Recommended by:
The American Library Association
The Child Study Association
National Council for the Social Studies

Details the life of this famous American from his boyhood as one of the youngest of seventeen children, to his teen years as an apprentice in his brother's print shop and his later years as an inventor, statesman, diplomat, and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Children and adults alike will enjoy learning about the fascinating life Franklin led from the lively text and beautiful illustrations of this d'Aulaire classic.

Folk art style illustrations are enhanced with pert aphorisms from Poor Richard's Almanac on each page. Sayings include Franklin s originals like, Don't throw stones at your neighbors if your own windows are glass and Better slip with foot than by tongue and Well done is better than well said.

Readers will learn that Benjamin's father wanted him to be a candlemaker and that it was a piece of luck that his kite experiment had not killed him. They will also come to know the inventor whose thirst for knowledge led him to constantly seek to improve the lives of his fellow men. Follow his life as a leader in the American Revolution and ambassador to both Britain and France and learn why the French hailed him as the man who tore the lightning from the sky and the scepter from the tyrants.

In Third Grade I wrote a book report on the d'Aulaire's Ben Franklin book. I still have that book report and the book itself! The d'Aulaire picture books are enchanting and unforgettable. I well remember their books on George Washington, Buffalo Bill, and Abraham Lincoln as well. They capture and celebrate the ineffable innocence and magic of childhood in a way I've simply never seen equaled. -- Eric Metaxas

About the Authors:

Ingri Mortenson and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire met in Munich where both were studying art in the 1920's. Ingri had grown up in Norway; Edgar, the son of a noted portrait painter, was born in Switzerland and had lived in Paris and Florence. Shortly after their marriage, they moved to the United States and began to create the picture books that have established their reputation for unique craftsmanship. Their books were known for their vivid lasting color. a result of the pain-staking process of stone lithography used for all their American history biographies. This was an old world craft in which they were both expert, which involved actually tracing their images on large slabs of Bavarian limestone.

Throughout their long careers, Ingri and Edgar worked as a team on both art and text. Their research took them to the actual places of their biographies, including the countries of Italy, Portugal and Spain when they were researching Columbus; to the hills of Virginia while they researched George Washington; and to the wilds of Kentucky and Illinois for Abraham Lincoln, winner of the Caldecott Medal. The fact that they spoke 5 languages fluently served them well in their European travels and in their research of original documents. Since their deaths in the 1980's, Ingri and Edgar's books and works have been kept alive by their two sons Ola and Nils.

Teaching Character (4-6)

Teaching Character 4-6 Teacher Guide

Benjamin Franklin

The Door in the Wall

Whipping Boy, The

Hundred Dresses, The

Caddie Woodlawn

Fables

The Little Prince

The Family Under the Bridge

Happy Prince and Other Stories, The

A Gathering of Days

Green Ember, The