In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 7, 1915, Sadie Fagan gave birth to a daughter. She named her Eleanora. The world, however, would know her as Billie Holiday, possibly the greatest jazz singer of all time.
Eleanora's journey into legend took her through pain, poverty, and run-ins with the law. By the time she was fifteen, she knew she possessed something that could possibly change her life—a voice. Eleanora could sing.
That remarkable voice led her to Harlem nightclubs, the Apollo Theater, and a place in the spotlight with some of the era's hottest big bands. Billie Holiday sang from somewhere inside her that made it seem as if she had lived each lyric, and in
many ways she had. This unique talent is what made Billie Holiday more than a singer. She was an artist.
Through a sequence of raw and poignant poems that form the singer's fictional memoir, award-winning poet Carole Boston Weatherford chronicles Eleanora Fagan's metamorphosis into Billie Holiday. We hear the intimate voice of the artist
as she examines her young life, her fight for survival, and the dream she pursued with passion.
The first memoir for young readers by sports legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. At one time, Lew Alcindor was just another kid from New York City with all the usual problems: He struggled with fitting in, with pleasing a strict father, and with overcoming shyness that made him feel socially awkward. But with a talent for basketball, and an unmatched team of supporters, Lew Alcindor was able to transform and to become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. From a childhood made difficult by racism and prejudice to a record-smashing career on the basketball court as an adult, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's life was packed with "coaches" who taught him right from wrong and led him on the path to greatness.
His parents, coaches Jack Donahue and John Wooden, Muhammad Ali, Bruce Lee, and many others played important roles in Abdul-Jabbar's life and sparked him to become an activist for social change and advancement. The inspiration from those around him, and his drive to find his own path in life, are highlighted in this personal and awe-inspiriting journey. Written especially for young readers, Becoming Kareem chronicles how Kareem Abdul-Jabbar become the icon and legend he is today, both on and off the court.
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This middle-grade biography explores the life and works of Madeleine L'Engle --written by her granddaughters--coming just in time for the all-new A Wrinkle in Time film, directed by Ava DuVernay and featuring a multi-racial cast (release date: March 9, 2018).
Madeleine L'Engle (1918--2007) is the beloved author of A Wrinkle in Time, its sequels, and numerous other works for children and adults. Now, her granddaughters have written her biography with never-before-seen archival materials--including photographs, letters, and journal entries--from throughout the writer's life. BECOMING MADELEINE will speak not only to fans of the icon's work, but to anyone interested in writing, legacy, and the impact of one person on the people that love her.
The Pura Belpré Honor winner for The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano and one of America's most influential Hispanics--Maria on Sesame Street--delivers a beautifully wrought coming-of-age memoir.
Set in the 1970s in the Bronx, this is the story of a girl with a dream. Emmy Award-winning actress and writer Sonia Manzano plunges us into the daily lives of a Latino family that is loving--and troubled. This is Sonia's own story rendered with an unforgettable narrative power. When readers meet young Sonia, she is a child living amidst the squalor of a boisterous home that is filled with noisy relatives and nosy neighbors. Each day she is glued to the TV screen that blots out the painful realities of her existence and also illuminates the possibilities that lie ahead. But--click!--when the TV goes off, Sonia is taken back to real life--the cramped, colorful world of her neighborhood and an alcoholic father. But it is Sonia's dream of becoming an actress that keeps her afloat among the turbulence of her life and times.
Spiced with culture, heartache, and humor, this memoir paints a lasting portrait of a girl's resilience as she grows up to become an inspiration to millions.
From two heavy-hitters in children's literature comes a critically acclaimed biographical novel of cultural icon Muhammad Ali.
*'This utterly delightful story about Ali's childhood is a smash hit.' --School Library Journal (starred review)
Five starred reviews!
Before he was a household name, Cassius Clay was a kid with struggles like any other. Kwame Alexander and James Patterson join forces to vividly depict his life up to age seventeen in both prose and verse, including his childhood friends, struggles in school, the racism he faced, and his discovery of boxing. Readers will learn about Cassius' family and neighbors in Louisville, Kentucky, and how, after a thief stole his bike, Cassius began training as an amateur boxer at age twelve. Before long, he won his first Golden Gloves bout and began his transformation into the unrivaled Muhammad Ali.
Fully authorized by and written in cooperation with the Muhammad Ali estate, and vividly brought to life by Dawud Anyabwile's dynamic artwork, Becoming Muhammad Ali captures the budding charisma and youthful personality of one of the greatest sports heroes of all time.
Are you a Belieber?
Justin Bieber’s meteoric rise from a regular kid in small-town Canada to “the most famous teenager on the planet” has captivated the imagination of a generation of young devotees known as “Beliebers.” With record-setting album sales, more than 11 million followers on Twitter and the highest-grossing concert film of all time, the 17-year-old pop star has legions of fans around the globe who hang on his every word.
Is there something more to Bieber’s unprecedented success than his innate cuteness and preternatural musical talents? Could a powerful spiritual yearning be lurking behind all the purple and puppy-love lyrics?
