The Wanted Book
by John Nieman
PageTurner Press and Media


"...became the queen of talk by listening first."

This is a compilation of biographies made into a book styled after most wanted posters. It is a creative way to display snippets about persons the author believes we need/want more of. He depicts most of his portrayed “Most Wanted Persons” for their character, such as "Wanted for their courage," "Wanted for Bravery," etc. Nieman has constructed almost sixty posters of historical figures and writes a few paragraphs about why he thinks their kind is wanted and who is rewarded through their exemplary accomplishments. For example, one poster begins, “ Rewards for the visionaries. The Iron Orchid. That’s what her countrymen and women called Aung San Suu Kyi for her perseverance in resisting military rule in Burma." The biographies range from the most common household names, such as Anne Frank, to the still living, including inventors and philanthropists like Elon Musk and Bill Gates. Whether one likes every figure Nieman includes or not is irrelevant. He makes good points about everyone he profiles.

Because attention spans, especially for reading, are short nowadays, the author's format is perfect. He dubs each person he profiles worthy and explains why in a page or less. Ultimately, readers can't help but feel inspired by the greatness around them. Some of the entries are even closely aligned to modern concerns, giving them greater appeal to the author's readers. One example of this is seen in the entry for Rachel Carson: "Wanted, more people like Rachel Carson, who pioneered and championed the green movement. Rewards for all eco-minded people." This book would be perfect on the shelves of every middle school library. Assuming students still read and write biographies, the age-old student question of whom one should write about can be solved right here. Possibly, with these well-done, brief biographies, students might just choose to write about more than one hero.

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