Jewish Biographies for Children: A-E |
If you wish to purchase any of these books, click on either the title or the book cover to be directed to Amazon.com. As a warning, I have put up pictures of the book covers to give you somewhat an idea of the style of each book (I know, I know. "Don't judge a book by its cover") so the pages may load slowly, depending on the speed of your internet connection.
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 Mordechai Anielewicz: Hero of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising By Kerry P. Callahan |
Young readers may not be aware of any cases of Jews fighting back. In fact, there was a substantial youth movement whose members were willing to sacrifice their own lives in order to launch a resistance movement against the Nazis. This book examines the life and death of Mordechai Anielewicz, a young Jew who led armed resistance struggles against Nazi captors.
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 Menachem Begin By Virginia Brackett |
Israel’s most well-known leader, Menachem Begin was a fierce defender of the new nation. He longed for the united Israel of ancient times, and fought for more than 30 years for that vision. He was awarded the Nobel peace prize for his role in reaching the Camp David Accord with Anwar Sadat, and is seen by many as a man of vision.
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 Ben-Gurion : Builder of Israel By Robert St. John |
A biography of the first prime minister of Israel, with a section that
presents Ben-Gurior in his own words.
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 Moe Berg : The Spy Behind Homeplate |
For Middle Readers, this Exciting Biography will Thrill! A major league baseball player fluent in nine languages, an Ivy League scholar, and an attorney, Moe Berg led a life of mystery & intrigue as a top secret spy who helped the United States win the race against Nazi Germany to build the atomic bomb. Moe Berg used baseball as a cover to make significant intelligence contributions to the United States. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 The Amazing Life of Moe Berg : Catcher, Scholar, Spy |
Moe Berg may not be familiar to modern audiences, but they will be
intrigued to learn about his life. The son of Jewish immigrants,
Berg got himself to Princeton, but he never lost his love of baseball,
and his career in the major leagues spanned 16 years. He was also a
lawyer, a talented linguist, and a world traveler. Those skills brought
him to the attention of the U.S. government, which decided Berg could
help his country with some important missions during World War II. He
spent the war culling information from European scientists about the
nuclear bomb. Although his work as a spy was invaluable, Berg drifted
after the war, never really holding a job or even having his own home
again. The book is crisply written, and the subject will make an
excellent alternative to the usual cast of characters on biography
shelves. Despite problems she discusses in the introduction,
Andryszewski does a good job of sourcing her material. Illustrated
with black-and-white photos.
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 Say It With Music : A Story About Irving Berlin |
This vividly written book is at once the story of the famous composer and of an early
20th-century immigrant's experience. Streissguth clearly paints a picture of New York's
Lower East Side and of the milieu in which Israel Baline developed into the songwriter,
Irving Berlin. It's an intriguing story, and one that Streissguth makes readable and
enjoyable. By describing the components of Berlin's successful songs, readers gain
an understanding of the popular music business of the time. Hagerman's black-and-white
sketches enhance the text with excellent likenesses of the subject, as well as with
contemporary scenes.
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 Leonard Bernstein : A Passion for Music |
When Leonard Bernstein died, a fellow composer wondered whether he had died
too young but concluded that since Bernstein actually had led four lives at once, he
was not 72, but 288 years old at his death. Hurwitz acquaints readers with all four
of Bernstein's lives (conductor, composer, pianist, teacher) and more as she surveys
his energetic, musically charged life. She notes how good fortune played a pivotal
role in Bernstein's fate--he inherited a piano, his first instrument, from his aunt when
he was 10; mere months after assuming the position of assistant conductor of the
New York Philharmonic, he gained public notice when he was called to take the
baton for the guest conductor who was ill. However, Hurwitz makes it clear that
Bernstein's determination and talent propelled his career. His Jewish heritage also
is shown to have inspired many of his compositions and to have been a powerful
motivating factor throughout his life. Lisker's black-and-white drawings dramatically
complement Hurwitz's readable, informative biography.
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 Leonard Bernstein : Composer and Conductor (Ferguson's Career Biography Series) By Jean F. Blashfield |
Although he grew up without music in his home, Leonard Bernstein became America’s
greatest twentieth-century musician. He had music in his soul, and it came out in
many ways. During his life, he composed classical music for orchestras and popular
music for Broadway shows, conducted symphony orchestras, introduced television
audiences to great works of music, and taught and wrote about music. Leonard
Bernstein’s influence on music led to a new, worldwide respect for American musicians.
... The only Jewish musicians that Bernstein’s parents had known in their childhood in the Ukraine were the wandering musicians called klezmers. Many people looked down on these people, and Sam was appalled at the idea that his son would become like them. He was afraid Leonard would end up poor, playing piano in a cocktail lounge somewhere ... | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Leonard Bernstein : In Love with Music By Caroline Evensen Lazo |
The composer of Broadway hits such as West Side Story and Candide, Leonard Bernstein knew from the first moment he touched a piano that he wanted to make music his life's work. Through years of hard work, dedication, and fun, Leonard became one of America's most influential composers and conductors. His intense passion and brilliance for composing, playing, and conducting music inspired numerous people around the world to discover what Leonard already knew--that music was an expression of love.
