story About Johann Gutenberg
by Joann Johansen Burch
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Although he is credited with changing history through his invention of printing, Johann Gutenberg remains mysterious. In Fine Print, author Joann Johansen Burch pieces together Gutenberg's amazing story. When Johann was a child in the early 1400s, books were rare and sometimes very expensive. Each book had to be copied by hand, letter by letter. Gutenberg loved to read, and he often grew impatient waiting for the time-consuming bookmaking process to be completed. Young Gutenberg dreamed of finding a better way to make books. From his childhood in strife-torn Mainz through the many years of setbacks and bankruptcies, Gutenberg persevered in his belief that books could be made quickly and inexpensively. This is the story of the man who invented movable type and the printing press and gave the world the gift of books.
audiobook
(1)
A Hunger for Learning
A Story About Booker T. Washington
by Gwenyth Swain
read by Thomas A. Penny
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
When nine-year-old Booker T. Washington was finally freed from slavery, he soon discovered that freedom had a price, and that he had to work, and work hard, to make his way in the world. After years of study and struggle, Washington became a teacher at what would become the famed Tuskegee Institute. Built from the ground up by Washington, his students, and his staff, Tuskegee became one of the finest schools for black students in the nation. More than one hundred years later, it still is. Gwenyth Swain is the author of more than two dozen books for young readers. A two-time winner of a Minnesota Book Award for children's nonfiction, she loves history and historical fiction. Ms. Swain runs the middle school and high school libraries at Twin Cities Academy in St. Paul. Formerly, she was a costumed history player at historic Fort Snelling, a soda jerk, and a bookstore clerk.
audiobook
(0)
Click!
A Story About George Eastman
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
When George Eastman decided to make photography his hobby, "simple" was hardly the word to describe the pastime. He had to lug 50 pounds of camera equipment around with him, including the fragile glass plates that would become pictures. But resourceful George wasn't one to put up with such inconvenience for long. Click! is the story of how George Eastman developed a camera simple enough for anyone to use―the Kodak, predecessor of today's pocket instamatics―and forever revolutionized photography.
audiobook
(18)
Chocolate by Hershey
A Story About Milton S. Hershey
by Betty Burford
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Milton Hershey loved candy. As a boy, he saved his hard-earned pennies for the candy store. He soon discovered that he had a gift for making delicious treats and, after years of trying, Milton finally make it big. People loved his new HERSHEY'S chocolate. Listeners will delight in the story behind Hershey's mouth-watering world of chocolate. At age 18, in 1876, Hershey started his own candy business, and, after some failures, went on to build a town and a chocolate factory in a cornfield and named them after himself. Today, Hershey, PA, attracts millions of tourists. Thousands of orphaned and disadvantaged young people have graduated from the Milton Hershey School, which he and his wife founded. And Hershey's candies are recognized worldwide. This biography is a well-rounded presentation that shows the successes and difficulties of this entrepreneur's life. The black-and-white somewhat grainy illustrations are reminiscent of photographs of the period. Average fare about the life of a highly creative man.?Pamela K. Bomboy, Chesterfield County Public Schools, VA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
audiobook
(3)
Germ Hunter
A Story About Louis Pasteur
by Elaine Marie Alphin
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Growing up in the 1830s, Louis Pasteur saw the horrifying effects of diseases like rabies and tuberculosis. Filled with curiosity and imagination, Pasteur began a lifelong search for answers to his many questions about diseases. Although many scientists disagreed with his unusual ideas, his discoveries made him famous. Through his dedication and insight, Pasteur saved millions of lives and laid the groundwork for future medical advancements.
Since her first novel for young readers appeared in 1991, Elaine Marie Alphin published 27 books for young people and one for adults (about writing for young people). Elaine wrote for readers of all ages, from Davy Crockett in Lerner's History Makers series for beginning readers up through teenage mysteries such as Counterfeit Son, winner of the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult mystery. Elaine loved research, and that love impacted all of her writing, from biographies for middle grade readers like I Have Not Yet Begun To Fight: A Story About John Paul Jones in the Creative Minds series through young adult fiction such as the history-inspired mystery, The Perfect Shot to the stand-alone nonfiction young adult book. An Unspeakable Crime: The Prosecution and Persecution of Leo Frank.
