I read this book in second grade for a book report and leared several things from it I can't remember those things but in every book you learn some thing.=]

I'm currently about 1/5 of the way through an adult biography about Thomas Jefferson so it was fun to see a lot of the same information reiterated in a children's book. It proved to me even more what a valuable resource these books are for children.

*Thomas's father died when he was only 14. His mother died when he was an adult and it was very tragic for him.

*Thomas was a lot better at writing than speaking. He learned by listening to others.

*John Adams wanted him to write the Declaration because he knew Thomas was a better writer and that Virginia needed to take the lead for other colonies to fall in line.

*When Thomas's wife died it was very painful for him and it took him a long time to recover from the loss. He never married again but had a relationship with a slave, Sally Hemings, who was less than half his age. They had six children. All slaves. (Boo!!! When I review my adult bio about Thomas Jefferson I will talk more on my feelings about this. I don't like it at all.)

*In his older age he started a University in Virginia. It's still running.

*He did try a couple times to end slavery, but it never passed. It taught him to only fight political battles he knew he could win. He also never went so far as to free his own slaves.

*He was always devoted to his family, even though lots of his family life was filled with tragedy, which actually seems pretty par for the course in those days.

*He suffered from debilitating headaches his entire life. (I can definitely relate. Poor man didn't even have heating pads or Excedrin.)

*He died on July 4 when he was 83 years old. John Adams died the same day, a few hours later. One of the most quirky coincidences in all of US history.

There are several illustrators that draw for this series. This illustrator, John O'Brien, does an excellent job with the diagrams.

It had really good facts about him I read all 100 pages of the book straight but it was also kinda sad

Fradin’s Who was Thomas Jefferson? is an exciting look at the life and accomplishments of our third president. The book discusses his many contributions as well as his personal life and home life at Monticello. Not only was he a founding father and statesman, he was also an avid reader, brilliant scholar, creative architect, and a prolific writer who changed the course of history for America and the world. Age 9+