President George Washington

A Holiday House Reader, Level 2

by David A. Adler, John Wallner (Illustrator)

In his latest easy reader, David Adler makes the extraordinary life of George Washington accessible to beginning readers. From George's boyhood in Virginia to his post as commander in chief of the Continental army in the Revolutionary War, from his marriage to Martha Dandridge Custis to his inauguration as the new nation's first president, this easy-to-read biography offers a succinct introduction to the life of the man who was "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."

Genres: Biography, Childrens, Picture Books, History, Nonfiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

David Abraham Adler is an American children's author. He was born in New York City, New York in 1947. He graduated from Queens College in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in economics and education. For the next nine years, he worked as a mathematics teacher for the New York City Board of Education, while taking classes towards a master's degree in marketing, a degree he was awarded by New York University in 1971. In that same year, a question from his then-three-year-old nephew inspired Adler to write his first story, A Little at a Time, subsequently published by Random House in 1976. Adler's next project, a series of math books, drew on his experience as a math teacher. In 1977, he created his most famous character, Cam Jansen, originally featured in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds, which was published that year.

Adler married psychologist Renee Hamada in 1973, and their first child, Michael, was born in 1977. By that time Adler had taken a break from teaching and, while his wife continued her work, he stayed home, took care of Michael, and began a full-time writing career.

Adler's son, Michael S. Adler, is now the co-author of several books with his father, including A Picture Book of Sam Adams, A Picture Book of John Hancock, and A Picture Book of James and Dolly Madison. Another son, Edward, was the inspiration for Adler's Andy Russell series, with the events described in the series loosely based on adventures the Adler family had with Edward's enthusiasm and his pets.

As of November 2008, Adler has three sons and two grandsons. He lives in Woodmere, New York.

(source: Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just a major bullet point overview of the life of George Washington. It focused mainly on the Revolutionary War. The illustrations were really lovely.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

President George Washington by David A. Adler chronicles the life of the first president of the United States. The book begins with a chapter that discusses the life of young George Washington. The reader learns that George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 in a small Virginia farmhouse. The book then continues to state that George learned to read and write at the age of seven and loved arithmetic. The first chapter ends by stating that George Washington joined the Virginia amry when he was nineteen. The second chapter discusses some of Washington's military history. The reader learns that he fought in the opening battle of the French and Indian War. In 1758, George Washington left the army as an American hero and married Martha Custis. Chapter three provides readers with another overview of George Washington's contributions to the American Revolution. It also discusses the Boston Tea Party and the motives behind the American rebellion towards England. The fourth chapter provides readers with information about the last big battle of the Revolutionary War and states that George Washington as elected the first president of the United States in 1789. The final chapter of the book revealed that George Washington passed away on December 14 of 1799. The final page includes a quote that reads "George Washington was first in war, first in peace, and first in the eharts of his fellow-citizens".

I would recommend this book for children in the primary age range. George Washington by David A. Adler was given a level two (Grades 1-2)rating by the Holiday House publishing company. The book has large type, simple vocabulary, short chapters and plenty of pictures to help with comprehension of the text. This book would be perfect for children who are learning how to read.

I believe that President George Washington is an excellent example of a biography that is suited for young children. The book is definitely grounded in fact and even includes some quotes by George Washington. The book contains a source page that shows that the author put significant amount of time into making sure the facts and quotes he used were correct. The plot contained the key elements in Washington's life without being overly detailed and drawn-out. The illustrations on each page are detailed and help portray individual events in George Washington's life. For example, the chapter that discusses George Washintons death and legacy include illustrations that show Washington on his death bed and a statue of Washington.

I would definitely recommend this book to others. I think this book would be an excellent way for a parent to introduce history into his/her young readers life. The book is simple yet still contains a lot of information about George Washington. The book even includes a timeline of important dates to help with comprehension. Overall, I enjoyed George Washington by David A. Adler and I believe that many others would enjoy it also!

[Aimee Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

President George Washington

This biography called President George Washington by David A. Adler is about how George Washington grew up and how he was when he was a younger boy. Then it goes into talking about how he met Martha Curtis. After that, the books goes into detail about the taxes and the protests then explains how George Washington became President George Washington. After that it goes into talking about important dates reading and the first in hearts with George Washington. Adler does an amazing job giving a lot of truth to the person he is writing about.

All of the illustrations are done by John Wallner and they are done with water colors. The pictures are very realistic and well done. The front cover of the book has a picture of George Washington riding on a horse. On the back flappy, there is information about the author David A. Adler, and information about the illustrator, John Wallner. On the front flappy there is a brief description of what is going to be discussed in the book. There is a table of contents and most of the pages has a double page spread picture.

[Lisa Overberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for introducing young children to George Washington, this book talks about George Washington’s childhood, his time as a general, the battles his army was in, his wife, and how he became the first President of the United States; it also briefly talks about his death. At the end of the book is a list of important dates in George Washington’s life accompanied by the contributions he made. Additionally, there is a list of other suggested reading materials related to George Washington. The pictures help tell the story and are great for helping to keep the attention of young readers.

Reading Level: 2.9
Grade Level: K - 2
Lexile: 550L

[Tyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the content was a little old for Alex but it was fun to read about our first president in Presidents' Day. It had a so much information in a format interesting to kids.

[Danette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read with Julia.