Will You Sign Here, John Hancock?

by Jean Fritz, Trina Schart Hyman (Illustrator)

John Hancock had everything a boy could want. He lived in a beautiful house, wore fancy clothes and ate the most delicious food. When his uncle died, he became the richest man n New England.

This wasn't enough, though, because John wanted everyone to like him, too. Most people did, but one certainly did not--King George of England.

John refused to pay taxes to the king, and to show how mad he was, he made his signature on the Declaration of Independence so large that the king wouldn't need his spectacles to read it!

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

46 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Jean Guttery Fritz was an American children's writer best known for American biography and history. She won the Children's Legacy Literature Award for her career contribution to American children's literature in 1986. She turned 100 in November 2015 and died in May 2017 at the age of 101.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book on John Hancock and the many roles he played in the founding of America. Interesting to me how people use to say 'put your John Hancock right here' when they wanted you to sign something: I have to believe this is an American colloquialism, do not think it is used in England or Australia. I have not heard it used in years.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

This month, while the Old School Kidlit Reading Challenge has been focusing on nonfiction, I decided to finally sit down and read a stack of the late Jean Fritz's books about the history of the United States. In total, I read 8 titles:

And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? illustrated by Margot Tomes (1973)
Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams? illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman (1974)
Where Was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May? illustrated by Margot Tomes (1975)
What's the Big Idea, Ben Franklin? illustrated by Margot Tomes (1976)
Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman (1976)
Can't You Make Them Behave, King George? illustrated by Tomie dePaola (1977)
Where Do You Think You're Going, Christopher Columbus? illustrated by Margot Tomes (1980)
Shh! We're Writing the Constitution illustrated by Tomie dePaola (1987)

All of these except the last one are biographies of key figures in early America. In each biography, Fritz focuses on a representative quirk of each individual she profiles, which serves as a unifying thread for the important events of that person's life. For John Hancock, whose signature looms so large on the declaration of independence, this is his desire for attention and the ostentatious ways he went about trying to get it. For Sam Adams, it is his refusal to learn to ride a horse, for Columbus, his terrible sense of direction and tendency to stumble upon good fortune, and for King George, his blind paternalism toward the colonists, even when they have made very clear their disdain for him. In the last book, Shh! We're Writing the Constitution, Fritz tells the story of the difficulties and compromises that occurred among different historical figures as the U.S. Constitution slowly took shape.


In both types of books, Fritz focuses heavily not just on historical events, but on the personalities of the key figures who contributed to the outcomes of these events. Fritz does not simply idolize these men for their greatness; instead she shows both how they were ordinary (stubborn, foolish, insufferable, laughable, quirky, selfish, etc.) and extraordinary. No one is treated as all good or all bad, but instead they are portrayed as very human. For a reader like me who reads books mainly for their characters, I found this approach refreshing and endearing. Whereas I struggle to focus on lengthy informational texts that try to drill details into my memory, the "characters" in each of these books were fascinating to me. As I read in the evenings, I kept saying to my husband, "Hey did you know...?" and "I never knew that..."


None of these books is enough on its own to convey all the details of the discovery of America, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Revolutionary War, or the drafting of the Constitution, but every single one of them provides context for understanding those events on a more personal and emotional level. The straightforward facts which are included alongside the biographical details are made more memorable by Fritz's engaging and humorous writing style, and everything she writes about comes to life in a way that school textbooks never could.They would make wonderful read-alouds for elementary kids who are studying colonial America, but they are just as entertaining as independent reads for older readers who want a refresher.


Also wonderful are the illustrations for each volume. There are three illustrators for these books: Margot Tomes, Trina Schart Hyman, and Tomie dePaola. Though all three artists' styles suit the mood and content of the books, my personal favorite is Hyman. Her pictures have the most detail, and in my opinion, the most personality. Tomes is a close second - I especially like the way she draws children - but found that I associated dePaola too much with other books and other genres to feel like he was a good fit for this subject matter. Still, I think the designer for these books did a great job of keeping a consistent look to the whole series that places the reader in a particular frame of mind regardless of who drew the pictures.

Now that I have read all of these books, I understand why they were so popular in my school library during childhood and why I hear so much about them in homeschooling circles. I plan to use them with my kids when we study U.S. history and I hope they will learn to love history (as I never did as a child) by observing how much fun Fritz clearly had writing about it.

This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.

[Casey Lindstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book for children who are learning about the beginnings of America. When people think of The Constitution they automatically think of the man with the huge signature. This story gives readers a closer look at the man with the giant signature, and who we was and how he affected America. They talk about his riches, his childhood, and his desire for everyone to like him.

John Hancock's life would be of great interest to young readers. Especially when the students are going over The Constitution. Jean Fritz does a wonderful job of making readers believe that he was a real human being who did great things. In the story Jean Fritz talks about his personality and the illustrations make readers understand him better. The information in this book about John Hancock is accurate and authentic. It tells about how he was very confident, and extravagent with his clothing, and talked about his stance in the political world. All of these things proved to be true. Jean Fritz wrote in such a way that readers are interested in what is going to happen to John Hancock next. He tells the story with great descriptions that any reader will find interest in the obsticles John Hancock faces throughout the course of his life.

I was rather surprised after reading the book. Most American hero's are ones that come from nothing, however, John Hancock came from money, inherited a lot of it, and dressed so that others noticed his money. For not being a very modest man, people really did like John Hancock. What struck me most about John Hancock and this story, was the fact that so many people liked him even though he was very rich and with very confident. I would relate this story to my life by being aware that "American Heros" come from all different backgrounds, and it would be wrong to assume that they all came from nothing. Just like in real life, not all people who have money had it handed down to them, or came up from very little. I would use this in my classroom when talking about America and their independence and the constitution.

[A_Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the audio version of this historical biography, John Hancock is presented in a fun, appealing manner. It starts with Hancock’s childhood, describes how he grew up, and became the man remembered throughout history. Hancock grew up wealthy and developed a fondness for nice things. He had a colorful personality and wanted to be liked by everyone. He loved Massachusetts and its people. He enjoyed donating money and things, both for the attention he garnered from it as well as the help it provided. When King George demanded excessive taxes, Hancock refused to pay them. He became the President of the Second Continental Congress and was the first person to sign The Declaration of Independence. Hancock signed his name big enough for the King to read without his glasses. He later became the Governor of Massachusetts. The illustrations depict the clothing, hair, and settings of the time period which helps the reader further understand the characters. Hancock’s life, personality, and adventures are presented in such a witty, interesting way that the reader feels a part of history. The music and sound effects on the audio version add to this feeling of being a part of history. Can be used when studying American History. Ages 7 and up.
Soundtrack-Weston Woods Studios, Inc. 2005

[Rachael Caisedo · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are teaching about the Constitution, this is the book for your fourth and fifth graders. Since this book gives a lot of information about John Hancock, I would have the students complete a short analysis of the character. I would hand out an outline of a head that has three quotation bubbles above it. Then, the students will write three things the person is thinking in the bubbles, then draw pictures and symbols of things that would represent John Hancock.

[Kenzie Garvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose to read this book because I have always been curious why John Hancock’s signature is the largest on the Declaration of Independence. The book states he did this so King George did not need his spectacles to see it. The book also introduced several other aspects of his life that I was unaware of such as the amount of money he had and his need for attention. I really enjoyed the combination of big pictures and little text, adding a fun and entertaining twist to John Hancock’s biography.

[Angie Libert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! How did we live this long without knowing the story behind this famous signature? :)

[Tiffany]

Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? is a biography about a great man named John Hancock. Known for being the first person to sign the declaration of independence. However, this man has much more to do with history than just that.

