Ruth Ashby

To read quick biographies of women who have made a difference in the world, pick up this book and browse it. It covers politicians, athletes, entertainers, social reformers, scientists, and other types of women who made their mark in their own time. Not all of them were notable for doing good; a few, especially in the ancient world, became famous for their bloody reigns or their tyrannical practices.

Occasionally the authors who contributed research and writing to the book tend let their show more political opinions peek into the biographies and can get a little preachy about their positions; but overall, it’s a great book to read if you’re interested in characters in history or in learning more about famous women. show less

Young Charles Darwin and the Voyage of the Beagle is the following of Charles Darwin's life as he struggles to find a way to make a name for himself while always pursuing his interests as a scientist. This includes his collecting of rocks, insects and any animal species he could get his hands onto. As a young man his father wanted him to go a secure route; but all he had chosen for young Charles made him feel as if a piece was missing. He ends up finding a way to include his passion into a show more career by choosing to go on a voyage to document all that he could about the lands and the creatures of now and the past the Beagle ship and its crew encounters. The author does a fantastic job at going in depth with such a long journey, so far away from where even Darwin had a hard time getting into contact with friends and family back home in England. Going on this five year journey was a risk, but taking the risk meant the chance to explore and observe uncatalogued life as well as the chance to be himself. He saw many new things on his voyage and learned so much about the world around him. His biggest achievement came once he returned home and continued asking the questions he thought of on his trip about what is life and how have we become who we are today. Charles Darwin's passion about all life around him leads him to his theories he called the origin of species and evolution. show less

Title: The Amazing Mr. Franklin
Author: Ruth Ashby
Book review by: Elle Brackett

This book is an exciting way to learn about Ben Franklin's life. After reading this book I had a better idea of where Ben Franklin came from and how he became so successful. Ben was a curious and intelligent boy from a very young age. There were no libraries in Boston, where Ben was from, that must have been difficult for someone with such an eagerness to learn. Ben later commented, “I do not remember when I show more could not read.”

Franklin was always stumbling upon new ideas. Once when he was young he was flying a kite near a pond and decided to jump in for a swim. Keeping the kite with him, he lay on his back and the kite started to sail him through the pond. This boy was very gifted, but was stumped on how to put those talents to use. He tired several professions, once he thought about being a minister, then he worked with his father in a candle shop, nothing worked out in his favor though. He was so bored with these things. Ben found something that he was happy with when he became a printer’s apprentice. After running away to Philadelphia, Ben set up his own printing shop. This is where, in my opinion, Ben starts being successful and takes off in his life.

One of the exciting parts about this book is with each page you turn, you never know what Ben is going to do or discover next. I don’t want to tell the whole story of the book. There are many different discoveries Ben Franklin made in his life, from forming his own library to negotiating peace during the end of the Revolutionary War.

Ben Franklin inspires me because he made incredible discoveries with limited resources. He was very successful in achieving his goals with little help. He had a vision and he went for it. I think we could all learn a lesson or two from Ben Franklin. If you are interested in learning about the trials and triumphs of Ben Franklin’s life, or just looking for a good adventure on someone’s life, I would encourage you to read this book. show less

You can't spoil this. It is a bunch of short biographies of women that the compilers/authors thought were worthy of being profiled. It includes queens, activists, authors, etc. Some of the profiles are really bad. Some are opinionated and some are uncritical.