James Madison

April 1, 2003
Gr 3-5-The authors of these biographies discuss aspects of the featured man's life and accomplishments. The titles in the "Childhoods of the Presidents" series recount the president's life from birth up through early adulthood, concluding with an overview of his administrative years. The biographies in the "Profiles of the Presidents" series conversely provide a brief introductory chapter on the man's childhood and formative years, and what led to his eventual leadership roles, and then focus on his adult life, employment, and administration. All of the authors attempt to incorporate the appropriate historical perspective, although the titles in "Profiles" present more facts about the issues involved. "Childhoods" includes boxed fact inserts in the margins. "Profiles" has a nicely illustrated time line depicting both the figure's life and world events. The texts are enhanced with reproductions and photographs of landmarks. None of the books has much depth. Better, more inclusive biographies include Jean Fritz's The Great Little Madison (Putnam, 1989) and Karin C. Farley's Harry S. Truman (Messner, 1989; o.p.).-Rita Soltan, formerly at Baldwin Public Library, Birmingham, MI

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