Numerous black-and-white photos, including one of Bernstein as a teenage camp counselor in 1937 conducting preteen members of a band, enhance this biography about a remarkable man who devoted himself to music. Six years after that photo was taken, Bernstein took the musical world by storm when he filled in for the ailing conductor of the New York Philharmonic. Lazo tells a vigorous story about the many obstacles that Bernstein had to overcome on his path to success, as well as the amazing accidents that led him to a career in music, rather than to a sales position in his father's beauty-supply firm. Bernstein's creative range, which encompassed composing, conducting, writing, and educating through TV, comes clear in this intriguing life story, which is just right for young people with an interest in classical music and conducting or writing it.
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 Leonard Bernstein (Getting to Know the World's Greatest Composers) By Mike Venezia
A brief biography of the talented composer, conductor, and
musician known for his television series, Young People's Concerts.
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 Leonard Bernstein : All-American Musician by Marlene Toby (out of print)
Young children can now enjoy a biography series written just for them. "Rookie Biographies" introduce the beginning reader to interesting people who helped shape history. With short, easy-to-understand text, historical photos, and eye-catching illustrations, these introductory biographies will motivate children into wanting to learn more about noted individuals. Each book includes a index.
| Examines the life and career of the famous composer, conductor, pianist, and teacher.
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 Louis Brandeis: The People's Justice
Louis Brandeis put the needs of the individual before the
interest of government and big business. The first Jew to be
nominated to the Supreme Court, he supported free speech,
social reform and the right to privacy. He was known,
informally, as "adviser to presidents." In addition, it was
his support of the Zionism Movement that influenced American
Jews to support it.
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 Stephen Breyer (U.S. Supreme Court Library) By Paul J. Deegan
Provides details in the life and career of jurist Stephen Breyer and his
nomination to the Supreme Court.
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 Chagall: My Town, Sad and Joyous
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 Chagall Stained Glass Coloring Book By Marty Noble
Russian-born French painter Marc Chagall (1887-1984), renowned for his poetic
and exuberant style, is especially well regarded for his stained glass designs.
For this appealing coloring book, Marty Noble has adapted 16 of Chagall's
finest stained glass works, including I and the Village, The Cellist, Bride
and Groom with Eiffel Tower, Equestrienne, The Green Violinist, and Girl on
Horseback. When colored with crayons, felt-tip pens, or paints and placed near
a source of bright light, these magnificent designs will glow with stained
glass effects sure to delight coloring book fans, art lovers, and admirers of
this renowned artist.
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 Story of Reb Yosef Chaim By Shlomo Zalman Sonnenfeld
Recounts the stories of everyday people, some famous and some
unknown, who lived in Jerusalem during the last hundred years.
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 Henry Cohen: The Life of a Frontier Rabbi By Jimmy Kessler
Following a childhood in London, Rabbi Cohen served a number of years in Africa and Jamaica and his final sixty two years in Galveston, Texas.
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 Captain of Innocence: France & the Dreyfus Affair By Norman H. Finkelstein
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Captain of Innocence surveys the life, multiple trials, imprisonment, and eventual release of the Jewish French army officer accused of spying for the Germans. The Dreyfus Affair profoundly affected France and the world at the turn of the twentieth century. Despite his innocence, Alfred Dreyfus, a Jew, was the victim of rampant anti-Semitism. He was found guilty of treason through the use of contrived evidence and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island.
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 Bob Dylan: Voice of a Generation By Jeremy Roberts
Born Bobby Zimmerman in the small town of Hibbing, Minnesota, Bob Dylan overcame many obstacles to become one of the most revered musicians of his time. Throughout his lifetime he has achieved success in almost every genre of music from folk, to rock, to country, to religious ballads. Though he has written over 500 songs, he is best known for his folk-rock protest songs of the 1960s. His songs were filled with such insight and feeling that he became known as the poet prophet and was a role model to many young people of that generation. They felt that he represented a new view of the world—a voice of change, calling for justice and individual freedom.
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 Bob Dylan By Susan Richardson
Bob Dylan has profoundly shaped the course of popular music. Since the beginning his career in 1960, he has been seen as a poet, a political activist, a consummate musician, a wanderer, and a mystery.
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 Ordinary Genius : The Story of Albert Einstein
The descriptions of young Albert's difficulties in school, which will enthrall
young readers, embody what the author does particularly well throughout
this book--depict Einstein as a person both like and unlike others. Without
trivializing Einstein's genius, McPherson lets readers feel the great scientist's
excitement and frustration with his work. Explanations of Einstein's scientific
discoveries are clearly presented, as is the social context of Germany
between the wars and during the Nazi years. Photographs of Einstein, including
one of him at age five, are well chosen to leave some new visual memories
of the famous face. McPherson provides readers with a strong impression of
an independent mind at work--so strong, in fact, that children may wish they
could have met the genius. That's high praise for a biography.
| A fascinating close-up of the original absentminded professor, this book is a heartwarming account of someone to whom ideas were the most important things, and everything else was on the fringes. Einstein's well-known difficulties in school, shyness, inability to concentrate on anything which didn't interest him, and careless personal grooming are set in their proper place as eccentricities of a true genius whose mind was ceaselessly searching for more esoteric answers. The author takes special care with the often-ignored difficulties caused by the scientist's Jewish ancestry during the Nazi era and traces with great sensitivity the emergence of his pride in his people and the State of Israel. A wonderful biography for anyone, especially those interested in science.
