Who Did It First? 50 Scientists, Artists, and Mathematicians Who Revolutionized the World

Who Did It First?

by Julie Leung, Caitlin Kuhwald (Illustrator), Alex Hart (Editor)

A boldly illustrated and fascinating collection of profiles featuring the women and men who were pioneers of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics.You likely know that Mae Jemison was the first African American woman in space. And maybe you know that Jane Goodall was the first human accepted into a chimpanzee community. But you might not know that Alan Turing was the first person to introduce the concept of artificial intelligence. Or that Tu Youyou was the first Chinese woman to win a Nobel Prize. Who Did It First? 50 Scientists, Artists, and Mathematicians Who Revolutionized the World brings together all of these trailblazers into one stunning package. With both well-known figures and lesser-known heroes, editor Alex Hart, writer Julie Leung, and illustrator Caitlin Kuhwald celebrate the inspiring innovators who braved uncharted waters to pave the path for future generations.Perfect for fans of Little Leaders, Women in Science, and Rad Women Worldwide, Who Did It First? makes a wonderful gift for any occasion and is a must-have for every young reader’s library.Featuring Ada Lovelace, Mindy Kaling, Temple Grandin, Maria Tallchief, Riz Ahmed, and many others.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography, Science, Picture Books, Art, Stem

128 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 15, 2019

About the author

JULIE LEUNG is an award-winning author of numerous children’s books. Her picture book, The Truth About Dragons is a Caldecott Honor and winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. By day, she works in book publishing. She was raised in the sleepy suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia, though it may be more accurate to say she grew up in Oz and came of age in Middle-earth.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one would be a 3.5 for me, and I must confess that I'd have loved a book like this one when I was growing up. Most youngsters are fascinated about ground-breakers or those who did something first, which is the focus of this collection featuring 50 who changed the world in some way. Although some of these artists, scientists, and mathematicians may be familiar to readers, most of them will not be, which will surely prompt a search for additional information. The author has clearly striven to include individuals from around the world and has worked hard to highlight a diverse group of individuals ranging from Ada Lovelace, the first person to create a computer program, to Johanna Lucht, a NASA engineer who was also deaf. The individual profiles provide plenty of inspiration for young readers as they describe the subject's accomplishments and challenges. The eye-catching digital artwork was created on a Cintiq monitor and then enhanced with Photoshop. Readers may be surprised to note the many accomplishments related to technology that are mentioned here. While I might wish for even more information on each person, this book provides a good starting point, and places these individuals in context with a timeline as part of the back matter.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each of the individuals are depicted in exciting illustrations on the left, and a description the the person's "first" on the right. This will be a great book to expand the horizon of interesting individuals to a middle school student.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who Did It First? 50 Scientists, Artists and Mathematicians Who Revolutionized the World by Julie Leung, illustrated by Caitlin Kuhwald, 113 pages. NON-FICTION Henry Holt, 2019. $19

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

This is a compilation of 50 different people throughout the last two hundred years who were the first to contribute to their fields. Some are well known, like Jane Goodall or Ada Lovelace, but others I hadn’t heard of such as Claude Shannon or Thai Lee. The summaries are usually 4-5 paragraphs long and concentrate on how that person was a first in their field and what they did.

I love the illustrations in this compilation. I loved the people that were included as they were inspiring for taking a chance and trying new things. My only complaint is that I wanted more-more information and more illustrations. It leaves just a taste of what these people contributed. This would work best if directed by a teacher and used in the classroom because I’m not sure readers would pick this up and read it from cover to cover on their own.

Reviewer, C. Peterson
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2020...

[LindaJ^ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is, I think, a great book for middle schoolers. The majority of the firsts in this book are women or minorities (in the US). Nikola Testa, Isaac Newton, Barnum Brown, Robert Goddard, Alan Turing, Ralph Baer, Timothy Berners-Lee, John Herrington, Walter Alvarez, and Charles Fritts carry the flag for white men. Some of the first I was not aware of were: Maria Mitchell, an astronomer who was the first woman elected to the American Academy of Arts and Scientists (1848) and the first female astronomy professor in the United States (1865); Elizabeth Tallchief (born 1925 whose father was a member of the Osage Nation), a dancer who was the first American to dance ballet on many of Europe's most famed stages and who is considered America's first major prima ballerina; Alexa Canady who, in 1981, became the first female African-American neurosurgeon; Zaha Hadid, an Iraqi who became the first woman to receive the Prizker Architecture Prize in 2004; and Tu Youyou, who, in 2015, became the first Chinese woman to win the Nobel Prize in Medicine. This non-fiction book will be among the books that go to my youngest friends this holiday season.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a compilation of biographies of significant historical figures who either invented something, or discovered something which includes scientists, artists, and mathematicians. The book is organized in a fun way where each individual has their own fun illustration and quote, followed by a short biography. There isn’t too much unnecessary information, just a synopsis of this person’s story and accomplishments. I also love that this book highlights female figures! I expected this book to consist of typical historical facts that are traditionally focused on but there are a variety of unique subjects that I enjoyed! For example Jane Goodall, who was the first human to be accepted into a chimpanzee community. Overall a great biographical novel for students or anyone!!! Would specifically suggest to middle grade students.

[Tamya Crenshaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who did it first is a fun way to learn about the greatest accomplishments in our history. The book consists of 50 different scientists, artists, and mathematicians. The book talked about so many different inventions from the first person inventing AI to the first person creating a super soaker. The author also did it in an interesting motivating way with motivational quotes throughout the entire book. The illustrations were also done in a vibrant way and I really enjoyed that.

[Jessica Noffsinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and easy introduction to a diverse set of history makers in STEAM subjects. There are beautiful illustrations and great quotes to help inspire students. The research/stories about each history maker are short snippets--enough to introduce a person but not enough to provide much substance. Could be used for warm up reads and intros to help students see themselves.

[Scion Sanjin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this book at all. It is boring and has a lot of pages. The only part I liked is the part when Barnum Brown discovers the t rex. Another part I liked is when Jane Goodall to be exepted into a chimpanzee community. Those are my only favorites.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I get the feeling they tried to have a good cross section of people but it's still pretty western and white at the start. The art is bright but lifeless, which wouldn't be so distracting if it didn't account for half of the book.

[Amanda Walz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great compilation biography that talks about who did what first.

[Celeste · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I liked the people who were picked I just wish there would have been more info on each person. Fantastic illustrations.

[JL Salty]

Skimmed.
Includes Harvey milk, first elected openly gay elected official in CA; Ellen degeneres , first to play a gay lead on tv ; Laverne cuz first transgender emmy nomination ; ru Paul, drag queen with Hollywood star