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Author Helps Kids Relate to Leaders

Brandon Marie Miller, an award-winning author of U.S. history books for young people, said her interest in history was fed by visit to historical sites with her parents.

“There’s nothing like actually being able to be there,” she said regarding inspiration drawn from visiting places of historic importance.

The Cincinnati resident spoke and led a workshop at the Upper Ohio Valley Festival of Books, held Nov. 14 at the Ohio County Public Library in Wheeling.

While textbooks of the past tended to gloss over difficult chapters in history, “today you try to be honest about things,” Miller said. On controversial subjects, she said, “You try to state them as honestly as possible, then go on … It is tricky.”

In telling the stories of the nation’s leaders, she said, “We don’t want them to be just heroes. They are heroic. But I think it’s important for kids to see that they are human. For me, it’s important to show that they were human, not just marble statues.”

Besides recounting history for young readers, Miller writes on topics related to women’s history and everyday life. Her latest book, “Women of Colonial America,” is written for young adults and is set to be released in February.

“I write about fashion a lot,” she said, showing a replica of an 18th-century corset to the audience. She explained that boys and girls, as young as 6 months, were placed in corsets because people of that era “felt their babies would be little lumps” without restrictive garments.

Miller, who wrote three books in a row about the founding fathers, described George Washington as husband material, Benjamin Franklin as a good date and Thomas Jefferson as “the guy you want to do your homework.” Jefferson was a difficult subject because his actions and views were so contradictory, she said.

“I’m trying to make these famous people relatable to kids,” Miller said, adding, “Rules were so important in colonial society. They kept people in their place.”

Miller’s books include “Women of the Frontier,” “George Washington for Kids,” “Thomas Jefferson for Kids” and “Benjamin Franklin, American Genius.”

The books on the founding fathers include a wide variety of activities for children, ages 9-12. “I had a lot of fun coming up with those activities. There are a lot of good activities in the books,” the author said.

For research on a topic, she said, “You always start at the library – books, books, books, articles. Anything can be a resource.

“I try to use a lot of primary sources,” Miller said. “I’m also looking for a great quote. You can always write up to a great quote.”

Biographers tend to rely on letters and collections of writings by their subjects. But as electronic communications take the place of handwritten letters, future historians may be faced with a dearth of primary material. “I don’t know how we’re going to have that concrete evidence of what people were thinking or writing,” Miller said.

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