I went looking for Boys who Rocked the World by Michelle McCann after I read Girls who Rocked the World which I wrote about here. This review is very similar.
There are 46 stories of boys who have made a significant impact in lots of different fields. The wide variety of locations, historical settings and backgrounds makes for a smorgasbord of experiences. Like the girls, all the boys had to overcome obstacles, whether they were prejudices, poverty, lack of education or family expectations. They all showed amazing determination and perseverance.
The authors chose boys who had seriously started to have an impact by the time they were twenty. This criteria meant a lot of significant males were left out, especially those whose achievements required years of study. Nevertheless even with this strict criteria the number of remarkable accomplishments especially in those so young is amazing.
Each story is only a few pages long so it is suitable to read to children or have them read it themselves. Some stories deal with quite horrific events such as slavery and war but these were well handled by the author, neither going into unnecessary details but not ignoring the trauma either. My favourite stories were Mozart, Louis Braille, Einstein, Galileo, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.
A fascinating read.
