20th Century Picture Book Biographies

Picture book biographies are our favorite way to study history with our kids.

The books below are biographies about people who lived during the 20th century.

(This printable will give you the whole list of picture book biographies – you’ll find the 20th Century Books on pages 12-16.)

Print This Booklist
Learn 3 conversation starters you can use to talk with your kids about any book
See All Booklists
Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909
A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin
Balloons over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade
One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia
A Poem for Peter
Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra
Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau
Papa Is a Poet: A Story About Robert Frost
The Story Of Ruby Bridges: Special Anniversary Edition
Bon Appetit! The Delicious Life of Julia Child
The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos
A Boy, a Mouse, and a Spider — The Story of E. B. White
The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever
Stand Straight, Ella Kate
The Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss
Finding Winnie
Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya
Ella Fitzgerald: The Tale of a Vocal Virtuosa
Blue Grass Boy: The Story of Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass Music
The Streak: How Joe DiMaggio Became America’s Hero
Sixteen Years In Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race
Big Machines: The Story of Virginia Lee Burton
Otis and Will Discover the Deep: The Record-Setting Dive of the Bathysphere
The Darkest Dark
Prairie Boy: Frank Lloyd Wright Turns the Heartland into a Home
Fight of the Century: Alice Paul Battles Woodrow Wilson for the Vote
Carter Reads the Newspaper
Sky Boys: How They Built the Empire State Building
Martin’s Big Words
Martin & Mahalia: His Words, Her Song
My Daddy, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Just Like Beverly: A Biography of Beverly Cleary (Growing to Greatness)
Pies from Nowhere: How Georgia Gilmore Sustained the Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Secret Kingdom: Nek Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art
The Book Rescuer: How a Mensch from Massachusetts Saved Yiddish Literature for Generations to Come
It Began with a Page
John Ronald’s Dragons: The Story of J. R. R. Tolkien
In Mary’s Garden
The Strange Birds of Flannery O’Connor
The Boy Who Dreamed of Infinity
Above the Rim: How Elgin Baylor Changed Basketball
Georgia’s Bones
A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams
The Power of Her Pen: The Story of Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne
Young Pele: Soccer’s First Star
Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpré
Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman
The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read
Shark Lady
Thirty Minutes Over Oregon: A Japanese Pilot’s World War II Story
Amelia And Eleanor Go For A Ride
Out of This World: The Surreal Art of Leonora Carrington
Alice Across America: The Story of the First Women’s Cross-Country Road Trip
Through the Wardrobe: How C. S. Lewis Created Narnia
The Girl Who Named Pluto
Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library
The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps
Thurgood
Emmanuel’s Dream
Dorothea’s Eyes: Dorothea Lange Photographs the Truth
Print This Booklist
See All Booklists

Do you ever wish you knew how to talk with your kids about books?

Download this guide for conversation starters you can use with any book.

Would you like to print this booklist?

We'll email you a link to the PDF for easy printing!

Talking to your kids about books is easier than you think.

Download a conversation guide with 3 open-ended questions you can use with any book.

Would you like to print this booklist?

We'll email you a link to the PDF for easy printing!