James Haskins
Personal Information
Description
James Haskins was born in Demopolis, Alabama. He graduated from high school in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1960 he received a B.A. degree from Georgetown University, in 1962 he received a B.S. degree from Alabama State University, and in 1963 he received a M.A. degree from the University of New Mexico. After graduation, he moved to New York and worked as a stock trader on Wall Street. He taught music and special education classes in Harlem, and eventually left stock trading to become a full-time teacher. His first book, Diary of a Harlem Schoolteacher, was published in 1969. He was a professor of English at the University of Florida, Gainesville, and lived in New York City. Over the course of his career, he wrote well over 100 books, mostly for children and young adults, focusing on the biographies of leading African Americans and key aspects of African-American culture, social history, and contemporary life. He died in 2005 of complications from emphysema.
Books
Count your way through Iran
Count your way from one, or [Arabic numeral 1] (yek), to ten, or [Arabic numeral 10] (dah), in Farsi! Using simple text, authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce readers to the Iranian culture. Learn about everything from Omar Khayyam’s famous four-line poems to the seven countries that border Iran. Colorful illustrations bring ancient and modern Iran to life.
Count your way through Egypt
Count your way from one (WA-hid) to ten (AH-shah-rah) in Arabic! With simple text, award-winning authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce readers to the Egyptian culture. Learn about everything from Egypt’s one great canal to eight items you might find in a tomb. Full color illustrations from Sue Rama bring ancient and modern Egypt to life.
Count your way through Afghanistan
Count your way from one, or [Arabic numeral 1] (yao), to ten, or [Arabic numeral 10] (lahs), in Pashto! Using simple text, authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce readers to the Afghan culture. Learn about everything from Afghanistan’s one blue mosque to ten kites flying in the sky over Kabul. Colorful illustrations bring modern Afghanistan to life.
Count your way through Kenya
Count your way from one, or moja (MO-jah), to ten, or kumi (KOO-mee), in Swahili! Using simple text, authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce readers to the Kenyan culture. Learn about everything from one Mount Kenya to the eight-stringed nyatti. Colorful illustrations bring Kenya to life.
Count your way through South Africa
Count your way from one, or kunye (KOO-nyeh), to ten, or ishumi (ee-SHOO-mee), in Zulu! Using simple text, authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce South African culture. Learn about many of South Africa’s unique features, from one gold nugget to the six colors on the South African flag. Colorful illustrations bring South Africa to life.
Count your way through Zimbabwe
Count your way from one or (POE-she) to ten or (GOO-mee) in Shona—Zimbabwe’s most common African language. Using simple text, award-winning authors Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson introduce important aspects of Zimbabwean culture. You’ll learn about Victoria Falls—Zimbabwe’s beautiful waterfall—and discover the meaning behind the seven stripes on Zimbabwe’s flag. Full-color illustrations from Janie Jaehyun Park bring Zimbabwe to life.
John Lewis in the lead
"A biography of John Lewis, Georgia Congressman and one of the 'Big Six' civil rights leaders of the 1960s, focusing on his youth and culminating in the voter registration drives that sparked 'Bloody Sunday,' as hundreds of people walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. Includes a note by Congressman Lewis and a timeline"--Provided by publisher.
Building a New Land
Discusses the changing roles, rights, and contributions of Afro-Americans in the United States during the colonial period from 1607 to 1763. Also includes a chronology of significant events.
The quiet revolution
Focuses on the human and civil rights the handicapped are campaigning for, and on the various methods they are using to bring change to society and make it more aware of the needs of the disabled.
African American Millionaires (Black Stars)
Meet the black Achievers who attained the American Dream-from the early years to modern times "This wonderful book should be required reading for young people, who will learn how some of the nation's most successful Black men and women became role models." -Joyce Ladner, Ph.D. Robert Sengstacke Abbott Tyra Banks Matel "Mat" Dawson Jr. Joe L. Dudley Sr. Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds S. B. Fuller Arthur George Gaston Earl G. Graves Earvin "Magic" Johnson John H. Johnson Robert L. Johnson Quincy Jones Shelton "Spike" Jackson Lee William Alexander Leidesdorff Abraham Lincoln Lewis Reginald Francis Lewis Annie Turnbo Malone Bridget "Biddy" Mason Anthony Overton Mary Ellen Pleasant Russell Simmons Madame C...
Against All Opposition
Surveys the lives and adventures of Black explorers who helped discover new worlds.
Black stars of colonial and revolutionary times
AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY COMES TO LIFE Discover why young people all over the country are reading the Black Stars biographies of African American heroes. Here is what you want to know about the lives of great black men and women during the Colonial and Revolutionary War era: richard allen crispus attucks benjamin banneker daniel coker paul cuffe austin dabney james durham estevanico catherine ferguson james forten lemuel haynes anthony johnson "free frank" mcworter marie therese metoyer jean baptiste point du sable deborah sampson peter salem pierre toussaint "The books in the Black Stars series are the types of books that would have really captivated me as a kid." -Earl G. Graves, Black Enterprise magazine "Inspiring stories that demonstrate what can happen when ingenuity and tenacity are paired with courage and hard work." -Black Books Galore! Guide to Great African American Children's Books "Haskins has chosen his subjects well . . . catching a sense of the enormous obstacles they had to overcome. . . . Some names are familiar, but most are little-known whom Haskins elevates to their rightful place in history." -Booklist "The broad coverage makes this an unusual resource-a jumping-off point for deeper studies." -Horn Book
The Man Who Put "Black" in American History
A biography of the son of former slaves who received a Ph.D. in history from Harvard and devoted his life to bringing the achievements of his race to the world's attention.
Geography Of Hope:Black Exodus
Discusses the conditions of African Americans in the South before, during, and after the Civil War, and the migration of many former slaves, led by such men as Benjamin Singleton and Henry Adams, to the West looking for a better life.