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.
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138 Items found Print
Active Filters: Military Heroes & Scourges, 6th grade (Ages 11-12)
Alexander the Great
by Robert Green
from Grolier Publishing
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (3 in stock)
Alexander the Great
Sterling Point Books
by John Gunther
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Historical Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Alexander the Great
World Landmark #2
by John Gunther
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Alexander the Great
by Robert Green
from Grolier Publishing
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Alexander the Great: His Armies and Campaigns 334-323 BC
by John Warry, Nick Sekunda
from Osprey Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
America's War Heroes
by Marilyn Boyer
from Master Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$10.39
Andrew Jackson: Soldier and Statesman
by Ralph K. Andrist
from Harper & Row
for 5th-8th grade
in American Heritage Junior Library (Location: VIN-HIS)
Andrew Jackson: Young Patriot
Childhood of Famous Americans
by George Edward Stanley
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
Basher Five-Two
by Scott O'Grady & Michael French
from Yearling
Autobiography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.99
Bully for You, Teddy Roosevelt!
by Jean Fritz
from PaperStar Books
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.99
Candy Bomber
by Michael O. Tunnell
from Charlesbridge
for 4th-6th grade
in WWII: European Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2E)
$9.95
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Greeks
by F. J. Gould
from Yesterday's Classics
Greek History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.95
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Romans
by F. J. Gould, Reteller
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.95
Crazy Horse: Young War Chief
Childhood of Famous Americans
by George Edward Stanley
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
D'Aulaire American Biographies Package
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
Biography for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$106.82
David Farragut
The History of the Civil War
by Russell Shorto
from Stan Clark Military Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
Davy Crockett
by David Crockett
from Applewood Books
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.95 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Douglas MacArthur
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Douglas Macarthur: American Hero
Book Report Biographies
by Barbara Silberdick Feinberg
from Franklin Watts
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Dwight Eisenhower
by Janet & Geoff Benge
from Emerald Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
El Cid
by Maria De Vivanco, illustrated by Laszlo Gal
from Golden Press
Biography for 3rd-7th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
For God and Country
by John Riddle
from Barbour Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Garibaldi: Father of Modern Italy
World Landmark #32
by Marcia Davenport
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
General George Patton
Sterling Point Books
by Alden Hatch
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Historical Non-Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in WWII: European Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2E)
Genghis Kahn and the Mongol Horde
World Landmark #12
by Harold Lamb
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
George Patton
by Alden Hatch
1965, Ninth Printing from Julian Messner
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
George Rogers Clark: War in the West
Events of the Revolution
by Susan and John Lee, illustrated by Richard Wahl
from Children's Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
George S. Paton: War Hero
Childhood of Famous Americans
by George Edward Stanley
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
George vs. George
by Rosalyn Schanzer
Reprint from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$6.95
George Washington
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
George Washington
by Cheryl Harness
from National Geographic
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.99
Geronimo
Sterling Point Books
by Ralph Moody
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Geronimo: Wolf of the Warpath
Landmark #81
by Ralph Moody, illustrated by Nicholas Eggenhofer
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Geronimo: Young Warrior
Childhood of Famous Americans
by George Edward Stanley
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
Ghengis Khan and the Mongol Horde
World Landmark Books W-12
by Harold Lamb
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Hannibal
by Robert Green
from Grolier Publishing
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.95
Heroes Every Child Should Know
by H. W. Mabie
from Yesterday's Classics
Biography for 5th-8th grade
$15.95
Heroes Every Child Should Know
by H. W. Mabie
from Living Book Press
Biography for 5th-8th grade
$15.95
Heroes of the Army in America
by Charles Morris
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$24.00 (1 in stock)
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 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
Indian Chiefs
by Russell Freedman
from Holiday House
for 4th-6th grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
Indian Portraits of the Pacific Northwest
by George M. Cochran
3rd edition from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
James Longstreet
Triangle Histories: The Civil War
by Melanie LeTourneau
from Blackbirch Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Jeb Stuart
Historical American Biographies
by Lynda Pflueger
from Enslow
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Jefferson Davis
by George Ulrich, John Lee, Susan Lee
from Children's Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
Jefferson Davis
Triangle Histories: The Civil War
by W. Scott Ingram
from Blackbirch Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Joan of Arc
by Diane Stanley
from HarperCollins
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$11.99
Joan of Arc
Sterling Point Books
by Jay Williams
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Biography for 3rd-7th
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Joan of Arc
World Landmark #4
by Nancy Ross
from Random House
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Joan of Arc
by Tracy Christopher
from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Joan of Arc
by Jay Williams
from American Heritage Publishing Co.