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 Ask Albert Einstein By Lynne Barasch
Awards:
| A delightful story based on an article in the New York Times in 1952. Seven-year-old April idolizes her 15-year-old sister, Annabel, who can do almost anything but has trouble with math. The teen's teacher has given her one last chance to earn a decent grade by solving a particularly difficult problem. When Annabel cries, Who does she think I am, Albert Einstein? April's curiosity and compassion for her sister result in a surprising solution to the whole dilemma, as well as to the math problem. After doing a little research about the famous scientist's life, she decides to write him a letter describing her sister's situation. He responds in an unusual, but ultimately helpful way. According to an author's note, Einstein really did find the time to go over equations with children who asked for assistance. Barasch provides a refreshing mix of genres and subjects that will appeal to many readers. The nostalgic cartoon illustrations and numerous quotes from the international figure add charm to this enchanting tale. This charming picture book biography will engage young readers in the life of the brilliant scientist. Albert Einstein would frequently answer children's arithmetic, which became the basis for a New York Times article in 1952. In this fictionalized picture book based on that incident, Annabel, a struggling high school student must complete a challenging math problem in order to pass her math class. When her younger sister, April, overhears her exclaim, "Who does [the teacher] think I am, Albert Einstein?", April comes up with an idea. She copies her sister's math problem and mails it to Albert Einstein. Sure enough, a few days later, a letter appears from Einstein. While Einstein doesn't give Annabel the exact answer, he gives her a mathematical hint that helps her figure out the solution on her own. Barasch brings the human side of Albert Einstein to the forefront in this brief snippet of his life. She gives a brief background on Einstein's life to introduce readers who may not be familiar with who he is. A copy of the math problem and solution are also included, although the young readers to whom the story is directed will probably not be able to understand the higher level math problem. The whimsical watercolor-and-ink pictures enhance the lighthearted nature of this story. An excellent choice for elementary school readers.
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 Albert Einstein By Stephanie Sammartino McPherson
Albert Einstein is considered a genius by most people, but when he was young, he was expelled from school! He eventually completed his education and went on to realize his dreams of becoming a science professor. Famous for his wild hair, rumpled clothing, and the brilliant ideas that won him the Nobel Prize, Einstein discovered several scientific theories about space, time, gravity, matter, and energy. His ideas became known as the Theories of Relativity, two of the most important and complex theories in science.
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 Albert Einstein : Young Thinker
All children know who Albert Einstein grew up to be--but what was he like as a
child? The clear text in this book is enhanced by illustrations and paintings,
documents and photographs from the Smithsonian and the National Gallery.
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 People Who Made History: Albert Einstein By Clarice Swisher
Albert Einstein developed theories in the first decades of the twentieth century that overturned a two-hundred-year-old view of the universe and changed the course of physics. This anthology chronicles the influences on Einstein's development as a scientist, his work in physics, his fame and espoused causes, and his work in America.
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 The World in the Time of Albert Einstein By Fiona MacDonald
Possibly the most intelligent man of our time, little is known about the personal man. Learn more about the real Einstein in this book.
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 Albert Einstein: Genius Behind the Theory of Relativity By Fiona MacDonald
Albert Einstein is one of the most famous scientists that has ever lived. During his time, he was an international celebrity with great influence. Like Isaac Newton before him, Einstein profoundly changed our understanding of the world with his theories of how the universe is structured.
| His Theory of Relativity -- which put forth new ways to measure time and space -- affected nearly every field of science. Einstein also made major breakthroughs in the field of quantum mechanics, which deals with sub-atomic particles such as electrons, protons, and neutrons. His work in this area eventually led to the creation and utilization of the first atomic bomb. Each book in the Giants of Science series presents the life and work of a famous scientist, social scientist, or inventor. The illustrations, many in color, include period photographs, drawings, and paintings, as well as artifacts and documents. Though fairly short, the discussions are coherent and well organized ... Albert Einstein describes the physicist's childhood, education, revolutionary theories, personal life, political outlook, and international awards. Each book ends with a discussion of the scientist's legacy, a chronology, a glossary, and a brief list of resources.
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 Albert Einstein : Physicist and Genius By Joyce Goldenstern
Albert Einstein was a fascinating individual. As a child, he did poorly in school,
partly because he did not respond to the structured German education. . . . Not
until many years later was his genius appreciated. This book helps the reader
understand some of the concepts Einstein introduced to the world. . . . Young
readers will find this book quite useful. . . . The biographicalinformation is
briefer than that in Karin Ireland's Albert Einstein, which isintended for a
slightly older audience.
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