audiobook
(2)
A Pocketful of Goobers
A Story About George Washington Carver
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Thomas A. Penny
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
There wasn't anything that George Washington Carver couldn't grow. He took the common goober--today's peanut--and created hundreds of useful products from it, turning goobers into a very profitable staple for the South. At the same time, this very special man passed on to everyone who knew him the importance of following one's own dreams. Mitchell lives in Otonabee, and she taught English literature at Trent University in the 1970s and 1980s.
audiobook
(5)
Remember the Ladies
A Story About Abigail Adams
by Jeri Chase Ferris
read by Elisabeth Martin
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Abigail Adams lived through the Revolutionary War and became the First Lady of the second president of the United States. Though women of her time could not vote, govern, or own property, Abigail believed that women should not be ruled by laws they did not make. Although she did not see these rights come to women, she never gave up talking, writing, and perhaps most important, believing that women were equal to men. Her courage and strength enabled her to help her husband create a new country. She never fired a gun, but her pen was a weapon that helped win freedom for her country--and herself. JERI CHASE FERRIS is the award-winning author of eleven Lerner biographies for children and young adults. She specializes in biographies of women and minorities―people who have done great and important deeds, but have been overlooked in history―for example: Go Free or Die: A Story about Harriet Tubman, Demanding Justice: A Story about Mary Ann Shadd Cary, Arctic Explorer: A Story about Matthew Henson, What Are You Figuring Now?: A Story about Benjamin Banneker, and With Open Hands: A Story about Biddy Mason. Jeri retired from a 30-year teaching career in order to write full time and travels all over the United States and the world to research and collect information on her subjects. In addition to writing, she is a frequent speaker at schools and conferences, bringing history to life through the lives of these remarkable women and men. Her current novel is not a biography but is historical fiction, a survival story set in WWII Russia (USSR).
audiobook
(5)
President of the Underground Railroad
A Story About Levi Coffin
by Gwenyth Swain
read by Michael Beck
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Growing up in a Quaker family in the South in 1830, Levi Coffin did not support slavery, but he was exposed to its atrocities. Convinced that every person deserved to be free, Levi began helping slaves escape to the North along the Underground Railroad, and during the following 40 years he was able to help over 3,000 people find freedom. Gwenyth Swain is the author of more than two dozen books for young readers. A two-time winner of a Minnesota Book Award for children's nonfiction, she loves history and historical fiction. Ms. Swain runs the middle school and high school libraries at Twin Cities Academy in St. Paul. Formerly, she was a costumed history player at historic Fort Snelling, a soda jerk, and a bookstore clerk.
audiobook
(3)
What Are You Figuring Now?
A Story About Benjamin Banneker
by Jeri Chase Ferris
read by Thomas A. Penny
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
In 1791 plans for the new capital city, Washington, D.C., were in the works, but someone was needed to help with the surveying. Thomas Jefferson recommended Benjamin Banneker for the job. Banneker was a free black man who lived at a time when black Americans had few, if any, rights. Yet he was an accomplished farmer, mathematician, astronomer, and surveyor. What Are You Figuring Now? is the story of a man who was never afraid to try something new, no matter how difficult. JERI CHASE FERRIS is the award-winning author of eleven Lerner biographies for children and young adults. She specializes in biographies of women and minorities―people who have done great and important deeds, but have been overlooked in history―for example: Go Free or Die: A Story about Harriet Tubman, Demanding Justice: A Story about Mary Ann Shadd Cary, Arctic Explorer: A Story about Matthew Henson, What Are You Figuring Now?: A Story about Benjamin Banneker, and With Open Hands: A Story about Biddy Mason. Jeri retired from a 30-year teaching career in order to write full time and travels all over the United States and the world to research and collect information on her subjects. In addition to writing, she is a frequent speaker at schools and conferences, bringing history to life through the lives of these remarkable women and men. Her current novel is not a biography but is historical fiction, a survival story set in WWII Russia (USSR).
audiobook
(4)
Maker of Machines
A Story About Eli Whitney
by Barbara Mitchell
read by Lance Smith
Part of the Creative Minds Biographies series
Eli Whitney's love of inventing and pondering new ideas made him one of America's greatest inventors. Best known for inventing the cotton gin, one of the most important American inventions of the century, he changed cotton production forever. A few years later, Whitney invented machines to make muskets that were identical. The first mass-manufacturing business in the country, his musket factory revolutionized the way Americans made things.
Mitchell lives in Otonabee, and she taught English literature at Trent University in the 1970s and 1980s.
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