for 6th-10th grade
in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Joan of Arc of Domremy
by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Michael Foreman
from Harcourt
for 2nd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Joan of Arc: Heavenly Warrior
Sterling Biographies
by Tabatha Yeatts
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
John Charles Fremont
by Ronald Syme, illustrated by Richard Cuffari
from William Morrow & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
John Paul Jones
Sterling Point Books
by Armstrong Sperry
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in War of 1812 (Location: HISA-19WET)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
John Paul Jones
by Norma Jean Lutz
from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
John Paul Jones, Fighting Sailor
Landmark #39
by Armstrong Sperry
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage & Collectible (Location: VIN-COL)
Joseph E. Johnston
Famous Figures of the Civil War Era
by Christin Ditchfield
from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Joseph, Chief of the Nez Perce
by Dean Pollock
from Binford & Mort Publishing
Picture Book Biography for 5th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Joseph, Chief of the Nez Perce
by Dean Pollock
from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 5th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
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)
Lawrence of Arabia
Sterling Point Books
by Alistair Maclean
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in World War I (1914-1919) (Location: HISA-20WW1)
Leif Eriksson
by Cynthia Fitterer Klingel, Robert B. Noyed
from Child's World
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Lew Wallace, Boy Writer
by Martha E. Schaaf
from Patria Press, Inc.
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Marquis de Lafayette
World Landmark #34
by Hodding Carter
from Random House
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Medical Corps Heroes of World War II
Landmark #120
by Wyatt Blassingame
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Medical Corps Heroes of World War II
Landmark #120
by Wyatt Blassingame
2022 Reprint from Purple House Press
for 5th-9th grade
in World War II (1939-1945) (Location: HISA-20WW2)
$15.99
Meet George Washington
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
by Joan Heilbroner
from Random House
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Meet George Washington
by Joan Heilbroner
First Scholastic Printing 2001 from Scholastic Inc.
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Napoleon
by Manual Komroff
from Julian Messner
for 4th-9th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Nathan Hale
by Loree Lough
from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Oliver Cromwell
by I. E. Levine
from Julian Messner
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Pirate Lafitte and the Battle of New Orleans
Landmark #19
by Robert Tallant
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Real Book about George Washington
by Harold Coy, illustrated by Elinore Blaisdell
from Garden City Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Real Books series (Location: VIN-RBA)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Red Baron
by Richard A. Boning, illustrated by Harry Schaare
from Dexter & Westbrook
for 3rd-6th grade
in World War I (1914-1919) (Location: HISA-20WW1)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Robert E. Lee
Sowers Series
by Lee Roddy
from Mott Media
Biography for 6th-8th grade
in Sowers Biographies (Location: BIO-SOW)
Robert E. Lee and the Road of Honor
Landmark #54
by Hodding Carter
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Robert E. Lee: Young Confederate
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Helen Albee Monsell
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
Sam Houston: Boy Chieftain
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Augusta Stevenson
from Bobbs-Merril Co
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Scholastic Encyclopedia of the United States at War
by June A. English & Thomas D. Jones
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Scholastic Encyclopedia of the United States at War
by June A. English & Thomas D. Jones
Updated from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Seneca Chief, Army General
Creative Minds Biographies
by Elizabeth Van Steenwyk, illustrated by Karen Ritz
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Seneca Chief, Army General
Creative Minds Biographies
by Elizabeth Van Steenwyk, illustrated by Karen Ritz
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Showdown at Little Big Horn
by Dee Brown
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 6th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Simon Bolivar
by Frank De Varona
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$2.00 (4 in stock)
Simón Bolívar
World Landmark #14
by Arnold Whitridge
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Simon Bolivar: The Liberator
Immortals of History
by Robert N. Webb
from Franklin Watts
for 5th-9th grade
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)
Sitting Bull: Champion of his People
by Shannon Garst
from Julian Messner
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Standing Like a Stone Wall
by James I. Robertson Jr.
from Atheneum
for 6th-12th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Stonewall
by Jean Fritz & Stephen Gammell
from PaperStar Books
Biography for 5th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.99
Stonewall Jackson
Landmark #86
by Jonathan Daniels
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Stonewall Jackson
Famous Figures of the Civil War Era
by Martha S. Hewson
from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Story of Andrew Jackson
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #13
by Enid LaMonte Meadowcroft, illustrated by David Hendrickson
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of Crazy Horse
Signature Books #28
by Enid Lamonte Meadowcroft, illustrated by William Reusswig
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
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