Biographies

"Did they tell you stories about the saints of old,
stories about their faith?
Stories like that make a boy grow bold,
stories like that make a man walk straight..."

Rich Mullins, Boy Like Me, Man Like You

Stories about people have a way of affecting us in ways other stories can't. The Bible is primarily stories about people, and it is through these multiple biographies that we understand human nature, the history of redemption, and even to a great extent God Himself. The purpose behind any other biography is largely the same—to help us understand what it means to be human from the examples (sometimes even the bad examples) of those who have preceded us.

The biographies we have chosen for this section represent those of great leaders in history, social and military heroes, and Christian saints past and present who struggled to conform their lives to Christ's perfect example. We have avoided for the most part biographies of history's villains and chronic immoralists, not because they aren't interesting but because they don't represent lives worthy of imitation. We've also decided not to focus on athletes, actors, and celebrities, unless they've made important contributions outside their fields. That's not to say everyone found here was above reproach or even a Christian, but they all demonstrated real human virtues for which they are remembered.

Biographies are also useful for better understanding of a given historical period. While history books can provide good overviews of a period or events, the intimate detail of a good biography can better illustrate a time period and what it was like to be alive then. This also serves to demonstrate the universality of human nature, that people will behave basically the same during any given period and in any given place. Sometimes we get the impression that people of the past, especially people like missionaries and ministers, were somehow more pious than we are—the personal view offered by a good biography dispels this myth and offers encouragement that not even the best men and women are any closer to perfection than we are.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
Did you find this review helpful?
101 Items found Print
Active Filters: Great Britain / England
Adventurous Life of Winston Churchill
by Geoffrey Bocca
from Julian Messner
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Agatha Christie: An Autobiography
by Agatha Christie
2012 Reissue from William Morrow & Company
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
All Color Book of Henry VIII
from Octopus Books Limited
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Amazing Grace
by Eric Metaxas
from HarperOne
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.99
Beyond the Sacred Page
Book of Books #2
by Jack Cavanaugh
from Zondervan
for 7th-Adult
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Book Lover's Bucket List
from British Library
for Adult
in Great Britain / England (Location: HISMC-BRIT)
$24.95
Brontes at Haworth
by Ann Dinsdale
from Frances Lincoln
for 6th-12th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Bunyan Characters
by Alexander Whyte
from Baker Books
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
C. S. Lewis: A Life
by Alister McGrath
from Tyndale House
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$24.99 $18.00 (1 in stock)
Captain Marryat
by Tom Pocock
from Stackpole Books
for Adult
in Nautical History (Location: VIN-NAUT)
Charles Darwin and the Origin of Species
by Walter Karp
from Harper & Row
for 4th-8th grade
in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Charlotte Bronte and Jane Eyre
by Robert Van Nutt, Stewart Ross
1st edition from Viking Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Churchill
by Paul Johnson
Reprint from Penguin Putnam
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.00
Churchill: Walking with Destiny
by Andrew Roberts
from Penguin Books
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Cup of Cold Water
by Christine Farenhorst
from P&R Publishing
for 4th-6th grades
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Edwardian Lady
by Ina Taylor
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
First Lady of the Theatre: Sarah Siddons
by Molly Costain Haycraft
from Kingston House
Biography for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Flight and Adventures of Charles II
World Landmark #38
by Charles Norman, illustrated by C. Walter Hodges
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Florence Nightingale
by Laura E. Richards
from Yesterday's Classics
Biography for 6th-9th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.95
Forgotten Spurgeon
by Iain H. Murray
2nd edition from Banner of Truth Trust
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Francis Drake
by Ronald Syme
from William Morrow & Company
for 3rd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Geoffrey Chaucer of England
by Marchette Chute
from Dutton Adult
for 12th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
George MacDonald
by Michael R Phillips
Illustrated Edition from Bethany House
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
George MacDonald
by Michael R Phillips
from Bethany House
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
George Muller
by Rebecca Davis
from Bob Jones University Press
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
George Muller: Faith to Feed Ten Thousand
Heroes for Young Readers
by Renee Meloche
from YWAM Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
Glimpses of Truth
Book of Books #1
by Jack Cavanaugh
from Zondervan
for 7th-Adult
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
God's Adventurer
by Phyllis Thompson
from OMF
for 4th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Henry VIII
by Richard Brassey
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.95
History of King Charles II of England
by Jacob Abbott
from Serenity Publishers
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.99
History of King Charles II of England
by Jacob Abbott
from Living Book Press
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.99
How the Heather Looks
by Joan Bodger
Reprint from Living Book Press
for 7th-Adult
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$24.99
Humble Leader
by Julia Cameron
from Christian Focus Publications
for 4th-6th grade
in TorchBearers & TrailBlazers (Location: BIO-TRAIL)
$8.99
In the Belly of an Ox
by Rebecca Bond
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
In the Days of Alfred the Great
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
In the Days of Alfred the Great
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.99
In the Days of Queen Elizabeth
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
In the Days of Queen Elizabeth
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.99
In the Days of Queen Victoria
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
In the Days of Queen Victoria
by Eva March Tappan
from Bookshelf Central
for 6th-10th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
In the Days of Queen Victoria
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.99
In the Days of William the Conqueror
by Eva March Tappan
from Yesterday's Classics
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
In the Days of William the Conqueror
by Eva March Tappan
from Living Book Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.99
James Herriot's Favorite Dog Stories
by James Herriot
First Printing from St. Martin's Press
for 8th-Adult
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
