The Oxford Children's Book of Famous People - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195215176 ISBN 13: 9780195215175

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1999

Synopsis

Discover the famous and the infamous in this updated and expanded edition of The Oxford Children's Book of Famous People. This comprehensive, fully illustrated book tells the stories of over 1,000 women and men--politicians and statesmen, religious leaders, scientists, explorers, philosophers, artists, musicians, sports heroes and many more--who have shaped our world. Ancient rulers share the same page as 20th-century movie stars, giving an unusual but highly entertaining perspective on the range of people who have left their mark on our lives. The articles in this A-to-Z encyclopedia capture the essential facts about each person's life and major achievements. The information has been fully updated, and new biographies have been added. Thematic and chronological indices link people in time and by area of achievement.

About this title

Review

"An ambitious, authoritative undertaking that provides concise, alphabetically arranged biographical sketches on 1000 people.... Libraries with a need for a broad-reaching biographical resource will find this a beautifully formatted addition."--School Library Journal

"1000 of the most famous people the world has ever known, with a short biography of each illustrating accomplishments, failures, or crimes. Over 500 photographs, drawings, and maps complete the picture, and the alphabetical format and detailed introduction make the layout easy to understand. Kids will enjoy both new and familiar faces...and adults can sneak a peek to indulge a guilty pleasure."--Biography Magazine

"Most enjoyable... This is a great book for browsing and for stimulating interest in people who made a larger than usual contribution to history."--Boston Globe

"An old favorite has been updated for the millennium. From Yasser Arafat to Eleanor Roosevelt to Crazy Horse to Ferdinand Porsche, readers young and old will find fascinating information ready to hand."--Yellow Brick Road

Praise for the original edition:

"Your kids will love the readable style, the colorful illustrations and the references at the end of each entry.... Just a beautifully organized resource for 9-12 year olds"--Teaching K-8

"Pop culture stars like Madonna and Michael Jackson [will] keep kids browsing so that they will encounter the important figures from history attractively presented here."--Booklist

"Just try to pry this splendid traditional research book out of the hands of a curious young reader. The editors should be praised for the breadth of personalities--male and female--as well as the range of cultures included."--USA Today

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7-An ambitious, authoritative undertaking that provides concise, alphabetically arranged biographical sketches on 1000 people. The selections span the globe and time, covering lesser-known individuals such as the Scottish explorer Mungo Park and the Mughal emperor Akbar, to nationally known figures such as basketball's Michael Jordan and pop music's Madonna. Some entries have been updated, others deleted, and several added since the original edition (1995). Newcomers include Bill Gates, Princess Diana, Tony Blair, and Mark McGwire. A thematic directory (arranged by the person's area of achievement) and a chronology are appended. Full-color and black-and-white photographs, reproductions, maps, and drawings, often several to a page, illustrate the text. Because of the scope of the book and the brevity of the entries, this work will be most useful for identification purposes and as a browsing item. Libraries owning the earlier edition need not replace it since the revisions are slight and the new information is widely available elsewhere. Other libraries with a need for a broad-reaching biographical resource will find this a beautifully formatted addition.
Christy Norris Blanchette, Valley Cottage Library, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0195215176
• ISBN 13: 9780195215175
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 384