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Want to spend an hour every day with the president? Eighteen-year-old Vinnie Reams did this for five months, sculpting the face of Abe Lincoln. She was tiny and self-taught, with gigantic talent and drive. Today her marble statue of the 16th President sits in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol.

Perfect for: Kids who like history.

Find at your local library.

Paris, 15th century. Old Jacques can’t illuminate the manuscript his noble client wants because his eyes and hands have weakened. Daughter Marguerite helps him, buying medieval art supplies (calfskin, goose feathers, saffron, lapis lazuli) and painting meticulously. With decorated margins, gold highlights, and egg tempera recipe. Ideal for crafty kids and junior historians.

Perfect for: Kids who like historical fiction.

Find at your local library.

How did Martha Graham (choreographer), Aaron Copland (composer) and Isamu Noguchi (set designer) collaborate to produce the enduring American classic, Appalachian Spring? Every step of their creative process is explained, from the visionary notes to the long exacting rehearsals. With graceful illustrations and a valuable theme: working together is fun!

Perfect for: Kids who like to dance.

Find at your local library.

Vashti thinks she can’t draw, so she just stabs a dot in her art paper. Her teacher frames it and puts it by her desk. Encouraged and inspired, Vashti draws increasingly creative dot drawings. Vashti’s story will help kids and parents talk about perfectionism, insecurity, and getting started —”Just make a mark and see where it takes you.”

Perfect for: Kids who are cautious, particularly about self-expression.

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Katze, the pet feline of Viennese painter Gustav Klimt, takes readers on a cat’s-eye tour of the artist’s daily life. Locations include the studio, gardens, museums, a boating excursion, and an Italian vacation. Includes dazzling reproductions of Klimt’s gold leaf, ornamental masterpieces, with illustrations that resemble the artist’s. Warning: some artwork has sexual content.

Perfect for: Kids who like arts.

Find at your local library.

Kid-friendly introduction to Mozart’s life, historical era, and important compositions. Includes photographs, drawings, painting reproductions, and tongue-in-cheek cartoons, with dozens of startling facts: Mozart could play the violin at 4 years old, and he created 800 pieces of music. Part of a series that also includes Beethoven, Stravinsky, Gershwin, and many others.

Perfect for: Kids who like to read about real people.

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Ramon loves to draw, until his older brother teases him about his flaws in realism. His joy ruined, he quits, until his little sister explains that she likes the “ish” quality of his work, as in “tree-ish.” Art isn’t about perfection, realizes Ramon, reinspired. Creativity expresses the individualistic ish!

Perfect for: Kids who like arts.

Find at your local library.

Fascinating biography of the Little Women author. Includes many anecdotes about Louisa’s close-knit, impoverished, free-thinking family, and the experiences that shaped her work and ideas. Example: rescued from drowning by a “kind, black boy,” she later became an abolitionist. With vibrant illustrations, childhood poems, a timeline of achievements, and a favorite dessert recipe.

Perfect for: Kids who like to read about real people.

Find at your local library.

Cat lives in a beautiful house with toys, but he envies the bird flying outside. Aided by his feathered friend, Cat escapes to dance on rooftops in the moonlight. This tale of freedom and friendship was inspired by the beloved Paul Klee painting, “Cat and Bird.” Includes information on the artist and a reproduction of the masterpiece.

Perfect for: Kids who like making friends.

Find at your local library.

In his »ÆÉ«app in 12th century Pisa, Leonardo Fibonacci finished difficult math problems quickly, then he stared out the window, daydreaming. Everyone teased him — calling him “Blockhead” — but he became Europe’s greatest mathematician, introducing Arabic numerals and discovering the Fibonacci sequence in nature. Entertaining with medievalist illustrations.

Perfect for: Kids who like to read about real people.

Find at your local library.