(3) 4-6 Sterling Biographies series. The exciting and, by this time, well-known life of Hamilton is engagingly detailed in this handsome and diminutive volume. Full-color paintings and maps are featured throughout, along with frequent sidebars that elaborate on other historical people, places, and events. What emerges is a well-rounded account of his life and times, elevated by breadth and scope. Timeline. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Kristy Pasquariello

(4) K-3 I Can Read Book series. Illustrated by Chin Ko. These early-reader biographies offer simple narratives that touch on highlights of these (frequently covered) subjects' lives. Large font is surrounded by plenty of white space to aid emerging readers. The cartoonlike illustrations are slick but occasionally emotive; an appendix includes photographs and/or period paintings as well as contextual information. Timeline. Review covers these I Can Read Book titles: Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, and Martin Luther King Jr.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(3) YA This novel centers on the friendship between Alexander Hamilton and Peggy Schuyler, whom Alexander recruits to help him win her sister Eliza's affections, even while the tension and danger of war are foremost in everyone's lives. Entertaining and interesting, the story is steeped in Revolutionary War history and enriched with excerpted letters from the time. A lengthy afterword is appended. Bib.

Reviewer: Kristy Pasquariello

(3) K-3 Step into Reading series. Illustrated by Valerio Fabbretti. This easy-reader biography covers Eliza's wealthy childhood and upbringing; her marriage to Alexander Hamilton and their lives during the American Revolution; the tragic deaths by duel of her son and husband; and her later life devoted to charity and education. Solid, succinct explanations and cartoonlike illustrations provide a basic understanding of the woman's standing in American history.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Esmé Shapiro. In an imagined letter to her unborn great-granddaughter, Eliza recounts her life in parallel to her husband's role in the development of the U.S., while highlighting her own accomplishments as one of America's first female activists and philanthropists. Folk art–style mixed-media paintings capture the eighteenth-century era. Extensive endnotes fill in historical details and biographical facts excluded from the first-person, epistolary narrative. Timeline, websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(4) 4-6 Now in New York City, brainy middle-schoolers Sam, Theo, and Martina search for the third historical artifact hidden by a Founding Father. With Gideon Arnold (Benedict's descendant) and his goons still in hot pursuit, the kids race to crack ciphers, riddles, and American-history trivia questions--all related to Alexander Hamilton. It's the National Treasure formula yet again, but series fans likely won't mind.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(4) YA The dramatic tale of a "penniless nobody" who became a key player in the birth of a new nation is conveyed in a lively narrative occasionally marred by awkward phrasing and unusual design elements. Brockenbrough is less dispassionate biographer than cheerleader for Hamilton's legacy. Readers mature enough for this volume might skip to Ron Chernow's Alexander Hamilton. Timeline. Bib, ind.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider

(4) 4-6 Kanefield's thoroughly researched but tamped down biography of the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury offers a simplified introduction to his life and times. Direct quotes and letters appear throughout, offering great insight into Hamilton's complicated character and his interactions with other founding fathers. Paintings, documents, and occasional sidebars provide additional context. Samples of his writing are appended. Timeline. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(4) 4-6 Who HQ: Who Was...? series. Illustrated by Dede Putra. Grosset's long-running Who Was...? series is re-branded. These readable, informative biographies are marred only by the caricatured cover illustrations (typical of the classic series) and interior pencil illustrations that are inconsistent in style. Otherwise, these will give young readers a good sense of who these people were (or are). Occasional full- and double-page text boxes successfully illuminate related topics. Timeline. Bib. Review covers these Who HQ: Who Was...? titles: Who Was Jane Austen?, Who Was Chuck Jones?, Who Was Coretta Scott King?, Who Is Ralph Lauren? Who Was Alexander Hamilton?, Who Was Lewis Carroll?, Who Is Pope Francis?, and Who Was Andrew Jackson?.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Elizabeth Baddeley. Quirk employs a breezy, conversational tone to explore four of the famous feuds of early American history, beginning with King George III and George Washington. Sections start with illustrative epigraphs from both participants; dates are frequently provided as chapter heads to orient readers in history. Piquant quotes and revealing anecdotes bring this briskly paced, humorously illustrated historical survey to life. Websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2017

(2) K-3 A compare/contrast pattern introduces founding fathers Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, who "found themselves in opposing political camps." The politics behind the 1800 election (in which Burr ran for president) take a back seat to their personal animosity. Near-impressionistic pen and watercolor illustrations strengthen this divide between the men. Brown's brief overview provides young readers with placeholders for later, more sophisticated study of the men. Bib.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2015

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Ian Schoenherr. Carefully researched and beautifully designed (including well-selected woodcuts and art reproductions), this offering from veteran biographer Fritz introduces Alexander Hamilton. Readers' appreciation of this cradle-to-grave biography would be enhanced through prior knowledge of the man; Hamilton's place in history and value to an emerging nation don't emerge until almost halfway through the book. Explanatory notes are appended. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Betty Carter

(2) 4-6 The narrative unfolds first with a tantalizing preview of the duel, then with alternating but not strictly linear profiles of Hamilton and Burr, and finally with the outcome and consequences of the duel. St. George employs the dual biography format with facility and flair, bringing these two historical figures to life, along with their unceasingly fascinating feud. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2009

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Larry Day. Concentrating on personalities rather than larger political questions, Fradin describes the early years of Burr and Hamilton, what the men had in common, and the beginnings of their animosity. Day's ink, watercolor, and gouache illustrations beautifully pace the narrative, highlighting the hostility between the two by shifting perspectives throughout. A brief sidebar about the demise of dueling is appended. Reading list. Bib.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2008

(4) 4-6 America's Founding Fathers series. Although these laudatory biographies gloss over the more controversial aspects of their subjects' lives and characters (Washington's involvement in an attack on a diplomatic party, Hamilton's and Jefferson's respective mudslinging campaigns), they will provide report writers with basic information. Black-and-white images appear throughout. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these America's Founding Fathers titles: George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and Thomas Jefferson.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman