In Mike Venezia’s biography of Thomas Edison he helps to combine reality with the imagination world. He helps to tell the reader all about the life of Thomas Edison but makes the life fun by adding in cartoonistic pictures combined with pictures from Edison’s real life.

This book tells the biography of Thomas Edison through his entire life. The book starts when Thomas is a young boy and tells all of the stories of jobs and his struggles in school as a child. As the book moves through his life it mentions his marriage and family life. The book has good depictions of Edison’s involvement with his family.

Venezia also illustrates this biography. The illustrations help to tell the story of Edison. Venezia includes pictures of Edison’s real life but to help tell the story to a younger audience he adds in his own cartoonistic pictures.

Venezia keeps the readers wanting to know more. I loved flipping each page and I felt that I even learned new things about Thomas Edison. I feel that children could see that Edison was not a great student in class but he amounted to a lot in his life. I feel it’s a good story to tell the children to motivate them that no matter what happens in their life they can do great things.

Venezia is known for writing and illustrating biographies geared towards children. I love his main webpage with a quote from him that says, “Books and videos that will kids on learning.” I completely agree with his quote. The books grab the reader and keep them wanting more. Venezia’s series of biographies are chosen as one of the “Best Nonfiction Series” by Booklist. Booklist is a magazine that has helped readers to find publications for all needs. It has been running for over 100 years.

Venezia’s books are great for any age in elementary school. I feel that kindergarten and first graders would struggle with the vocabulary but from second grade on I think they would love the book. The younger grades would love the pictures and use of color. As you move in to the upper grades they would understand better just how Edison contributed to science.

Venezia creates a great book for children to read. He has made the information interesting. I would love reading this biography to my children and going in to a lesson about what Thomas Edison invented. As I read the book I thought it would be fun to do a lesson using morse code or some other form of communication that Edison helped to improve. I think the students would find that a fun activity and would love to learn just how the older days communicated. ( )