Good biography for a 12 year old?

[jennz]

Hello everyone! I was going through dd's school papers a few minutes ago and see has to start reading a biography or autobiography this week. Of course this is the first I've known about it and we don't have a book! Does anyone have recommendations for a 7th grader?

Thanks!

 

[onyx8]

I had a biography of Walt Disney when I was about that age, it was written for kids.


Here it is: http://www.amazon.com/Story-Walt-Disney-Yearling-Biography/dp/0440402409/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1286624660&sr=1-3

 

[brymolmom]

For a 7th grader I would let him/her really decide and do the research. Have him/her think about areas of interest (sports, Disney World, musicians, actors, etc.) - and then have him/her go online at Amazon or wherever to find biographies available - then I'd check the local library to see if they have that book and help him/her put it on hold.

 

[jennz]

Thanks for the Disney suggestion!

Usually dd does pick out her own books. She is an avid reader. However since this is her first venture into biographies and she has to have it tomorrow I was just looking for a few recommendations for young adult-level biographies so I can give her a few options. Actually what she ends up with will probably be what we can get at the library or the bookstore today.

 

[laughinplace199]

DD11 read Walt Disney An American Original this summer. She really liked it.

 

[JB2K]

Walt Disney is an excellent idea -- just have the youngsters remember that he was already gone by the time WDW opened in 1971 (he passed-away in '66).

However, much can be written about his career and the opening of Disneyland, which he very much had a hand in...

 

[teacherlisa1978]

"Small Steps" by Peg Kehret. It's about a young girl who got polio and spent almost a year in the hospital. Kids now are amazed at changes in sickness, hospitals, and care, and many have never heard if polio at all. It's a great read, and absorbing.

 

[Hannathy]

I hardly think a 7th grader would be reading a kids book!

Who does she want to read about? I would just have her think about what area interests her and then look for a person in that category.

That is a great category and really allows kids to personalize their choices.

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

I like it when young girls read stories about women. My personal hero growing up was Amelia Earhart. Some other good choices would be Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Elanor Roosevelt. My DD liked the Sasha Cohen book Fire and Ice. She also just read the Miley Cyrus auto biography.

 

[csharpwv]

I love reading biographies - and have since I was in middle school. Here are a few that captured my imagination around that age:

Florence Nightingale
Clara Barton
FDR
Amelia Earhart
Helen Keller
Chuck Yeager
Thomas Jefferson
Ben Franklin
Albert Einstein
Henry Ford
Both Walt & Roy Disney
St. Francis of Assisi
Elizabeth Ann Seton
Cesar Chavez
Abraham Lincoln (one of the most important of historical context to my home state of WV!)

in recent years I have found the Hilton Conrad biography very interesting.
I'm just getting ready to dive into a huge Roy Disney biography - as soon as I finish the book I'm currently reading.

As a PP said - definitely figure your child's interests into directing them into the selection process with them.

Biographies can be so much fun - and with the knowledge of people that have changed the world around the some completely by personal determination - some by total accident, biographic reading can be life changing!

 

[Malibustyle23]

Diary of Anne Frank is thee title that comes to mind.

 

[dislal]

Diary of Anne Frank is thee title that comes to mind.

My DD12 is reading this for her reading class right now. They are reading it as a group and discussing it as they go along.

 

[MEG&MINNIE]

My children have done: Walt Disney, Oprah,and Clara Barton (Founder of The American Red Cross). Happy reading !

 

[dawson5]

When I was a kid, I remember reading about Annie Oakley.

 

[Deesknee]

Princess Diana. My son loved the biography of Louis Armstrong. That was 7 years ago, and he still mentions on occassion how amazing he was.

 

[allison443]

Our library had a whole section specifically labeled "biographies" which was great. For a while I was having my dd pick out a biography whenever we went to the library (about every two weeks). I didn't care if it was below her reading level, it was more to give her background on well known people and also experience with reading nonfiction.
A few times she did get biographies of Olympic ice skaters, or gymnasts, but other times she read books about Amelia Earhart, Florence Nightingale, Martin Luther King, Juliette Gordon Low, a few presidents, scientists, etc. Very worthwhile.

I agree that it's such a great area of reading for kids to pick what they are interested in!

 

[At World's End]

In 7th grade I read a biography about Nelson Mandela that truly changed my life and how I viewed the world. At that time he was still in prison and apartheid was still in force in S. Africa. Knowing how much he has changed the world since that time makes his life's story that much more amazing.

 

[petlvr1064]

i second small steps it a really good book i have it and have read it a few times. The diary of ann frank might be two hard and two much for a 7 grader i am an avid reader verry intristed in that period but have never been able to tackel that book.

 

[Magic Mom]

i second small steps it a really good book i have it and have read it a few times. The diary of ann frank might be two hard and two much for a 7 grader i am an avid reader verry intristed in that period but have never been able to tackel that book.

The topic of Anne Frank may be too intense for some 7th graders, but not most and it's 6th grade level book, so it shouldn't be too difficult for that age group.

 

[allison443]

The topic of Anne Frank may be too intense for some 7th graders, but not most and it's 6th grade level book, so it shouldn't be too difficult for that age group.

I agree, my dd's class read this in school in 7th grade.