Parents' Guide to

Who Was? Series

Who Was? Series Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Carrie Kingsley By Carrie Kingsley , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 8+

Exceptional biography series teaches history, culture, too.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 8+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 10+

Based on 1 parent review

age 10+

What's the Story?

The WHO WAS? series profiles historically significant people, places, and events in great detail, giving readers a closer look at historical, more recent, and current figures, including Frederick Douglass, Judy Blume, Joan of Arc, Blackbeard, Steve Jobs, the Wright brothers, Pele, Nikola Tesla, and many more. Each book has a bibliography and fold-out, glossy timeline of events at the end, and sidebars throughout the book give additional details related to the main topic or person.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (3 ):

The books in this series are fabulous, giving the right level of detail for both young readers and adults who want to learn. The writing in the Who Was? series is far from the dull monotony of kids' school history books, and makes an effort to bring history and people to life on the pages. There's a ton of great vocabulary, endless amounts of facts and trivia to glean, and topics for every interest.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how the Who Was? books fit into current events and people. Are there any similarities between what happens in one of the books and what has happened recently?

  • What's your favorite time period in history and why?

  • What details did you learn about a person in a Who Was? or Who Is? book that you didn't know before?

Book Details

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