Barack Obama: 44th US President

Gr 1–2—These books are a wonderful way to introduce young readers to nonfiction and biographical research. Each one begins with the subject's childhood, with stories that will have appeal to children. The narratives progress through adolescence and adulthood, highlighting personal and professional accomplishments as well as various setbacks. The texts are accurate and aptly touch on the social issues of the period in ways that are appropriate for curious young minds. On each spread, a full-color, full-page, captioned illustration faces one to three paragraphs of simple text. Fact boxes appear throughout the books. The illustrations are colorful but the covers make the books look old-fashioned. These titles will appeal to beginning readers with little background knowledge of the featured luminaries.—Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE