A Picture Book of Dwight David Eisenhower by David A. Adler

Adler, D. (2002). A picture book of Dwight D. Eisenhower. New York, NY: Holiday House.

Summary:
This book does not begin at the beginning of Eisenhower’s life, but at a parade celebrating the victory of World War II in 1945. After a description of events surrounding the parade, the ext goes back and begins on the day he was born. The text describes what he and his family were like when he was young, but also interjects quotes about events in his youth in the text. The book describes Eisenhower’s efforts to get into the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, the births of his sons and the early death of one of those young sons, becoming president of Columbia University and of the United States. This book is simple to read for young children and is a complete biography that tells about the amazing things Dwight D. Eisenhower accomplished.

Ages:
1st through 3rd grade

Credibility of Author:
David Adler has written over 30 picture book biographies along with the fictional Cam Jansen series. He has included a selected bibliography of books that he used to complete his research.

National Standards that this book relates to:
The Social Studies standards addressed are People, Places, and Environments.

Access Features:
This book contains a list of important dates, author’s notes, selected bibliography, and a recommended website list.

Description of the Illustrations:
The photographs contained in the book are from the mid 1900’s.

My response to the book:
This biography was very interesting and held my attention. I believe that it would also hold the attention of young children, many of which could read it independently. It did a good job describing the life of Dwight D. Eisenhower using simple text.

How I would use this book in my class:
I would use this book when discussing presidents and their duties with my class.