NELSON MANDELA books for kids Index

Nelson Mandela was born July 18, 1918, in Mvezo, South Africa.  He was imprisoned as part of South Africa's apartheid policies.  Remarkably, when he was released he did not let bitterness govern him, but set about trying to heal his nation.  He eventually became President, serving South Africa from 1994 to 1999.

He died December 5, 2013.

We have 3 lists of books for children about this amazing man.  There are no books currently at either the Kindergarten or First Grade reading levels.

• NELSON MANDELA - biographies at the 2nd Grade level

• NELSON MANDELA - biographies at the 3rd Grade level

   




• NELSON MANDELA - biographies at the 4th Grade level

   

Great Men & Women - Clara Barton Easy Readers & Chapter Books

Clara Barton

Clara Barton is best known for being the founder of the American Red Cross and the National First Aid Society.  We have moved this list of books to the sister site, GOOD BOOKS FOR KIDS LISTS!
 

Hudson by Janice Weaver David Craig (Illus.)

Janice Weaver's Hudson is an interesting and quick paced history of the explorer that is really reader-friendly.

She immediately grabbed my attention by her lively prose and the fact the she didn't waste my time boring me with dates, but instead focused upon those things that students of history, or beginning history readers, are going to find interesting. Things like scurvy, rebellion, scheming, starving, being shot through the neck with an arrow, and jail time.

Since I was trained as an historian I can be pretty critical as to how material is handled, but I've got no complaints here. The author doesn't just pretend that we know everything there is to know about Hudson, the way some textbooks do. Instead she explains to the reader that there are large gaps in Hudson's timeline, and that we don't even know what he looks like.

At the end Ms. Weaver further endeared herself to me by suggesting that young readers look to the primary sources of Hudson's time -- like Hudson's and Juet's logs -- rather than other textbooks. This is the only way, in my opinion, to ever grow a love of the study of history.

THE SKINNY:::
Hudson is a beautiful book. The cover is especially nice as it has full color images just like the jacket, instead of being just plain with a title. The jacket is really cool in that there's an excellent map of Hudson's voyages on the inside.

Ms. Weaver presents a quick, but thorough mini-history of Hudson that focuses on the important aspects of his journeys and the reasons for them, rather than boring old dates. She does a good job of making the dangers and discomfort of those early sea voyages come alive.

I like that there are breakouts in this book which discuss side-issues like scurvy, whaling, and mermaids.

The approach is kid-friendly and would be suitable for history classes or anyone interested in Hudson.

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

Hudson

• Accelerated Reading level : 4.0
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: Tundra Books (September 14, 2010)
• ISBN-10: 088776814
  

Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen

Woods Runner is set just at the cusp of the American Revolutionary War. It tells the story of 13 year-old Samuel, a boy raised in the thick woods of western Pennsylvania.

His story begins with an explanation of the woodsman (woodsboy?) that Samuel has become. His skill developed by the necessity of feeding his family. His world appears almost idyllically isolated until his family and near neighbors catch wind of the troubles that are brewing in Boston. Unfortunately, that trouble quickly catches up with him, and before he knows it, all most everyone Samuel knows has been horribly butchered by Iroquois in the company of Red Coats.

It's while he is discharging the ominous duty of going through the clubbed and scalped bodies of his friends that Samuel discovers that amazingly his mother and father are not among the dead. Studying the tracks around the burnt cabins he realizes that they and a handful of others have been spared and that they are being taken away to the north.

Samuel quickly buries his neighbors and then charges after his folks and that is where his real adventures start. I won't say much about them except that Gary Paulsen has written a well done tale of adventure and daring.

Talking Points:::
In this book, Gary has inserted factual information sheets onto their own pages. He sums up historical bits that readers might not know, or don't readily remember, so that the story is "fortified" with interesting facts. He talks about, for example, what a dreadful, barbaric bunch the Hessians were. How they ruthlessly butchered the non-combatants who surrendered to them; piking or shooting even women and little children. He also talks in detail about the rifle Samuel used, other weapons, and the conditions of the British prisons. I was astounded to find out, for example, that while the number (of young men who died in combat was only 4,000 (approximate), that the number who died from other causes was somewhere in the range of 30-50 Thousand.

In general, this is a book that I would definitely recommend for children who like historical fiction, and parents who want a more educational read. (Pay attention Homeschoolers!)

The age range for this book is wide: from elementary school to middle school. There is some violence -- it is about war after all -- but nothing overly graphic. Younger kids might like to have it read to them, but in general the book is probably best for the 9 year-old to 13 year-old crowd.

I could find no Reading Level information at this time. This info is now available=> 5.5

See the audio book review here.

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

Woods Runner

Accelerated Reading level : 5.5

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (January 12, 2010)
• ISBN-10: 0385738846
• amazon

Technical Stuff
Word Count: 32,659
Reading Level: 5.5
Interest Level: tween and middle-grades
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 5.5 / points: 5.0
AR quiz: 134843
Lexile: 870L


related posts:

• Our Master Gary Paulsen list
• Review of Woods Runner audiobook
• Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
• Mr. Tucket by Gary Paulsen (Book 1 - Tucket Series)
• Call Me Francis Tucket by Gary Paulsen (Book 2 - Tucket Series)
• Tucket's Ride by Gary Paulsen (Book 3 - Tucket Series)
• Tucket's Gold by Gary Paulsen (Book 4 - Tucket Series)
• Tucket's Home by Gary Paulsen (Book 5 - Tucket Series)
• Tucket's Travels by Gary Paulsen (Books 1 thru 5 in a collection - Tucket Series)
• See our post on the 2 new Gary Paulsen books that are coming out in 2011

Woods Runner~AudioBook Review

This is a review of JUST THE AUDIOBOOK. To see the book's review, click here.


