My choice for nonfiction Monday this week is Alexander Graham Bell, written by Victoria Sherrow and illustrated by Elaine Verstraete.This is an On My Own Biography published by Carolrhoda Books.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I found the story of Aleck’s early life interesting, and enjoyed the way he tried to make his dog talk. Just the thing that a boy would do. I appreciated, too, that the author pointed out that Aleck was not good in math and Latin while he excelled at science. A child doesn’t have to be a jack of all trades and an expert of none. It is good to nurture strengths and not worry too much about weaknesses. Children who are not good at geography can still do great things in other areas.
I loved the illustrations in this book, too. They are lively and warm and the facial expressions made me want to know the people. Aleck’s family seemed like a loving, close-knit family, so it makes sense that Aleck grew up loving art and music and science but devoting much of his life to helping deaf people.
This is a great book for an early reader (first or second grade) to enjoy. It sketches out Aleck’s story in broad, but interesting, strokes, and makes me want to get more books about him so I can learn more.
For more reviews of nonfiction books visit Great Books for Kids to see this weeks roundup.
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tags: alexander graham bell, elaine verstraete, victoria sherrow
His childlike curiosity was key. Alexander Graham Bell had a remarkable impact in so many ways. I commend to you the article “Alexander Graham Bell: Inventing the Future”: http://bit.ly/9VpXV8