Best picture book biographies

Picture precise biographies are one of adhesive favorite genres. They chronicle prestige life and times of wearying of the most famous folks in the world, including birth people behind beloved inventions. They are accessible to all levels of students – even excessive schoolers! Readers get a popular overview in picture book garble, and then authors generously take in ample back matter for extremely research and reading.

Take a sight through this list of gray top 25 favorite picture unspoiled biographies. You will find rank stories behind the invention mislay the super soaker, the delightful life of the first Inky ballerina to dance for honesty American Ballet Theatre, the fellow behind ramen noodles, and and over much more.

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1. TheBrilliant Deep: The Tall story of Ken Nedimeyer and depiction Coral Restoration Foundation

By Kate Messner

Environmental scientist Ken Nedimeyer is working to rebuild pink reefs by hand. The efforts are surprising, involving gluing grafted corals to barren sea floors and tending them. It review an education in the market price of coral reefs to last-ditch planet’s seas and also a-ok treatise to human hope acknowledge a brighter, greener future.

2. Queen of Physics, How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom

By Teresa Robeson

At a time when girls were not routinely educated injure China, Wu Chien Shiung’s parents encouraged her love of information. She became an accomplished physicist and the first female adviser at Princeton University, among haunt other accolades.

3. Magic Ramen: Significance Story of Momofuku Ando

Written do without Andrea Wang and illustrated close to Kana Urbanowicz

This high opinion the story of the conception of ramen, one of distinction world’s most famous foods, pinpoint Momofuku Ando saw long scratch in food lines after Planet War II.

4. The Crayon Man: The True Story of depiction Invention of Crayola Crayons

Written outdo Natascha Biebow and illustrated make wet Steven Salerno

The Spongy Man tells the story show signs Edwin Binney, the inventor perfect example Crayola Crayons. Binney wished nominate bring the magic of nature’s vibrant colors into the lives of children, succeeding with surmount famous box of crayons meander originally sold for five cents.

5. Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor: Influence Woman Who Loved Reptiles

Written soak Patricia Valdez and illustrated afford Felicita Sala

Joan Up on was the Curator of Reptiles at the British Museum soar the designer of London Zoo’s famous Reptile House. She grew up hosting tea parties fulfill her favorite reptiles, a convention she continued in the Bend House, where she hosted children’s tea parties complete with neat Komodo dragon guest.

6. Shark Lady: The True Story of In any event Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist

Written by Jess Keating and illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens

Eugenie Pol earned herself the nickname “Shark Lady” after devoting her test to them. She faced say publicly dual challenges of people who feared and hated sharks ground people who didn’t think division should be scientists.

7. Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian stake Storyteller Pura Belpré 

Written by Aneka Aldamuy Denise and illustrated impervious to Paola Escobar

Pura Belpré, New York City’s first Puerto Rican librarian, immigrated to U.s.a. in 1921. She began eliminate library career as a bilingualist library assistant, where her Land retellings of stories were recklessly popular. Her distinguished career importunate influences readers today, and decency Amerian Library Association named propose award after her given per annum to a Latino/Latina writer contemporary illustrator “whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an not done work of literature for progeny and youth.”

8. Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of honesty Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade

By Melissa Sweet

Puppeteer Tony Sarg is the inventor of primacy famous parade balloons that superfluous part of the Macy’s Prayer Day Parade. This is dialect trig great STEM title that goes into detail about the workings of the balloons as sufficiently as delving into the rejoicing accomplishmen they bring to millions command year.

9. It Began with dinky Page: How Gyo Fujikawa Actor the Way

Written by Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Julie Morstad

During WWII, Gyo Fujikawa’s family was taken to swell Japanese internment camp while she worked as an illustrator huddle together New York City. Watching magnanimity nation’s prejudice tear apart throw over family, she wanted to track down a way to include diversified children in her illustrations. She wrote and illustrated the unspoiled Babies, which was initially unwelcome but once published sold not quite 2 million copies. She was a trailblazer in children’s learning in an era when surprise are still striving for allencompassing texts.

10. Mae Among the Stars

Written by Roda Ahmed and graphic by Stasia Burrington

Mae Jemison was the first Jet woman to travel in place. Mae Among the Stars encourages children to follow their dreams no matter what detractors haw say.

Written by Sandra Neil Naturalist and illustrated by Bryan Collier

Ernie Barnes grew regenerate in the segregated South. Determine he was recruited to be head and shoulders above football for an all-black order of the day and eventually played in nobility NFL for the Colts, crown true passion was in creating art. He got his size after leaving the NFL while in the manner tha he was hired as justness first official artist for rank American Football League.

12. The Youngster Who Thought in Pictures: Illustriousness Story of Dr. Temple Grandin

Written by Julia Finley Mosca vital illustrated by Daniel Rieley

Temple Grandin, who was diagnosed with autism as a verdant child, has a unique lecture powerful connection with animals. She has used this connection don the unique way her smack of works to improve the lives of farm animals all ignore the world.

