(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Qi Wang. These books adequately narrate the major events in the lives of their subjects: Alcott's writing to provide for her family, Mozart's musical precocity, Jones's rise in naval rank and unwillingness to accept defeat, and Whitney's invention of the cotton gin. Black-and-white drawings illustrate the texts, whose styles range from Aller's reasonable fluidity to Allman's rather abrupt account. List of works (Mozart and Alcott). Bib., ind. Review covers these Creative Minds Biography titles: Beyond Little Women, Musical Genius, I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight, and Maker of Machines.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Janet Hamlin. These books adequately narrate the major events in the lives of their subjects: Alcott's writing to provide for her family, Mozart's musical precocity, Jones's rise in naval rank and unwillingness to accept defeat, and Whitney's invention of the cotton gin. Black-and-white drawings illustrate the texts, whose styles range from Aller's reasonable fluidity to Allman's rather abrupt account. List of works (Mozart and Alcott). Bib., ind. Review covers these Creative Minds Biography titles: Beyond Little Women, Musical Genius, I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight, and Maker of Machines.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Paul Casale. These books adequately narrate the major events in the lives of their subjects: Alcott's writing to provide for her family, Mozart's musical precocity, Jones's rise in naval rank and unwillingness to accept defeat, and Whitney's invention of the cotton gin. Black-and-white drawings illustrate the texts, whose styles range from Aller's reasonable fluidity to Allman's rather abrupt account. List of works (Mozart and Alcott). Bib., ind. Review covers these Creative Minds Biography titles: Beyond Little Women, Musical Genius, I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight, and Maker of Machines.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Jan Naimo Jones. These books adequately narrate the major events in the lives of their subjects: Alcott's writing to provide for her family, Mozart's musical precocity, Jones's rise in naval rank and unwillingness to accept defeat, and Whitney's invention of the cotton gin. Black-and-white drawings illustrate the texts, whose styles range from Aller's reasonable fluidity to Allman's rather abrupt account. List of works (Mozart and Alcott). Bib., ind. Review covers these Creative Minds Biography titles: Beyond Little Women, Musical Genius, I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight, and Maker of Machines.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Lisa Harvey. Born in London in 1644, William Penn rebelled against his naval-officer father by joining the Society of Friends. Living through the Protectorate, plague, and Great Fire, he emigrated to establish the colony of Pennsylvania on land granted by King Charles II. Swain recounts Penn's life in accurate details that sometimes overwhelm the trajectory of the narrative. Black-and-white drawings accompany the text. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(3) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Ralph L. Ramstad. Written in narrative form, this biography traces the life of Levi Coffin, a Quaker who helped establish the Underground Railroad. Beginning with his youth and ending with his death, the biography smoothly conveys how Coffin's work grew out of his youthful moral vision and Quaker background. Black-and-white line drawings accompany each chapter. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Jim St. Claire

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Jeni Reeves. The first few pages of this biography have the feel of historical fiction, but it is soon clear that this work is well-researched nonfiction. Despite a somewhat flat writing style, Weidt offers a solid introduction to the life of one of the great abolitionist leaders in African-American history. The text is accompanied by black-and-white line drawings. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Mary O'Keefe Young. An early Massachusetts feminist and abolitionist, Lydia Maria Child wrote novels and edited newspapers dedicated to swaying public opinion against slavery. This introductory biography presents her life in unadorned prose, although many of her emotions and states of mind are not attributed to a source. Simple black-and-white pencil drawings illustrate the volume. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Karen Ritz. This biography tells the story of the nineteenth-century Native American leader Ely Parker, who grew up on a Seneca Indian reservation but later moved into the white world to practice law, defend the rights of his people, and serve as a U.S. Army general. His story is told in a readable though somewhat dry text, which is accompanied by dark, static illustrations. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(3) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Karen Ritz. Despite an unattractive cover, this biography of Sarah and Angelina Grimké is an engaging read. Born into white Southern privilege in 1792 and 1805, respectively, the sisters became social activists for abolition and women's rights. Both women braved danger and scorn by speaking out publicly and traveling throughout the country with their message. Adequate black-and-white drawings accompany the well-written text. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Ellen Beier. This is a smoothly written, if not especially riveting, biography. Born during the Civil War to former slaves, Mary Church broke barriers by going to college, traveling widely, and focusing on a career in teaching. She married Robert Terrell, the first African American to be appointed a federal judge, and devoted her later life to fighting for civil rights and against Jim Crow laws. Black-and-white drawings accompany her story. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee