Learn about a a young boy with a speech impediment, who overcame his difficulties by working with animals.

Meet the woman known as "the Lady Edison."  Mattie Knight loved to make things ranging from a foot warmer for her mother or toys for her older brothers. When she was 12, she made a metal guard to prevent shuttles from shooting off looms and hurting workers. Later, Mattie invented a machine that could cut and glue the square-bottomed paper bags we still use today.

This book looks at the life of the artist Benny Andrews -- illustrated with his original paintings -- from his childhood and youth in rural Georgia, through his studies in Chicago and his activism and artistic success in New York City.

This picture book biography of oceanographer Sylvia Earle discusses her childhood along the Gulf of Mexico, her passion for the environment, and her experiences in ocean exploration.

Mumbet's Declaration of Independence tells the story of a Massachusetts slave from the Revolutionary era.  In 1781, she successfully used the new Massachusetts Constitution to make a legal case that she should be free.

This biography describes how Ellen Prentiss received sailing lessons from her father during childhood, married a ship captain, and helped set a world speed record during the Gold Rush era.

This introduction to the abolitionist and women's rights activist narrates her rise from former slave to preacher and orator a century before the Civil Rights Movement.

Discover the life of the astrophysicist, including his childhood in the Bronx, his academic career, and his status as a scientific expert.

A portrait of the American writer imagines his early years as a city youth whose dreams about the fields and woods of the country inspired him to pursue a literary life based around the things he loved.

This insightful biography puts the famous boxer into historical context through the use of newspaper articles, interviews, opinion pieces, and photographs.

From Sally Ride's youth to her many groundbreaking achievements in space and beyond, Sue Macy's riveting biography tells the story of not only a pioneering astronaut but a leader and explorer whose life, as President Barack Obama said, "demonstrates that the sky is no limit for those who dream of reaching for the stars."

This biography traces the life of the famous Lakota leader who expertly guided his people through a pivotal and tumultuous time in their nation's history as they fought and negotiated with the U.S. government. Spotted Tail is remembered for his unique leadership style and deep love for his people. 

Bugs, of all kinds, were considered to be "born of mud" and to be "beasts of the devil."  Why would anyone, let alone a girl, want to study and observe them? One of the first naturalists to observe live insects directly, Maria Sibylla Merian was also one of the first to document the metamorphosis of the butterfly.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., is one of the most famous pieces of civic architecture in the world. But most people are not as familiar with the reserved college student who entered and won the design competition to build it. 

Follow the story of Holocaust survivor Leon Leyson, who was the youngest child in his family and possibly the youngest of the hundreds of Jews rescued by Oskar Schindler. Many readers are familiar with the story of Anne Frank, but there are many other similar tales.

One of the best-loved American memoirs of an oversized family and the parents who held them together.

What do you get when you put twelve lively kids together with a father--a famous efficiency expert--who believes families can run like factories, and a mother who is his partner in everything except discipline? You get a hilarious tale of growing up that has made generations of kids and adults alike laugh along with the Gilbreths.

Try a biography of a building. Discover how a team of scientists and historians unearthed a Maryland homestead from the 1600s and engaged in painstaking work to restore the ruin to its former glory.