Cricket Biography

Before the Internet, there was only one place where you could always find the exact time—the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England, where people calculated the time by studying astronomy. This was a long distance away from London, though, so someone had to go there and collect the time for the shopkeepers who sold clocks. Learn about Maria Bellville, the woman who sold time!

Strong, democratic leadership can be found around the world. This article describes several world leaders' struggles and achievements.

One thing everybody said about Benjamin Franklin was that you never knew what he might do next.

Do you wish you could explore the ocean? Learn about the life and work of Sylvia Earle, a scientist, oceanographer, and explorer! Earle wore a scuba suit and oxygen mask to explore life underwater. She discovered new plants and animals never seen before! She even lived in an underwater habitat for weeks at a time! Can you guess what she found at the bottom of the ocean where no human had ever been?

In the late 1700s, young Louis Braille overcame his disability by inventing "night writing," a system of raised dots to help blind people read. This alphabet of raised dots allowed sightless people to live more independent lives.

Did you know that NASA uses mathematics for space travel? Meet Katherine Johnson, one of the first African-American and female mathematicians who worked for NASA. Learn about her life growing up in segregated America and her journey to pursue her education and dreams. Her mathematical calculations helped American astronauts to go to space, land on the moon, and return to earth safely in 1969!

Did you know the Nobel Prize is named after the man who invented dynamite? Learn all about the life of Alfred Nobel, who grew up in a desperately poor family.

Every visitor of Yosemite National Park in California should say "thank you" to one man: John Muir.

With the help of his pea plants, Gregor Mendel cracked the secret of heredity, how traits are passed from parents to children to grandchildren.

"Houston, We have a problem"! During the Apollo 11 moon landing, as many as 400,000 people had jobs that were essential to the successful mission. Learn about aeronautics and the different jobs in the field that helped man take the first steps on the moon and expand our understanding of the solar system. Who was one of the first women to work at NASA and what role did she have?

The fascinating life story of professional cricketer Kevin Pietersen, MBE, from his childhood in South Africa to his recent experiences as one of the leading lights in the world of international cricket.

Here's how a few pioneers forged their own unique paths in the conservation movement.

Did you know hot air balloons were dreamed up by a French boy in the 1700s? Joseph Montgolfier devoted his life to experiments that he hoped would allow him to fly. With the help of his little brother, his invention allowed humans to fly for the first time in history!

Meet Doug Taron, a scientist who studies butterflies and other Insects & Arachnids at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Chicago.

In the 1600s, a boy from colonial Jamestown named Thomas Savage was traded to the Powhatans in exchange for a boy named Namontack. The English hoped this gift would prove their friendship to Chief Powhatan and allow them to teach Namontack about England. While staying with the tribe, Thomas learned their language and culture, and served as an interpreter between the Native Americans and Europeans.

In the 1800s, Charley Parkhurst had a reputation in California for being one of the toughest stagecoach drivers around. He could handle horses and scare off bandits like nobody’s business! Everyone has their secrets, though, and Charley was no different. Things aren’t always what they seem!

For more than a decade, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has captivated the world of cricket and more than a billion Indians with his incredible ingenuity as captain, wicketkeeper, and batsman. Bharat Sundaresan tracks down the cricketer's closest friends in Ranchi and artfully presents the different shades of Dhoni - the Ranchi boy, the fauji, the diplomat, Chennai's beloved Thala, the wicketkeeping Pythagoras - and lays bare the man underneath. He discovers a certain je ne sais quoi about the man who has a magical ability to transform and elevate everything that comes into his orbit.

In this engaging, cradle-to-grave biography, award-winning author Todd James Pierce explores the life of Ward Kimball, a lead Disney animator who worked on characters such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Jiminy Cricket, and the Mad Hatter. Through unpublished excerpts from Kimball's personal writing, material from unpublished interviews, and new information based on interviews conducted by the author, Pierce defines the life of perhaps the most influential animator of the 20th century.

Who were the first cricket reporters? From whence did they spring? And why is it that cricket is that most written about, most literary of sports? These are matters addressed in this the sixth monograph in this series. My father loved the literature of the game and in this title delves deep into the roots of the cricket writing and reporting tradition. Meet the pioneers of Cricket Journalism; the men who wrote the rules for practically everything which has followed in Victorian England. Encounter the Pardons, the Wisdens, the Lillywhites, Haygarth, Alcock and others, A.W. Pullin, R.S. ...

The true story of a courageous teenage girl, Sybil Ludington, who rode 40 miles in one night on horseback to muster the militia in response to an impending invasion by British soldiers.