John Hancock is someone who I believe young readers would have some interest in. Being that most people will learn that he was the first to sign the declaration of indepedence, he is well known. The fact that he is known for something that intense, I think he would have an impact on the readers and they would be interested in him. I think the format of the book makes the story of his life seem authentic and believable. It's like telling a story about something that happened once. It has facts in it that give it proof that it had happened, but that also makes the story of John Hancock's life seem believable and true. I'm sure the information in this book is accurate and authentic. There aren't necessarily citations to prove where information was recieved, but even from my history classes in elementary school and high school, I know that this stuff is accurate. The author definitely writes in an engaging style that maintains the readers attention through the pictures accompnaying the facts. It was nice to be able to see pictures along with words. Sometimes reading too many words can be rough for children and it's good to have pictures to attract the children and to give them some relief.

From reading this biography, I have definitely learned a lot more about John Hancock than I had known before reading. I thought all the information was conveyed in a great way too. I liked how it was written from his birth to the end of his life. It was neat to hear it like it was just hearing a story from a friend. You could most definitely use this book in a classroom. It could be used in younger grades, because of the pictures. Also, because it is an inoformative text, it could be used for really any grade level for a history lesson. I know I definitey learned a lot from it. It was also fun to read, because it wasn't just complete words.

[Alex Tierney]

This book is a non-fiction book about John Hancock and his life. The book retells the story of how he lived and how he came to power in New England and eventually the rest of America. The story also goes on to tell the different things he did while in power such as, not let English tax collectors on boards his ships, go to battle, and sign the Declaration of Independence.

According to the criteria, this book is accurate and authentic in conveying factual material. The events that are portrayed did happen in real life. Some of the minor events that happened might have been added in and not true, but the major events that happened we factual. The information is presented in an organized way. The book goes in chronological order from when John Hancock was a boy all the way until he died in 1793. The format and design of the book is appealing to children. Each page has a picture that goes along with what is being said in the text. This way the children can keep up with what is happening and see for themselves what is going on in the story. The author's writing style is clear. The author uses words that children will be able to understand such as, "he has many letters to write, and when legislation was passed, he has to sign his name." The children still get the sense of what is happening in the book, but at a level that is easier for them to understand.

I think that the book was a good read for younger children to get an idea of who John Hancock was. It is written in a style that allows them to learn the main things about him and still learn small facts as well. I would use this book in the classroom but simply reading it to the children. I could read the book one day and then have the children look up additional facts on John Hancock. The could also make a Declaration of Independence for the classroom as a whole group.

[Rosalinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Main Character/s: John Hancock
Setting: Massachusetts (time changes from childhood to 1776)
POV: Narrator (focus on John Hancock)

Summary: This book is a historical biography based on John Hancock. The book highlights his childhood and his development into the person many historians know. John Hancock is presented in an appealing and entertaining manner that grabs the interest of all its readers. The book discusses that Hancock grew up wealthy and he enjoyed the finer things in life. Even though he had this privilege and great upbringing the thing he loved most was being liked by all people. He began donating money and items because of the attention it brought him and he loved helping others. The book is very clear when it comes to discussing John Hancock’s love, Massachusetts and its’ people. Hancock always did what was best for the people of Massachusetts, which is why he refused to pay the excessive taxes King George demanded. This led to a string of events and his great success in America. He was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence and he made sure he signed very large so that King George was able to see his signature without glasses.
Classroom uses/theme: I would use this book in my upper elementary classroom because it is a great informational book based on John Hancock. This book highlights his signature on the Declaration of Independence and the importance of it. This book would be a great addition for a literature unit on historical figures or a social studies unit on American History or the Declaration of Independence. This book truly helps students feel as though they are a part of history and in the end this makes learning enjoyable.

[Jane Woodside · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? By Jean Fritz is a great book. This book is about John Hancock and how is became a founding father of our country.

The story is about John Hannock and he plays a vital role in our history so I think young readers would be very interested to read this book and learn about him and who he was. The author does a very good job for young readers to know he was a real person and that it is not just a made up story. It is about our own countries history so the readers would definitely be able to relate and understand who he was. The information is accurate and authentic because it talks about who he was. It talks about the clothing he wore along with the type of person he was. So, knowing when our country was declared and founded, with the description of who he was, you can see that it is very authentic and relatable to each other. I think the author does a great job at maintaining attention. He uses great descriptions of John, and makes it an easy book to read.