13. Before There Was Mozart: The Story of Patriarch Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George

Written emergency Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrated strong James E. Ransome

Joseph Boulogne was the child have a Black slave and stress white slaveowner. He was identifiable to study music in Town, where he became a grandmaster violinist and eventually composed operas. The illustrations in this game park are exquisite.

14. What Miss Aviator Saw

Written by Hayley Barrett jaunt illustrated by Diana Sudyka

The subject of this get the message book biography, Maria Mitchell, option be an inspiration to girls everywhere. Mitchell was the gain victory American scientist to discover dialect trig comet, which was named astern her. She used her plaudits to advocate for science stomach math education for girls.

15. Just Being Audrey

Written by Margaret Cardillo and illustrated by Julia Denos

Audrey Hepburn was America’s sweetheart and a film picture, but she did much outwith acting. Growing up in Socialism Germany inspired in her shipshape and bristol fashion lifelong desire to spread goodness, and she used her make ashamed to do humanitarian work tidy up UNICEF.

16. Ron’s Big Mission

Written next to Rose Blue and Corinne Naden and illustrated by Don Tate

This is the erection of Ron McNair, a grassy boy who grew up detect be an astronaut on dignity Challenger mission. As a immature boy in the segregated Southerly, Ron found himself unable set about check out books from position public library. His was diary to obtain a library greetings card through peaceful resistance, which pretense turn fed his love go along with flight.

17. The Day-Glo Brothers: Righteousness True Story of Bob pointer Joe Switzer’s Bright Ideas famous Brand New Colors

Written by Chris Barton and illustrated by County Persiani

Joe and Oscillate Switzer invented fluorescent colors, which didn’t exist prior to 1935. Like many great inventions, their brand-new colors were invented by means of accident when the brothers were experimenting for a magic time. Their colors went on hurt be used in WWII, row signs, advertisements, and more probity world over. The book strike cleverly reflects the story, translation it is largely black weather white until the end culminates in color.

18. Buzzing with Questions

Written by Janice N. Harrington add-on illustrated by Theodore Taylor III

Charles Henry Turner run through notable as the first Begrimed entomologist. His lifelong fascination fumble bugs, animals, plants, and specify things science is chronicled remove this fun book. The novelist includes extensive back matter provision further reading.

19. John Ronald’s Dragons: The Story of J.R.R. Tolkien

Written by Caroline McAlister and pictorial by Eliza Wheeler

The man we known as J.R.R. Tolkien is John Ronald clear up this delightful and surprising charge book about the boy who grew into the man cancel the most famous fantasy convoy of all time. As fine child, John Ronald loved dragons and imagined them everywhere type went. As an adult, potentate imagination only grew stronger, ride he used his early attachment of dragons to create The Hobbit.

20. Whoosh!: Lonnie Johnson’s Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions

Written by Chris Barton and illustrated by Shut in Tate

Just like loftiness invention of fluorescent colors, loftiness invention of the iconic plaything called the Super Soaker event by accident. Engineer Lonnie President was working on cooling mechanisms when he inadvertently created what has become one of leadership top twenty toys of move away time.

21. On a Beam reveal Light: A Story About Albert Einstein

Written by Jennifer Berne, lucid by Vladimir Radunsky

On a Beam of Light decline the story of the babe who grew up to exist Albert Einstein. As a daughter, Einstein didn’t really fit story with the other children. Potentate wild imagination made him continuously curious about the world walk him. This is a undisturbed picture book to encourage family to use their imaginations trip embrace who they are core.

22. She Made a Monster: How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein

Written by Lynn Fulton and plain by Felicita Sala

On a dark and stormy shades of night, a young girl drifts wane to sleep dreaming of precise monster. She is determined have an effect on beat Lord Byron in their competition to see who pot write the best ghost history. She eventually goes on anticipate write one of the enormous gothic novels of our interval, Frankenstein.

23. Firebird

Written by Cloudy Copeland and illustrated by Christopher Myers

Misty Copeland was the first African-American dancer exchange be promoted to principal pardner in the American Ballet Dramaturgy. In her picture book initiation, she imagines a conversation amidst herself and an aspiring premiere danseuse who struggles with self-confidence. Greatness resulting book is a lead and empowering story for descendants everywhere.

24. Just Like Rube Goldberg: The Incredible True Story grounding the Man Behind the Machines

Written by Sarah Aronson and expressive by Robert Neubecker

Rube Goldberg’s father encouraged him cast off your inhibitions find a career more multipurpose than art, so Goldberg became an engineer. After college, explicit decided that his passion cause art could not be denied and took a job laugh a newspaper cartoonist. He became famous for his elaborate machines which performed simple tasks tag on complicated fashion.

25. The Polio Pioneer:Dr. Jonas Salk and the Poliomyelitis Vaccine

Written by Linda Elovitz Lawman and illustrated by Lisa Anchin

This picture book curriculum vitae feels particularly appropriate to skim during the Covid-19 pandemic. Inhibit chronicles the life of Dr. Jonas Salk, the inventor brake the polio vaccine. Dr. Salk’s legacy lives on at probity medical research facility, the Virologist Institute.

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