Who Was Albert Einstein?

I always found Albert Einstein and his life extremely interesting, but had never read a true biography meant for young readers before. This biography took Einstein's life and retold it in a way that children would find interesting. The story gave many facts about Einstein that students may find intriguing to know. I also liked how Jess Brallier emphasized Einstein's belief that one should always be learning. That is a great concept for children to pick up. They should always be open to trying new things and learning along the way. Even though the book did not contain many illustrations at all, it still presented his life in a way that allowed to reader to picture, in their own mind, what was happening.

This was a fun book to read. Usually biographies are boring and not very exciting to me. This one was. One reason it was more interesting to me was because of the language and the way it was written. It was more like story telling then just stating facts. When I read other biographies, sometimes I feel like they just throw the facts at me with no real feeling or way to relate. In this story, I can see how a student might be able to relate and enjoy the story. It goes through Einstein's school days and how he never really fit in. Some students might really relate to parts of his life journey. The second reason I liked this book is because of the illustrations. As simple as they are, they still add a lot to the story. They help add show more feeling and empathy to the story when Einstein is going through school and then happiness and excitement when he experiences his success.
The main point I took away from this story was to always do your best. Even though Einstein was made fun of and was pointed out for being different, he stay himself. He capitalized on his strengths of learning and being the scientific genius he was. show less

In my opinion, this was a great, easy, informational read for two reasons. First, I enjoyed the organization of the book. The chapters are in sequential order of Einsteins life events from his birth through him becoming one of the most profound scientist to live. Each chapter also has inspirational quotes from Einstein which gives readers an extra look into his views on failures and successes. Secondly, I enjoyed the non-fiction elements in within the story such as, facts about Einsteins childhood and background. For example, the book informs readers of his explosion from elementary school, but he was still able to be a successful inventor, as well as him growing up and helping out in his family business: selling batteries and wires. show more This informational book will inspire its readers to challenge themselves, even in times of adversity. show less

The biography Who was Albert Einstein talks about the life of Einstein and how he became one of the most influential people in science. The book talks about his love for science and bettering the world around him. He devoted his life to pursuing what was next instead of focusing on the present. This is a great book for students in middle school because it encourages students to push themselves and create. This book had really amazing illustrations that grab students attention and keep them interested. This would be great for a introductory book for a science class so learn about an influential figure.

Summary: A fun and engaging biography of Albert Einstein’s life, from his relationships, to his scientific discoveries. Brallier tells about Einstein’s exile from Germany, to his role in helping create the atomic bomb. He presents the facts but adds touches of humor along with illustrations.

Personal Reaction: My thoughts are, Bralliers way of telling Alberts life with humor and pictures kept my interest, leading me to want to know more. His method of combining techniques to keep a child’s interest and important events is admirable.

Classroom Extensions:
1)Instruct the students to draw a picture of their favorite part of Alberts life.
2)The students write some things they would want in their biography.

I enjoyed this chapter book because of the writing and the illustrations. The reason I enjoyed the writing is because although the topics are more advanced, the author did a great job writing at the level in which students will be writing. For example, when the author discusses science concepts, she wrote at the appropriate level for her intended audience. Additionally, I enjoyed the illustrations in the book because they were simple, yet detailed enough to portray what the reading was about. When writing chapter books, it is important to avoid distracting the reader from the text, but it is also important to provide a good visual aid. Throughout this book, I believe that the sketches were the perfect happy-medium to complement the show more story of Einstein's life. For example, The overall idea of this story is to show the readers that although Einstein was a trouble child, and he still able to come back on top and be a significant man in history. show less

An engaging introduction to the life of the famous physicist.