This is a small book of biographies written for young adults. Each chapter is a concise version of the lives of these famous people. The author, Arnold Madison not only told of the best known achievements of each person, but gave enlightening information about how their personalties and interests were formed.

The variety of talent and the hard work that went into their pursuits is amazing. Many of these people could have become famous for other endeavors.

Nicholas Copernicus who is considered the father of astronomy was not only a mathematician, but also a Catholic priest and a medical doctor who trained in Italy. He is also known as an economist and a statesman.

Tedeusz Kosciuszko, a military engineer, and a Polish patriot was an aide to General George Washington and directed the construction of the fortifications at West Point. He achieved the rank of brigadier general, and was granted U. S. citizenship. He was also gifted with American land, but sold it. A great believer in freedom, he used the land profits to buy black slaves in order to set them free. His efforts to help Poland stay free were never realized. He died in Switzerland, but his body was returned to Poland and was placed in the Cracow cathedral.

Count Casimir Pulaski had no formal military training, but at the age of 20 led a force of 6 thousand men in guerrilla attacks against invading Russians. The attacks were successful, but the odds were insurmountable. Pulaski became a Polish folk hero and was exiled. He met Benjamin Franklin in Paris, and offered to serve in the American Revolution. With the support of Congress, he raised an independent cavalry army and was comissioned with the strange title of Brigadier General Count Pulaski. He was wounded in battle, and died on the American warship the Wasp. He was 31 years old.

Ignace Jan Paderewski, the famous composer pianist was also a Polish statesman who worked hard to help free his native country.

He was the Chairman of the Polish National Committee, and headed the Polish government which was exiled in Paris.

Josef Konrad Korzeniowski, who became the author Joseph Conrad spend many years of his life as a seaman. When he finally became recognized for his writing, he was acclaimed as one of the greatest English novelists of the 20th Century.

Marie Sklodowska Curie the winner of the 1911 Nobel Prize for chemistry died a victim of her own discovery, radium.

The book also contains biographies of seven other great people, including, Pope John Paul II and Frederick Chopin.

Thanks to my friend Jan for gifting me with this book. Many great stories of real lives!

This was the best book I ever read! It was so sweet! I believe everybody should have a copy! Oh, man is this book sweet! I meen not like just kind of sweet, I meen super sweet! It's so sweet! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH!

Authors wanting to write for children and/or teenagers will find just about everything they want in this book. My only quibble is that the author states, "For any age, fantasy is the hardest material to write, and even harder to sell." Therefore, if fantasy is what you want to write, you won't find any help specifically related to your preferred genre in this book.
IS fantasy really harder to write than any other genre? I personally would find contemporary realism, with the almost obligatory dysfunctional family setting so beloved of today's publishers for older children, well near impossible to write, simply because I seldom enjoy reading it. However, good writing techniques are the same no matter what genre you write, and Lee Wyndham's suggestion to read the very best MODERN fantasy titles seems eminently sensible to me. I just disagree that would-be fantasy writers should learn their craft by writing here-and-now stories. If the mere thought of writing contemporary realism makes you want to yawn, you'll only land up writing a boring story.

I have taken three fiction writing classes from a major writing school. I have scanned a large number of writing books. I write middle grade/young adult novels.
I just have to write this here. This is the best book I've seen in its subject. It has been so helpful to me especially the "how to organize a book" and "plotting" sections. I would reccomend this book to anyone who is starting to write books for children and teenagers.

If you're a beginning writer in need of advice, this is a great book whether you're writing for children, teenagers or adults. While in the process of writing a short story or novel, Wyndham guides you every step of the way. In every chapter she gives advice on how to keep your work organized, something creative minds usually have trouble with. Her section on getting published is extremely valuable and informative.

I think every college creative writing program should have this book as a curriculum requirement. It not only teaches, it encourages. Young writers need that more than they need a list of things they can't write about so as not to offend the teacher/administration, etc. If anyone is interested in writing ANY kind of fiction, I suggest you purchase this book and read it thoroughly.