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U.S. Landmark Books #110

The Story Of Thomas Alva Edison

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FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Offers young readers a factual guide to the life of one of the world's greatest inventors while discussing how his inventions--such as the light bulb, motion pictures, and the phonograph--forever changed the world in which we live.

192 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1965

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Margaret Cousins

15 books9 followers

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5 stars
35 (29%)
4 stars
48 (40%)
3 stars
22 (18%)
2 stars
11 (9%)
1 star
2 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
3 reviews
March 9, 2015
This book definitely caught my attention, so I read it. The book made me appreciate and admire Thomas Alva Edison more than ever before. I never exactly knew what this man did for the world until I read this book. I absolutely liked reading this book because it fascinated me the entire time knowing what this man could do and did throughout his lifetime. My favorite part consisted of reading about the humbleness of Edison . I found no dislikes while reading this book. The book came off as an easy book to read because it didn’t consist of a complex story, plot, or problem. I do recommend others to read this book.
Profile Image for Cala.
207 reviews5 followers
May 12, 2021
Great biography of Thomas Alva Edison written for young readers - probably at least middle school. As an adult, I really enjoyed learning about Edison from this easy to read yet incredibly thorough account of Edison's life. He led a work-centered life and his family barely knew who he was, but the world benefitted greatly. So many things we take for granted now wouldn't exist without Edison's tireless experimentation, risk taking, and publicity knowledge. I would recommend this book to anyone interesting in Edison, inventions, electricity, and the like.
1 review
October 26, 2022
Great biography of Thomas Alva Edison written for young readers. As an class 12th student, I really enjoyed learning about Edison from this easy to read yet incredibly thorough account of Edison's life. He led a work-centered life and his family barely knew who he was, but the world benefitted greatly. So many things we take for granted now wouldn't exist without Edison's tireless experimentation, risk taking, and publicity knowledge. I would recommend this book to anyone interesting in Edison, inventions, electricity, and the like.
Profile Image for Amy Dale.
620 reviews18 followers
January 21, 2023
I became interested in Edison after watching the fantastic films, Young Tom Edison with Mickey Rooney and Edison the Man with Spencer Tracy. This book showed what from the movies was true and what had been enhanced or made up. I really enjoyed it until around 70% and I felt it got too bogged down with the technical details of his inventions, but the beginning about his childhood and early career and adventures was great. You don't realize how many things we take for granted that wouldn't exist without him.
Profile Image for Emmett Nolan.
50 reviews
June 21, 2017
I would say this is in my top 5 favorite books of all time. Yes, I think it's that good. The story describes how Thomas grows up and how he becomes interested in being an inventor, and accurately and vividly describes his successes and failures, and the outcome of them.
21 reviews
March 13, 2025
Turns out, Edison was kind of a weirdo. This book was super fun to read even though we didn't end up loving Thomas Edison. We did learn a lot about his life and the era he lived in. An excellent biography to add to your american history repertoire.
92 reviews
November 13, 2020
Real funny book about Thomas Edison. I love how Edison always finds a way to get rich but then looses all his money.
Profile Image for Erika.
378 reviews4 followers
April 13, 2021
A great biography for young readers. I learned plenty as part of our history of science. I only wish it had more diagrams. Would have helped with the younger crowd
Profile Image for Pongsak Sarapukdee.
284 reviews24 followers
January 13, 2022
I enjoyed reading this book very much. Thomas Alva Edison is a role model of someone who succeeds through hard work and also a man who never stops learning new things.
Profile Image for Caleb Meyers.
290 reviews2 followers
September 20, 2023
This man had a fascinating life. He sounds like a hard personality to get along with.
224 reviews
December 10, 2023
A great book about Thomas Edison for grades 3-6. It was both enjoyable and informative.
Profile Image for Dirk Bannion.
Author 2 books1 follower
November 23, 2024
My son expected this book to be boring and instead found it fascinating. Well written and engaging account of an amazing person.
Profile Image for Julie Martin.
98 reviews2 followers
November 22, 2025
I really enjoyed reading this book (for the second time) with my 9yo son. The last chapter had some excellent quotes.
Profile Image for Zack.
26 reviews
June 7, 2009
I really liked this book. I never really knew about Thomas Edison until I read this book. If I were to read about a person, I guess it might as well be the greatest contribution to the united stated in the late 1800’s. Knowing about the civil war surprising helped me understand some of the terms and events in the book. When the book mentioned riots breaking out over “Carpetbaggers” I remembered learning about that in social studies. Carpetbaggers are northerners traveling to the south after the civil war. I would defiantly recommend this book to everyone because use it really helps you to see how is nation devolved, and the people who help it to be what it is today.
1,321 reviews4 followers
January 11, 2017
The Story of Thomas Alva Edison is a well-written book about Thomas Edison’s life, from birth to death. It is written in a way that is interesting to children in late elementary through middle school. Many stories and anecdotes are included to give a well-rounded picture of the inventor. I recommend it for children and adults alike.
Profile Image for Amy.
376 reviews2 followers
April 20, 2011
This is not the same cover that we have. My children really enjoyed this read aloud and were inspired by it. We had many interesting conversation and some science projects resulted for the read!
Profile Image for Pam Costa.
10 reviews13 followers
November 27, 2012
This is the kind of biography I enjoyed reading when I was a kid. Very well written and keeps your attention to the last word! What an amazing person Edison was.
Profile Image for Justin Lambert.
116 reviews
June 29, 2014
My son expected this book to be boring and instead found it fascinating. Well written and engaging account of an amazing person.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews

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