Series: Who Was?

Learn how a young girl who lived on a Christmas tree farm grew up to become one of the most celebrated musical artists of the twenty-first century in this addition to the #1 New York Times bestselling series. Who Is Taylor Swift? explores the journey of Taylor Swift, who always knew she wanted to be a country music artist. At...

Everyone has heard of Albert Einstein—but what exactly did he do? How much do kids really know about Albert Einstein besides the funny hair and genius label? For instance, do they know that he was expelled from school as a kid? Finally, here's the story of Albert Einstein's life, told in a fun, engaging way that clearly explores the world...

Did you know that Bell's amazing invention--the telephone--stemmed from his work on teaching the deaf? Both his mother and wife were deaf. Or, did you know that in later years he refused to have a telephone in his study? Bell's story will fascinate young readers interested in the early history of modern technology! Did you know that Bell's amazing invention--the...

Alexander the Great conquers the New York Times best-selling Who Was...? series! Alexander the Great conquers the New York Times best-selling Who Was...? series! When Alexander was a boy in ancient Macedon, he already had grand ambitions. He complained that his father, the great king of Macedon, wasn't leaving anything for him to conquer! This, of course, was not the...

As a young boy, Charles Darwin hated school and was often scolded for conducting "useless" experiments. Yet his passion for the natural world was so strong that he suffered through terrible seasickness during his five-year voyage aboard The Beagle. Darwin collected new creatures from the coasts of Africa, South America, and the Galapagos Islands and expanded his groundbreaking ideas that...

He's known as "the Father of Modern Science," so of course Who Was Galileo? deserves a place in the Who Was...? series! Like Michelangelo, Galileo is another Renaissance great known just by his first name—a name that is synonymous with scientific achievement. Born in Pisa, Italy, in the sixteenth century, Galileo contributed to the era's great rebirth of knowledge. He...

Crikey! By popular demand, Steve Irwin "The Crocodile Hunter" is the winner of the Who Was...? 100th book contest! By popular demand, the 100th Who Was...? subject is Steve Irwin! Steve Irwin did not have a typical childhood. Born in Melbourne, Australia, on February 22, 1962, he was raised on the wildlife park his parents owned. He cared for the...

The beloved plays of Shakespeare are still produced everywhere, yet the life of the world's most famous playwright remains largely a mystery. Young Will left the town of Stratford to pursue theatre in London, where his work eventually thrived and made him a famous and wealthy man. With black-and-white illustrations that include a diagram of the famous Globe Theatre, Celeste...

When Portuguese sailor Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Spain in 1519, he believed he could get to the Spice Islands by sailing west through or around the New World. He was right, but what he didn't know was that the treacherous voyage would take him three years and cost him his life. Black-and-white line drawings illustrate Magellan's life and voyage,...