I thought this was a great book. I thought it was a pleasant book to read, and it was extremely informative as well. I would use this in my classroom while talking about our history. Fritz does a great job at explaining exactly who John Hancock is and I think it does a better job than a teacher standing in front of a classroom telling the students who he was.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Main Characters: John Hancock, founding fathers of the U.S.
Setting: U.S. 1776
POV: Third Person
Summary:
Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? is a biography of John Hancock. This book tells the story of his life, how he came from money, how he was contributed to American history, and how he was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence. It shows the reader why his signature and the size of it was so important- because he was so angry at King George that he signed as big as he could so that King George would see his name. It represents him as a great man but also one who was not very humble, a little bit vain, and maybe a little bit spoiled.
Classroom application:
I think that this book would best be used in about 5th or 6th grade because it is a biography that could be used when talking about how to research. This book was fun in its representation (illustrations) but it did have a lot of factual information that would be good to use in the classroom. I would say to be advised, however, that sometimes he seems a little bit smug in some of the illustrations so explaining historical implications of his actions might prove to be useful to students.

[Ryan Hong · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. What is the main idea? John Hancock's life.
2. What is a fact? King George III does not like John.
3. What happened after John recieved the stuff from Britain? Britain sent taxes.
4. Why did the King hate John? Because John disagreed with George III.
5. What is the same between the Continental Congress and John? They all signed the Declaration of Independence.
6. What do you think will happen next? Colonial America becomes USA.
7. What does amid mean? make
8. You can tell that John is not a donkey.
9. What is an opinion? George is bad.
10. What is a lesson? be nice.
11. What does pound mean? English money.
12. What can happen? George dies.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

His story is so interesting. After his uncle died, he was the 2nd richest man in the colonies at 28 years old. WOAH!!! He was really good at PR. He entertained and threw huge parties and really liked to be the center of attention. I really like him even if he had certain peacock tendencies. His kids didn't survive him. A baby girls lived a few months and his 9 year old boy died of a head injury when he was trying on new ice skates. So sad.

[Anjanette Barr]

Suggested for 9 year olds in What to Read When: The Books and Stories to Read with Your Child--and All the Best Times to Read Them

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVE Jean Fritz, she wrote great biographies for younger children. (Ages 5-10 or so). The illustrations of this book were great, and it was fun to learn about one of the cockiest men in American History! But even though he was an extravagant character, Fritz paints him in a very objective light, allowing the reader to form his/her own opinions about him.

[SamZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I pretty much love Jean Fritz! She does such a fantastic job of blending a sense of humor in with historical facts. You still learn a great deal about the life of Hancock without being overloaded with political and wartime details. A great intro to the biographical genre for beginning to middle readers.

[Rebecca Snodgrass · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book. I thought it was a pleasant book to read, and it was extremely informative as well. I would use this in my classroom while talking about our history. Fritz does a great job at explaining exactly who John Hancock is and I think it does a better job than a teacher standing in front of a classroom telling the students who he was.

[Shayla Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Your children will love the intimate connection they gain with this book. Have the class work together in small groups to come up with a Constitution for the classroom. They can all sign on their group's document.

[Emily Kidd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was informative but cute overall! Great illustrations and loved the page that showed the evolution of his signature. Can't say I'm pleased at how hard they drove the self centered point home though.

[Alexandria Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for learning the history behind this story. Great details and wonderful illustrations.

