Benjamin Banneker

Written by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Illustrated by Brian Pinkney

Reviewed by Sam E. (age 9)

This book is about Benjamin Banneker. Benjamin was a black man, but he was free, not a slave.

Benjamin often wondered about the sky. He started to teach himself astronomy and began calculating the stars and moon movements, then he wrote them in almanac. As a black man that was an amazing thing to do.

I like this book because it has great illustrations. They are detailed and they use a lot of dark colors. The dark colors help the person who is reading the book understand that Benjamin was a black person that lived during a time when blacks were not treated as fairly as whites.

In this book Benjamin Banneker helped another character change. Benjamin wrote a letter to President Thomas Jefferson. He helped Thomas Jefferson change and understand that blacks were equal to whites.

My favorite part of the book was when Benjamin got his almanac published because it was a great accomplishment. Even though he didn't get it published on his first try he didn't give up!

I recommend this book for 3rd-8th graders because it has a lot of information about Benjamin Banneker and what it was like to be a black man living free during the time of slavery.

Sam E. is a student in Mrs. Christy's 3rd Grade Class