About this item
Grade 2-5-These biographies include all the basic facts that most students need for reports, but they do not bring the subjects to life. The writing is dry, and there is no more information here than can be found in a collective biography or encyclopedia. Also, the books do not give readers a sense of American life during the mid-20th century. Kennedy is worse than King. Once JFK has entered politics, the chronology jumps around and is difficult to follow. There are statements that are not quite right but not totally wrong-and it seems inappropriate to say that the president was murdered, instead of assassinated. On the other hand, King offers some sense of the man and his desire and hopes for an end to racism. Both books are full of mainly black-and-white photographs-many of them well known and representative of the men; others do not seem to have a point.
About the Author
Lucia Tarbox Raatma was born in Georgetown, South Carolina, and grew up on the grounds of Brookgreen Gardens, an outdoor sculpture garden and wildlife park. She earned a B.A. in English from the University of South Carolina in and went on to earn an M.A. in cinema studies from New York University. She was a copy editor for G. P. Putnam's Sons and later served as managing editor. After working freelance for a few years while she and her husband, Andy, started a family, Lucia was a copy editor at Reader's Digest magazine. Later, she served as a content writer and editor for a social media company and has worked in higher education communications. Currently, she lives in the Tampa Bay area with Andy and their two children, Lizzie and Alex. She enjoys writing a variety of books for the children's educational market.