With the keen eye of a veteran religion journalist and culture watcher, Cathleen Falsani takes an in-depth look at how the bold yet humble faith of this teenage uber-celebrity is not only a key to his staggering popularity, but an influence that is shaping the lives and hearts of young people (and more than a few of their parents) worldwide.
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He was popular with his troops. And he was such a good soldier that Benedict Arnold became a major general in the Colonial Army. So how did a Revolutionary hero become known as one of the earliest spies in U.S. history? HIDDEN HISTORY books share the important roles these men and women played in our nation's history as spies -- hidden in plain sight.
Sure, almost all kids know Benjamin Franklin as one of America’s Founding Fathers, a man with a hand in both the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. And they may even have some vague idea that he once flew a kite during a lightning storm. What Kathleen Krull sets out to do in this very different biography is show Ben Franklin as the “natural philosopher” (the term for scientists back in the 1700s), whose experiments led to important discoveries about the nature of electricity—including his famous demonstration that electricity and lightning were one and the same.
As always, this much-lauded series presents a true Giant of Science in a juicily anecdotal way. This is social history at its best … who knew that Franklin became such a megastar that Paris shops sold Ben dolls, Ben ashtrays, and even Ben wallpaper?
Witty and engaging, this is a worthy addition to the Giants of Science series.
Activist, motivational speaker, and daughter of Malcolm X Ilyasah Shabazz celebrates her mother's idealism and strength of character in a touching new YA audiobook. Betty Before X is the story of Dr. Betty Shabazz before she became a figurehead for the Civil Rights Movement.
In Detroit, 1945, eleven-year-old Betty's house doesn't quite feel like home. She believes her mother loves her, but she can't shake the feeling that her mother doesn't want her. Church helps those worries fade, if only for a little while. The singing, the preaching, the speeches from guest activists like Paul Robeson and Thurgood Marshall stir African Americans in her community to stand up for their rights. Betty quickly finds confidence and purpose in volunteering for the Housewives League, an organization that supports black-owned businesses. Soon, the American civil rights icon we now know as Dr. Betty Shabazz is born.
Inspired by Betty's real life--but expanded upon and fictionalized through collaboration with novelist Renée Watson--Ilyasah Shabazz illuminates four poignant years in her mother's childhood with this audiobook, painting an inspiring portrait of a girl overcoming the challenges of self-acceptance and belonging that will resonate with young listeners today.
Beyond Believable: An Excessive Volume of Mind-blowing Facts, Funny True Stories, and Insanely Interesting Information for People Who Know Too Much is not your average book. It’s a thrilling adventure into the world of the bizarre and the unknown.
With TWO BOOKS IN ONE, Better Than Balderdash and Untypical Tales, you will be transported into a world of crazy, weird, and fascinating facts that will make you the life of the party!
Book 1, Better Than Balderdash, will keep you on the edge of your seat with a collection of stories that sound too weird to be true. Did you know that the shortest war ever recorded lasted only 38 minutes? Or that a woman once survived falling out of an airplane without a parachute? Or that there is an island in Japan that is overrun by friendly bunnies? Get ready to discover some of the most insane and true facts in the world!
Book 2, Untypical Tales, is a collection of extraordinary stories that will challenge your understanding of the world. From Switzerland's strange rules about guinea pigs to the birth of the potato chip, you'll be amazed at the weird and wonderful world we live in.
With both books in one, Beyond Believable offers an extensive volume of fascinating facts and unbelievable true stories. The book is the perfect gift for anyone who loves trivia, or for those looking for something to spice up a long road trip or boring afternoon at home.
So, get ready for a fun-filled journey beyond your wildest imagination, where reality is stranger than fiction. With Beyond Believable, you will become the ultimate master of trivial knowledge, and never be lost for conversation starters again!
Under the noses of the German military and French police, Georges Loinger smuggles Jewish children out of occupied France into Switzerland. In Belgium, Youra Livchitz and two other resisters ambush a train destined for a death camp, allowing scores of Jews to flee from the cattle cars. Four brothers lead more than 1,200 ghetto refugees deep into the Byelorussian forest, where they build a partisan fighting force and self-sufficient village. Forced to make detonators for German bombs, Estusia Wajcblum smuggles out gunpowder, grain by grain, to be used to blow up the crematoriums in Auschwitz-Birkenau. Despite debilitating wounds to both his feet, fourteen-year-old Idel Kagan helps dig an escape tunnel out of a forced labor camp in Poland. Sarika Yehoshua forms an all-girl unit of guerrilla fighters in the mountains of Greece, teaching them to shed their traditional ways and become soldiers. And twelve-year-old Motele Shlayan entertains German officers with his violin moments before setting off a bomb. Through meticulously researched and stirring accounts - some well known and some chronicled here in book form for the first time - Doreen Rappaport brings to light the defiance of tens of thousands of Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II. These resisters answered the genocidal madness and unspeakable depravity that was Hitler's Holocaust with the greatest weapons of all - courage, ingenuity, the will to survive, and the resolve to save others or to die trying.
