Biography definition and examples

Biography genre

Definition and overview

Definition and Overview
A biography is a written or spoken account of someone’s life. It usually includes information such as their birth date, place of birth, family members, education, career, achievements, and death (if applicable). Biographies are often used to introduce people who have made significant contributions in various fields like politics, literature, science, sports, entertainment, etc. They provide insight into the personality, motivations, and experiences of the subject matter. The genre has been around for centuries, with some of the earliest known examples being from ancient Greece and Rome. In modern times, biographies are widely available in various forms including books, movies, television shows, and online articles.

History and development

The biography genre has its roots in ancient Greece, where writers such as Plutarch wrote biographies of famous individuals. However, it wasn’t until the 18th century that the modern form of the biography began to take shape, with writers like James Boswell creating detailed acc

Genre Spotlight : Biography

My son is now seven years old and if you were to ask him what types of books he likes, he’d be quick to say that he likes “true stories” aka. biographies.  Yes, there are lots of children’s picture books in the biography genre and we’ve learned about all kinds of interesting people in history through this medium.  It’s great to expose kids to many different literature genres at a young age – you never know what they will be interested in!

I loved focusing on one genre a month when I was a classroom teacher so I thought I could bring some of my genre-teaching enthusiasm to the the Library Commons blog for a couple weeks.  This week, I want to share some library’s resources for teaching about biographies.

One way to incorporate biographies into home learning is to find the biography of a person who has been prominent in studying the same topic your child might be studying in science or art.  What a great cross-curriculuar opportunity!

For example, is your child interested in inventing things or are you teaching about sound & light? We have a new

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Finding Biographies

  • Biography in Context
    Online biographical reference database in the fields of literature, science, business, entertainment, politics, sports, history, current events and the arts. Biographical information on over one million people throughout history, around the world.
    It has overlap with Literature Resource Center, but contains biographical information across disciplines. Literature-specific resources include:

    Contemporary Authors. Vols. 1-270.1962-2008
    Contemporary Novelists. 7th ed., 2001. Detroit: St. James Press.
    Contemporary Poets. 7th ed., 2001. Detroit: St. James Press.
    Contemporary Popular Writers. Detroit: St. James Press, 1999.
    Contemporary Southern Writers. Detroit: St. James Press, 1997.
    Contemporary Women Poets. Detroit: St. James Press, 1999.
    St. James Guide to Children's Writers. 5th ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 1999
    St. James Guide to Crime & Mystery Writers. 4th ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 1996.
    St. James Guide to Fantasy Writers. Detroit: St. James Press, 1996.
    St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic

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