James Herriot's Yorkshire
by James Herriot, photography by Derry Brabbs
1996 Printing from Mermaid Books
for 7th-Adult
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
James I
Sacred Fool Quartet Volume 1
by Otto Scott
from Chalcedon / Ross House Books
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.00
John Charles Ryle
by Peter Toon, Michael Smout
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Katherine Parr
by Brandon G. Withrow
from P&R Publishing
Biography for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.99 $6.50 (2 in stock)
King Arthur and His Knights
World Landmark #5
by Mabel Louise Robinson
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Kings and Queens of Scotland
by R. L. Mackie, J. Ross
from Geddes & Grosset
for 8th-Adult
in Great Britain / England (Location: HISMC-BRIT)
$5.50 (1 in stock)
Lady Jane Grey
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Last Lion Volumes 1 & 2
by William Manchester
1st edition from Little, Brown & Company
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Life of John Newton
by American Missionary Fellowship
from Attic Books
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.50
Life of Martyn Lloyd-Jones: 1899-1981
by Iain H. Murray
from Banner of Truth Trust
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Life of Sir Thomas More
by William Roper
from CreateSpace
for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$5.99
Lives of Thomas Becket
by Michael Staunton
from Manchester University Press
Biography for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$39.95
Man Who Made Time Travel
by Kathryn Lasky
First Edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 3rd-5th grade
2004 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Michael Faraday
by Charles Ludwig
from Herald Press
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$11.99 $8.00 (2 in stock)
Norman Grubb
by Janet & Geoff Benge
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Christian Heroes: Then and Now (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Oliver Cromwell
by I. E. Levine
from Julian Messner
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Play's the Thing
by Ruth Turk
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Queen Elizabeth I: Forging an Empire
by Elizabeth Linington, illustrated by Robert Boehmer
from Kingston House
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Queen Victoria
World Landmark #37
by Noel Streatfeild
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Queen Victoria
by Molly Costain Haycraft
from Julian Messner
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Rare Treasure
by Don Brown
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
Real Jane Austen
by Paula Byrne
1st edition from HarperTrophy
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$29.99
Rivals in Parliament
by Iris Noble
from Julian Messner
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Royal Faces
by Hugh Clayton
from Thames and Hudson
for 4th-9th grade
in Great Britain / England (Location: HISMC-BRIT)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Rudyard Kipling
by Lord Birkenhead
from Random House
for 11th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Sea King
by Albert Marrin
from Atheneum
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Seven Kings of England
by Geoffrey Trease
from Vanguard Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Great Britain / England (Location: HISMC-BRIT)
Seven Queens of England
by Geoffrey Trease
from Vanguard Press
for 5th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Shakespeare of London
by Marchette Chute
1st edition from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for 6th-12th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Sir Francis Drake
Library of Explorers and Exploration
by Joy Paige
1st edition from Rosen Central
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Sir Walter Raleigh: Captain and Adventurer
by Nina Brown Baker
1st edition from Harcourt, Brace & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Slaves' Champion
by Henry Wheeler
from New Leaf Press
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Sovereign Reader
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Sovereign Reader
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Story of Edith Cavell
Signature Books #47
by Iris Vinton, illustrated by Gerald McCann
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of Florence Nightingale
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #10
by Margaret Leighton, illustrated by Corinne B. Dillon
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of Good Queen Bess
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #18
by Alida Sims Malkus, illustrated by Douglas Gorsline
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of Winston Churchill
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #40
by Alida Sims Malkus, illustrated by H. B. Vestal
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 3rd-8th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
The Brontes
by Rebecca Fraser
from Fawcett Books
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
To Be a Pilgrim
by Joyce Reason
1980th edition from Christian Literature Crusade
for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Tolkien: Man and Myth
by Joseph Pearce
from Ignatius Press
Biography for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.95
Tolkien: Man and Myth
by Joseph Pearce
from Ignatius Press
Biography for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Unknown to History
by Charlotte M. Yonge
from Living Book Press
for 7th-12th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.99
Walter Raleigh: Man of Two Worlds
World Landmark #58
by Henrietta Buckmaster
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
White Horse King
by Benjamin R. Merkle
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 8th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.99
Who Was Henry VIII?
Who Was?...Series
by Ellen Labrecque, illustrated by Jake Murray
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Who Was? biographies (Location: BIO-WHO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Who Were the Beatles?
Who Was?...Series
by Geoff Edgers
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Who Was? biographies (Location: BIO-WHO)
$6.99
William Booth
Christian Heroes: Then & Now
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Christian Heroes: Then and Now (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
William Carey: Bearer of Good News
Heroes for Young Readers
by Renee Taft Meloche
from YWAM Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
William the Conqueror
World Landmark #41
by Thomas B. Costain
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
William the Conqueror
by Robert Green
from Franklin Watts
for 2nd-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Winston Churchill
World Landmark #56
by Quentin Reynolds
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Winston Churchill and the Story of Two World Wars
by Olivia Coolidge
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Winston's War
by Max Hastings
from Vintage Books
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
World Explorer: Sir Francis Drake
by John Foster
from Garrard Publishing Company
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
World of the Brontes
by Commentary by James Birdsall, Photography by Paul Barker
from Pavilion Books
for 6th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
12