(4) K-3 Illustrated by Eric Velasquez. In 1856, John Price and two other Kentucky slaves escape to Ohio, a free state. John and his friend Frank decide to settle in the welcoming town of Oberlin. When John is captured by slave hunters, hundreds of Oberlinians mobilize to rescue the fugitive slave. The story is compelling, but some overgeneralizing is unfortunate. Velasquez's static illustrations quietly extend the story. Reading list, websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Henrietta M. Smith

(2) YA Documenting the life of Zora Neale Hurston can present a challenge because she often lied about herself in print, beginning with the year of her birth. The Fradins make discrepancies part of the story, using Hurston's autobiographical tall tales to give readers a strong sense of her. Illustrated with carefully selected photographs, this biography is pleasurable as well as informative. Timeline. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Kathleen T. Horning | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2012

(3) YA In 1841 free black man Solomon Northup is kidnapped, sold into slavery, and shipped to Louisiana. Holding onto his love of music and his family, Northup endures twelve years of heartbreak and abuse. Faithful to his autobiography, the authors present an authentic account of slavery. Maps, archival photographs, and illustrations complement this stirring biography. Timeline, websites. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Tamara DePasquale

(4) 4-6 A combination of eyewitness stories and excellent, at times chilling, color photographs of tornadoes and the damage they can cause provide a captivating account of recent and historical tornado activity in the United States. The emphasis here is on witnessing the forces of nature and the technology of storm chasing, rather than explaining the underlying science. The accompanying diagrams could be better labeled. Reading list, websites. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(2) 4-6 Nobel Peace Prize winner Addams is remembered as a humanitarian, but she was despised as well as internationally admired during her lifetime. Illustrated with many photographs, this carefully documented and well developed account draws from Addams's own writings on the value of human life. The Fradins present a complex woman whose ideas are enduring and timely. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Margaret A. Bush | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2006

(2) YA In this biography of the civil rights crusader, chapters about Bates's founding, with her husband, of the weekly Arkansas State Press set the stage for the excellent account of their involvement with the 1957 integration of Little Rock's Central High School. The Fradins have a lively style and a smooth way of bringing a large cast of persons to life. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2005

(2) 4-6 Born to parents who had been slaves, Terrell spent a lifetime working to "promote the welfare of my race." The Fradins cover her life in mostly straightforward chronological fashion, illustrating the ironic juxtaposition that her privilege as an adult was what enabled her to fight injustice and racial prejudice. Black-and-white photos and archival images of the time period and Jim Crow segregation enhance the book. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2003

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Val Paul Taylor. The fast-paced biographies in this series do a good job of revealing the personalities and significant achievements of their subjects. Plentiful black-and-white illustrations and simple prose make the books particularly appealing to reluctant readers, and the brief sidebars never overwhelm the main texts. Each volume has two timelines--one for the subject's life, the other listing concurrent world events. [Review covers these titles: Who Was Albert Einstein?, Who Was Ben Franklin?, Who Was Sacagawea?, Who Was Annie Oakley?.]

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(2) 4-6 This well-substantiated biography uses Wells's autobiography, diaries, letters, and editorials to foreground her crusade against lynching. The archival black-and-white photographs include reproductions of some of Wells's publications and portraits of her and her family. The Fradins have remained constant to Wells as a person amidst the history, relating her documented feelings, choices, and motivations without extrapolation. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2000