Lake Bluff Library Adult Reading Lists: Historical Figures

From the bestselling author of King Leopold's Ghost and Spain in Our Hearts comes the astonishing but forgotten story of an immigrant sweatshop worker who married an heir to a great American fortune and became one of the most charismatic radical leaders of her time. (Description from catalog)

In 1927, Zora Neale Hurston went to Plateau, Alabama, just outside Mobile, to interview eighty-six-year-old Cudjo Lewis. Of the millions of men, women, and children transported from Africa to America as slaves, Cudjo was then the only person alive to tell the story of this integral part of the nation's history.
(Description from catalog)

Written by her great-granddaughter, a historical portrait of the boundary-breaking civil rights pioneer covers Wells' early years as a slave, her famous acts of resistance, and her achievements as a journalist and anti-lynching activist. (Description from catalog)

Madam C. J. Walker—reputed to be America’s first self-made woman millionaire—has long been celebrated for her rags-to-riches story. In this biography, Erica L. Ball places this remarkable and largely forgotten life story in the context of Walker’s times. (Description from NoveList)

The legend of Elizabeth Bathory, said to have killed 650 girls, has gripped imaginations for centuries. But was she a monster—or a victim of history’s most successful smear campaign? Shelley Puhak reexamines her story, revealing how far society will go to destroy a powerful woman.
(Description from NoveList)

An account of the previously unheralded but pivotal contributions of NASA's African-American women mathematicians to America's space program describes how they were segregated from their white counterparts by Jim Crow laws in spite of their groundbreaking successes. (Description from NoveList)

A biography of the great astronomer and scientist, and an examination of the faith vs. science question, then and now, written by a noted astrophysicist and author. (Description from catalog.)

The fascinating and remarkable true story of the world’s first forensic ornithologist— Roxie Laybourne, who broke down barriers for women, solved murders, and investigated deadly airplane crashes with nothing more than a microscope and a few fragments of feathers.
(Description from NoveList)

A biography of the first Native American doctor in U.S. history describes how she received her medical degree in 1889 and went home to doctor her tribe of over 1,200 people living across 850 square miles. (Description from NoveList)

Explores the marriage of a pioneering aviator and a publicity-driven publisher, examining how their partnership shaped her career, fueled her ambitions, and pressured her into ever-riskier feats, revealing the tensions of independence, fame, and societal expectations in the early 20th century.
(Description from NoveList)

A biography of one of America's most popular and misunderstood authors, John Steinbeck. This first full-length biography of the Nobel Laureate to appear in a quarter century explores John Steinbeck's long apprenticeship as a writer struggling through thedepths of the Great Depression, and his rise to greatness with masterpieces such as The Red Pony, Of Mice and Men, and The Grapes of Wrath. (Description from catalog.)

Using unpublished manuscripts, letters, financial records, and more, Fraser gives fresh insight into the life of a woman beloved to many.
(Description from catalog)

Brandreth explores Winnie-the-Pooh, a bear beloved by millions, his genesis, his life across a hundred years, his special philosophy and the reasons for his worldwide popularity.
(Description from NoveList)

A portrait of the fascinating, unusual and fruitful creative partnership between Fanny and Robert Louis Stevenson.
(Description from catalog)

A biography of Alexander the Great's final years, when the leader's insatiable desire to conquer the world set him off on an exhilarating, harrowing journey that would define his legacy.
(Description from NoveList)

Out of the thrilling and tempestuous eighteenth century comes the sweeping family saga of beautiful Maria Theresa, a sovereign of uncommon strength and vision, the only woman ever to inherit and rule the vast Habsburg Empire in her own name, and three of her remarkable daughters: lovely, talented Maria Christina, governor-general of the Austrian Netherlands; spirited Maria Carolina, the resolute queen of Naples; and the youngest, Marie Antoinette, the glamorous, tragic queen of France, and perhaps the most famous princess in history. (Description from NoveList)

Sir Nicholas Winton rescued 669 Jewish children from Nazi occupied Czechoslovakia at the brink of World War II. This book explores the 106-year life of an incredible humanitarian, a man whose astounding feats only came to public light decades later. His legacy is to encourage us all to act when we see injustice or need, and to remind us that every one of us can change the world for the better.
(Description from NoveList)

As complex in their own way as their Mitford cousins, Winston and Clementine Churchill's daughters each had a unique relationship with their famous father. Rachel Trethewey's biography, The Churchill Sisters, tells their story. (Description from catalog)

From Elizabeth II to future King William, The Windsor Legacy offers a riveting exploration of the British monarchy's resilience and influence over the past century, looking at its key players and conflicts, with a forward-looking examination of its future.
(Description from NoveList)

The life and times of Catherine de' Medici--the most powerful woman in sixteenth-century Europe--as seen through her often controversial role in religion and the arts.
(Description from catalog)

A lively, informative and illustrated tribute to one of the most exceptional women in American history--Harriet Tubman--looks at a heroine whose fearlessness and activism still resonates today. (Description from NoveList.)

A path-breaking work of biography of two African American role models, Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson, whose lives would forever be altered by the Cold War, and would explosively intersect before its most notorious weapon, the House Un-American Activities Committee.
(Description from NoveList)

In this powerful, epic biography, David McCullough unfolds the adventurous life journey of John Adams, the brilliant, fiercely independent, often irascible, always honest Yankee patriot who spared nothing in his zeal for the American Revolution; who rose to become the second president of the United States and saved the country from blundering into an unnecessary war; who was learned beyond all but a few and regarded by some as "out of his senses"; and whose marriage to the wise and valiant Abigail Adams is one of the moving love stories in American history. (Description from catalog)

To celebrate America’s 250th anniversary, Walter Isaacson takes readers on a fascinating deep dive into the creation of one of history’s most powerful sentences: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
(Description from NoveList)

This sweeping account chronicles the 26th President's transformation from privileged New Yorker to cowboy, soldier, and reformer, highlighting his relentless drive, reformist zeal, and deep impact on American politics, conservation, foreign policy, and the evolving role of the presidency.
(Description from NoveList)

Uncovers the little-known story of Richard Pavlick, a disgruntled postal worker who plotted to assassinate John F. Kennedy in December 1960, just before his inauguration, detailing the near-miss that could have altered American history and the gripping events surrounding the failed attempt.
(Description from NoveList)

The extraordinary life of James Monroe: soldier, senator, diplomat, and the last Founding Father to hold the presidency, a man who helped transform thirteen colonies into a vibrant and mighty republic. Critically acclaimed author Tim McGrath has delved into an astonishing array of primary sources, many rarely seen since Monroe's own time, to conjure up this remarkable portrait of an essential American statesman and president. (Description from catalog.)

Military historian McGrath focuses on the Civil War's decisive Battle of Gettysburg and the three men in charge of the battle—George G. Meade, Robert E. Lee, and Abraham Lincoln—as well as Lincoln's famous Gettysburg Address, which shifted the war's focus to the enslavement of people.
(Description from NoveList)

In this illuminating dual biography, the first about Earp and Holliday, the lives of these two men, one a sometime lawman and the other a sometime dentist, are chronicled in a swirling tableau of saloons, brothels, gambling dens, stage holdups, arrests, manhunts, and revenge killings.
(Description from NoveList)

Learn about all the individuals who have held the highest executive office in the United States throughout the country’s history, spanning from George Washington’s inauguration in 1789 to Donald J. Trump’s second term.
(Description from Amazon)