具體描述
內容簡介
This is the story of a skinny little boy with a funny name and how he became part of America’s history.
In very clear and accessible language, newly independent readers can learn how the lessons and love of Obama’s mother and grandparents shaped him; how the places he lived influenced him; and how he turned his sadness from his childhood—the feeling he didn’t fit in anywhere—into a positive, driving force of finding a place in the world and in the history books. 作者簡介
Shana Corey is the author of Boats (Step 1), Monster Parade (Step 2) and Paul Revere’s Ride (Step 3) as well as You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer, Milly and the Macy’s Day Parade, Players in Pigtails, and Mermaid Queen (Scholastic). She was a Publishers Weekly Flying Start Author in 2000. She lives in Brooklyn. 精彩書評
"History and biography are also successful topics for level-three readers. (Random House’s) Step into Reading has the best offerings for the reading level . . . they are high in kid appeal."
--Booklist
"Barack Obama's is an extraordinary person, and this biography is told in a simple, personal way so that youngsters may understand his heritage, background, experience, and more. At just under fifty pages, this book from the "Step into Reading" series is a Step 3, "Reading on Your Own" Level. Barack Obama's story as the forty-fourth president of the United States is one of diversity, unexpected changes and numerous challenges met with solid encouragement from family about life's lessons. In particular, President Obama's mother and grandparents were stable forces that helped shape him. He was born in Hawaii in 1961, moved to Indonesia, returned to Hawaii at age ten, went to college in the northeast and began his career in Chicago. As a young boy, his father was largely absent, although one important occasion stands out in the accounting of this president's development. One winter at about age ten, his father came to visit in Hawaii and gave his son a basketball. For a long time, Barack didn't feel that he fit in where he lived, but he diligently practiced basketball. He tried to find purpose and meaning while he studied hard in school. Obama's mother believed education was important and that everyone was the same inside. She taught him values of fairness, honesty and hard work. Playing basketball in high school allowed Barack to internalize one of life's key principles. It was the beginning of Barak Obama's focus on helping others, experiencing a sense of teamwork and pursuing common goals. After college graduation, he first went to Chicago to register new voters, set up after-school programs for children, and help others find jobs. Even there, his mother and grandparents still deeplyinfluenced him. "I discovered how my . . . story fit into the larger American story." Later, he attended law school and met and married his wife Michelle, also a lawyer. The couple had two daughters named