With audiobooks you have a number of factors that can influence whether they are enjoyable. There's features --like music--, recording quality, 'reader' quality, and how well the book adapts to be read.

I used my children --boy and girl, currently 7 and 9-- and myself as the test audience. And what I found led me to give this 3 CD collection a middlin' rank.

First, I should say that Danny Campbell does a good job reading. His voice is very pleasant, and while the first portion of the story is told in a rather unemotional tone, he soon warms to the material and by the end I found that I liked him quite well.

The reason I gave the audiobook only 3 Stars is because I don't think this is the best book to read aloud as there is too much description of weaponry and the forest and how civilization varied so much in the 1700's. In the latter case, the author does a wonderful job in explaining that at the same time there were men with powdered wigs and silk clothing and fine educations, that there were also men in America who lacked all but the crudest education and who could not enjoy the company of even a few other people. And this doesn't translate as well when heard as when read.

I really liked this book. I thought it was not only a good adventure, but educational as well. Gary Paulsen knows his stuff. BUT, it's a book I would suggest children read themselves rather than listen to.

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

Woods Runner - audio

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (January 12, 2010)
• ISBN-10: 0385738846

related posts:

• Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen (2010)
  
• Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Susan B. Anthony by Martha E.H. Rustad

If you have children in public school, you probably have noticed that they have expanded the history curriculum to be more inclusive of people who aren't male and white. As a result there are quite a few books in recent years that have been published on historic figures such as Booker T. Washington, George Carver, and Ms. Anthony. At our home, we've been reading off and on about these important individuals, but lately my daughter has become curious about Susan B. and we've looked at several books about her. I hope to review more of these books so you can compare them and figure out what might fit best into your own home curriculum, but here at least are my thoughts on Susan B. Anthony by Martha E.H. Rustad.

Rustad's book is brief and so her focus is simple. She provides what is essentially an outline of Anthony's life, and the briefest of descriptions of the issues that concerned her. The book starts off, for example, with the year and place Susan was born (1820) and then a statement that she learned to read and write when she was 3 years old. It then jumps forwards in time to say her family moved to New York in 1826, and that a short time later she went to boarding school. The next leap takes us to her adult life when she became a teacher. And it is from there that the narrative branches out to talk about matters that were important to Susan. The book does not go into depth about slavery and alcohol, both of which she thought should be illegal, but rather discusses that at the meeting halls men would not let her speak because she was a woman. The author writes,

"In the 1800s, many women were not allowed to own property. They did not earn as much money as men did. Women also were not allowed to vote. Susan fought for women's rights."

And this sentence should give you an idea of what you might find on any particular page.

Considerations:::
This small book is a nice introduction to Susan B. Anthony. Written at the Second Grade level (AR =2.4) it has large print, and photos or drawings on every other page. The photos show everything from the homes in which Susan lived (which I'm afraid no child is really going to be interested in) to pictures of slaves working the fields, as well as photos of the stern Ms. Anthony at various stages of her life (of much greater interest). Drawings include the meeting halls were issues used to be debated before television and radio, as well as women strolling down the street protesting that they can't vote.

The timeline that flows from the bottom of one page to the next is especially useful in helping children to conceptualize the flow of history (the passage of years)

At the end of the book there are "Words to Know", suggested readings, and a list of internet sites. Words include: alcohol, amendment, constitution, earn, property, slave, suffrage, and vote.

All in all, I think this is a nice little book that you can zip through in a few minutes and which will serve as a good introduction to a variety of topics, such as slavery, Women's Rights, and alcohol abuse. An adult can discuss these things in depth, or not, as is appropriate to the age of the child.

Susan B. Anthony

• Paperback: 24 pages
• Publisher: Capstone Press (2000)
  
• ISBN-10: 0736894489
• amazon
  

Technical Stuff
Word Count: 241
Reading Level: 2.4
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 2.4 / points: 0.5 / quiz: 50994


For other books on important men and women in the Civil Rights movement, see our Index.

Jamestown: The Perilous Adventure by Olga Hall-Quest

I found this book to be a quick and easy read after the first chapter – which for some reason seemed to drag – and I think it would be a good choice for teens or adults wanting a quick introduction to Jamestown.

Originally published in the 1950's (see note at bottom of review), it reads like a more modern book and does not seem dated. This is due most probably to the fact that the author derived much of her information from primary sources rather than 'trendy' secondary analysis. Certainly you can hear echoes of the colonists' words in her descriptions.

In a book like this, particularly one geared for teens and young adults, the problem is usually balancing the production of an interesting story with facts and details. In this case, Ms. Hall-Quest got it right. She didn't burden the reader with too much detail, and one is just as likely to run across fun information like how many piglets were born at such-and-such a time, as a date. Likewise she doesn't engage in extensive discussion of the Virginia Charters, but rather emphasizes the challenges that the community faced, and the personality problems that cropped up. Overall I thought it was intelligently written and engaging.

Rating : Very Good.
Jamestown: The Perilous Adventure good book for teens or adults looking for a quick, easy introduction to the early history of Jamestown. The narrative touches upon the personality problems that figured in the settlements history, which includes both whites and indigenous peoples. There are several useful maps included.

Note: First published in the 1950's the material facts have been updated although it was not clear to me by whom. The preface was written by a gentleman from the National Parks Service, so perhaps the curators at Jamestown double-checked the details.


Reading Resources:
Word Count: 38,929
Page Count: 181
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 8.4 / points: 7.0
AR quiz: 127292