[Marissa Masterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? by Jean Fritz is a childrens biography book. It goes through the life of John Hancock from when he was young all the way up until the day of his death. This book dealt with a person whose life would be interesting to a young reader while studying the declaration of Independence because he signed it which would spark their interest. The author has presented John Hancock as an authentic and believable human being. It is written in chronological order and has a historical past so it is very believable because it is all true. It would be hard for the reader to identify with him because of his high positions with congress. The information provided throughout the book is very authentic. All of the facts are accurate that dealt with his life as well as the wars and congress in that time period. This story was well written for a young reader. Although there is a lot of information compacted into such a short story. Also, the reader would have to have some prior knowledge about the declaration of independence and history during the time period. The writing style was some what engaging. I don't think it would be able to maintain a readers attention for long unless they were interested in this topic. I thought this was a very informal and factual book. It would be a great tool for teaching about the declaration of independence and history. I was shocked because there were a lot of interesting facts about John Hancock that I did not know before reading this book. It is filled with great illustrations that add to the story as well. It has helped me grow professionally because I am more aware of events that have taken place in this time period which I can apply in my classroom.

[Jenn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is the biography of John Hancock. Through the pages of the book, the author talks about John Hancock's beginnings and how he came to be a great leader in American History. This story discusses Hancock's original home in Boston, Massachusetts and then follows him along as he travels through history.
This story about John Hancock would be interesting to students who enjoy history, but for young readers who do not like history, the story would be boring and monotonous. The author wrote about Hancock in a way that readers could identify with him as a real person, but some of the events may not be as easily identifiable with readers because they happened years ago. The information about John Hancock is very well represented and accurate as well as being authentic. The author wrote this story in a way that while it would be interesting to the students who love history, it would be a difficult read for students with little interest in history.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the story of John Hancock through this book. I did not like how it was straight facts being spit out at you throughout the whole book. I wish the author would have made it more of a story than just a recitation of facts. This book relates to my life in the sense that while in elementary school, we learned about John Hancock and the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but I never realized that Hancock was around during the time of George Washington and John Adams. I may use this during a history lesson or potentially a lesson on Presidents Day, but other than that I feel like it would just sit in the reading center unless I had a student really interested in history.

[Annie Palmer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not my favorite book of Jean Fritz's, but that could be that John Hancock is not among my favorite Founding Fathers, especially after reading this book. It seems he is most famous for his signature and may not have contributed as much as other Founding Fathers. I will have to read more to find out. I was glad I read this as it validates my teaching other Founding Fathers more than him. I do think Hanock did some valuable things (ie donations to his community and providing a productie business in his community), but I just don't hold him in as much regard as John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.

[Nicole Flores · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about the life of John Hancock. I love how this book goes right along with the American Revolution. It has many historical aspects and it is about the life of a very important historical figure. I think that since the American Revolution unit is during 4th grade and this is a 5.8 reading level, I would read this book aloud. I know that some students might be able to read it I think that most would n't really understand it. I really enjoyed this story because it is historical facts written for children, and it also shows a different influencial person of the American Revolution.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't know much about John Hancock to begin with. I felt that the tone of the book was too demeaning/sarcastic. Hancock comes away looking vain, selfish and petty. I don't know if he was or not, but this just didn't feel balanced. The author very definitely wanted you to think poorly of him.

We did learn a lot about the role he played in independence as well as in Massachusetts. But always tinged with that bit of disdain.

Not so recommended.

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the book "Will you sign here John Hancock?" The book was cool. It changed my thinking about history. I learned that he was president of the congress. My favorite part was when ships brought moldy lemons and clocks that did not work. I also learned he was super brave to sine his name the biggest. THE END:]

[Ms. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty good, it is about John Hancock's life and how he signed the Declaration of Independence.
Adrian

I liked this book! It is really interesting how his life back then was pretty harsh. He also had some good times like how he signed the Declaration of Independence.

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

As this book was billed as a biography, I expected a little more of an unbiased description. It was contrived and was below my second graders reading level/comprehension. I felt like the author (whose book "The Cabin Faced west" I loved) talked down to all her readers.

[Hannah Gies · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really did not know many details about John Hancock, so I enjoyed reading this book with my 4 year old. I love feeling more personally connected to people from history and this book really accomplishes that. I'm looking forward to more from this author!