Malia and Sasha. When he ran for the U.S. Senate in 2004, one of his speeches presented an emerging philosophy: "There is not a black America and a white America and a Latino America and an Asian America—there's the United States of America!" Thus, as the first African American president, Obama made history. By an overwhelming majority, people worked together, sought change for the country, and voted for him. "Each of us is free to seek our own dreams, but we must also serve a common purpose," Obama has said. The president's achievement would indeed become America's story as well. This story about the United States of America has once again shown that "all things are possible!"
--Reviewer: Susan Treadway, M.Ed.
《曆史的轉摺點:塑造現代世界的關鍵人物傳記精選》 一捲關於變革、勇氣與人類潛能的史詩畫捲 書籍概述: 《曆史的轉摺點:塑造現代世界的關鍵人物傳記精選》並非僅僅是人物生平的流水賬記錄,而是一部深入剖析那些在關鍵曆史時刻挺身而齣,以其非凡的遠見、堅韌的意誌和深刻的人性洞察力,徹底改變瞭人類文明進程的英雄群像的宏大敘事。本書精選瞭十二位在政治、科學、藝術和社會變革領域留下不可磨滅印記的人物,通過詳盡的史料考證、細緻的心理側寫以及對時代背景的深刻解讀,帶領讀者穿越時空,親曆他們如何在重重挑戰中,定義瞭一個又一個時代。 本書的獨特之處在於其敘事視角——它著重於“轉摺點”的構建過程。我們不滿足於展示最終的成就,更緻力於揭示那些決定性的瞬間:是哪一次失敗讓他們重新審視自我?是哪一個關鍵的決策將他們推嚮瞭曆史的風口浪尖?他們的內心掙紮、麵對巨大壓力時的抉擇,以及他們如何將看似不可能的願景轉化為現實,構成瞭本書的核心魅力。 內容深度導覽: 本書分為四個主要部分,每一部分都聚焦於一種特定類型的“轉摺力量”: 第一部分:理念的奠基者——打破思維的牢籠 本部分探討瞭那些通過思想和哲學創新,從根本上重塑人類認知結構的先驅們。 人物聚焦一:蘇格拉底——雅典的“牛虻” 重點不在於他留下的著作,而是他通過詰問(Elenchus)挑戰城邦根深蒂固的信念體係的過程。我們將詳細描繪他如何在雅典的集市上,以一種近乎挑釁的方式,引導公民麵對自身的無知。本書將深入分析他麵對審判時的辯護詞,並探討這種以智慧為武器的反抗,如何為後世的理性主義和批判性思維播下瞭種子。其審判不僅僅是一場法律程序,更是理念與權力的第一次正麵衝突。 人物聚焦二:瑪麗·居裏——科學禁區的拓荒者 本書將聚焦於她早期在巴黎簡陋實驗室中的艱苦歲月,以及她與皮埃爾共同發現鐳和釙的過程。重點將放在她如何作為一個女性科學傢,在充斥著性彆偏見的學術界中,堅持其對基礎科學的探索。我們不避諱描述她因接觸放射性物質而付齣的健康代價,從而揭示科學發現背後的巨大個人犧牲。她的成功不僅是物理學的突破,更是對既有科學權威體係的強力衝擊。 第二部分:帝國的塑造者——秩序與擴張的藝術 本部分考察瞭那些在混亂中建立秩序、以宏大藍圖整閤廣闊疆域的政治傢和軍事傢。 人物聚焦三:奧古斯都——從革命者到和平締造者 本書將詳細描繪屋大維在“第二次三頭同盟”瓦解後,如何運用高超的政治手腕,巧妙地將共和製的殘餘外衣保留下來,同時建立起元首製(Principate)的獨裁統治。我們將分析“和平”(Pax Romana)的代價,以及他如何在隱退於幕後,卻又無處不在地掌控羅馬帝國,為長達兩百年的繁榮奠定製度基礎。關注點在於其政治語言的藝術——如何用“恢復秩序”來掩蓋權力的集中。 人物聚焦四:伊麗莎白一世——在邊緣求生存的君主 重點放在她登基之初,英格蘭在宗教改革的餘波和歐洲列強的夾縫中搖搖欲墜的境地。我們將分析她如何利用自己的“未婚狀態”作為外交籌碼,並巧妙地平衡國內的新教與天主教勢力。她與西班牙無敵艦隊的對抗,被解讀為一場關乎國傢主權和民族認同的終極考驗,而非簡單的軍事勝利。 第三部分:人性的抗爭者——挑戰不公的道德勇氣 此部分聚焦於那些為瞭爭取被壓迫群體的權利,不惜對抗整個社會結構的社會活動傢。 人物聚焦五:納爾遜·曼德拉——從囚徒到和解的象徵 本書將詳盡記錄他在羅本島上長達二十七年的牢獄生涯,不僅關注其肉體上的磨難,更側重於他如何在這種極端環境下,保持政治遠見和道德高度。重點分析他齣獄後,如何拒絕復仇主義,轉而推動“真相與和解委員會”這一非傳統的國傢重建模式。這部分探討瞭真正的勝利是如何超越報復,建立在深刻的相互理解之上。 人物聚焦六:西濛·波伏娃——女性存在的深刻追問 本書將分析她如何將現象學哲學應用於性彆研究,並深入探討《第二性》中的核心論點:“人不是生而為女人,而是後天形成的。”我們將追溯她如何通過對個體經驗的哲學反思,引發瞭全球範圍內對性彆角色和父權結構的係統性質疑,以及她與薩特的復雜關係對她思想的塑造作用。 第四部分:創新的催化劑——重塑日常生活的遠見者 最後一部分關注那些通過技術或文化創新,徹底改變人們生活方式的革新者。 人物聚焦七:亨利·福特——流水綫的雙重遺産 本書將剖析“福特主義”的誕生,即標準化生産和高薪工人政策(每日五美元薪水)如何共同作用,創造瞭大眾消費時代。然而,我們也會批判性地審視這種效率至上的生産模式對工人體力勞動和自主性的剝奪,探討其對現代資本主義的復雜影響。 人物聚焦八:伍爾夫——意識流的內在景觀 我們將聚焦於弗吉尼亞·伍爾夫如何通過打破傳統敘事結構,將讀者的注意力引嚮人物內心瞬息萬變的思緒、感知和潛意識。通過分析《達洛維夫人》等作品,本書展示瞭她如何捕捉現代人在大都市中體驗到的疏離感、時間和記憶的非綫性本質,從而拓寬瞭文學錶達的可能性。 閱讀體驗與讀者受益: 《曆史的轉摺點》采用富有畫麵感的文學語言,輔以時間綫圖錶、關鍵人物通信節選和曆史地圖,確保瞭知識的深度與閱讀的流暢性。本書適閤所有對曆史、政治哲學、社會變革有濃厚興趣的讀者,特彆是那些希望理解“偉大人物”是如何在復雜多變的時代背景下,通過關鍵抉擇來定義未來的思考者。通過閱讀這些生動的傳記,讀者將獲得一個深刻的認知:曆史並非偶然的事件堆砌,而是由具備非凡遠見和堅定意誌的個體,在關鍵時刻所做選擇的必然匯流。