Books in National Geographic World History Biographies series

In a life of ceaseless exploration, Marco Polo pushed out the borders of his narrow medieval world. Born in Venice in 1254, the young Marco Polo first met his father at age 15, when the elder Polo returned from a trading expedition to the East. The father's tales of the court of the Kublai Khan in China ignited a lifelong passion for adventure in the son. The Polos set out for China in 1271, traveling through the Middle East, across the Gobi Desert, to Khanbaliq in China. The journey took four years. Kublai Khan took a great liking to Marco Polo, employing him as a spy throughout his vast empire. Marco traveled and observed the cultures of Sumatra, Sri Lanka, and India in this capacity. His notes later became one of the world's great travel books, The Description of the World.

Around 1412, a baby girl was born in the village of Domremy who would change France forever. A farmer's daughter, she seemed destined for an unremarkable life. But as the dramatic narrative of this World History Biography reveals, Joan’s life was anything but ordinary. By the age of 13, she knew her destiny—to drive the English invaders from France. By 17, she had led an army to victory at Orleans. Captured in battle, and too poor to be ransomed, Joan was burned at the stake before her 20th birthday.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Nelson Mandela comes to life in this portrait of a diplomatic man whose commitment to freedom gained him both the Nobel Peace Prize and Time’s Man of the Year honor. The son of a Thembu chief in South Africa, Mandela began his life-long campaign against white colonial rule while a college student. Kramer’s eloquent, yet approachable text describes the leader’s dedication to nonviolence, his role in the African National Congress and his arrest in 1962 for sabotage and conspiracy. During his 27 years in prison, Mandela continued his fight for a democratic and free society, and ultimately was released and elected president of South Africa.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Read the true story of Alexander's daring childhood and his incredible journey across the known world. Discover the boyhood of a hero, from the dares he took to the sports he loved. A timeline highlights Alexander's life and achievements — and puts them in the broader context of the world history. Illustrations and maps bring Alexander's empire vividly to life, from its wonders to its wild beasts.

Has any other artist left the world such a vast legacy as Michelangelo? Author Philip Wilkinson leads young readers on a journey of discovery through the life and works of the Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, and poet in a visually evocative book. Wilkinson's lively narrative follows Michelangelo from his early apprenticeship in fresco through his fascination with sculpture, which gave us such masterpieces as the Pieta and David. Readers learn how Michelangelo studied anatomy by cutting up cadavers and of his tortuous struggle to release the human form from raw stone. With the help of period artwork, quotes, and photographs of artifacts, the book traces Michelangelo's lifelong association with the Medici family and his Vatican patronage through several papacies. His monumental work on the Sistine Chapel ceiling is examined in detail, as is Michelangelo's role as Chief Architect to St. Peter's. Michelangelo's story will enthrall all who are inspired by the search for perfection.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Galileo made the first effective use of the refracting telescope to discover important new facts about astronomy. His observations led him to support Copernicus's claim that Earth and the other planets circled the sun. This conflicted with the teachings of the Catholic Church, and brought Galileo before the judges of the Inquisition. He spent his final years under house arrest.Galileo's genius lay in the way he approached scientific problems. He reduced problems to simple terms on the basis of experience and common-sense logic. Then he analyzed and resolved the problems according to simple mathematical descriptions, thus opening the way for the development of modern mathematical physics.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

The original "Renaissance Man" was a scientist, a painter, a sculptor, an architect, a military engineer, an inventor, and a musician. Although he died in 1519, he left a rich legacy of learning in scores of notebooks. These included the first detailed drawings of the human anatomy, pioneering notes on the structure and growth of plants, and even detailed diagrams of machinery from which modern-day engineers have constructed prototypes. His 15th century imagination envisaged tanks and helicopters, and he even used mirror (or backward) writing to protect his ideas. The genius of Leonardo da Vinci continues to inspire and to intrigue each new generation of students throughout the world.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Born in England in 1643, Isaac Newton grew up in the age when Renaissance thinkers were challenging accepted ideas throughout Europe. Fascinated by all earthly science, Newton developed laws of motion and universal gravitation which also furthered our understanding of the movement of celestial bodies. This vibrant biography profiles the famed physicist as an acclaimed mathematician, astronomer, alchemist, philosopher, and inventor as well. Readers will discover the genius who inspired Alexander Pope to write, "Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night; God said 'Let Newton be' and all was light."National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

She was the Egyptian girl who became a master politician and a supreme stateswoman. Inheriting her father’s throne along with her young stepson, Hatshepsut was soon crowned pharaoh in her own right. This is the startling tale of a woman’s rise to power within the patriarchal society of ancient Egypt: Hatshepsut was shrewdly conveyed as a masculine ruler in all public statues and artwork, and donned male dress and a false beard in person. She ruled Egypt for decades, claiming her rightful place in the history of this great civilization.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Galileo made the first effective use of the refracting telescope to discover important new facts about astronomy. His observations led him to support Copernicus's claim that Earth and the other planets circled the sun. This conflicted with the teachings of the Catholic Church, and brought Galileo before the judges of the Inquisition. He spent his final years under house arrest.Galileo's genius lay in the way he approached scientific problems. He reduced problems to simple terms on the basis of experience and common-sense logic. Then he analyzed and resolved the problems according to simple mathematical descriptions, thus opening the way for the development of modern mathematical physics.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

In medieval times, Eleanor of Aquitaine broke the mold for women. This remarkable woman lived life on her own terms, ultimately becoming queen of France and England. We first encounter the infant Eleanor, born into the ruling family of the Duchy of Aquitaine, in 1122. She grows into a lively and intelligent young girl, and quickly learns the arts of diplomacy and power brokering. Eleanor marries the young Prince Louis, and becomes Queen of France while still a teenager. She accompanies her husband's ill-fated Second Crusade to win back the Holy Land, but returns demanding a divorce, a bold move for a medieval woman. Her second marriage, to Henry, Duke of Normandy, leads to Eleanor's coronation as Queen of England in 1154. Contrary to her reign in France, she learns to wield power at the English court, and forges strong alliances to establish a lasting dynasty.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Now in paperback: This concise, visual biography of one of the world's most fascinating historical figures, engages kids by using colorful photographs, illustrations, maps, and archival objects, as well as lively narrative. Using period artwork, primary source accounts, photographs, artifacts and a lively, engaging text, this book examines the life of Alexander the Great, from his childhood to his major achievements and victories in battle. National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.