Hamilton Children's Book: Alexander Hamilton: From Orphan to Founding Father (Step into Reading)
Elementary level biography telling the life of Alexander Hamilton.
Alexander Hamilton: From Orphan to Founding Father (Step into Reading) is a Kindergarten level biography that follows the life of Alexander Hamilton. The book, which can be purchased on Amazon, advertises that "Fans of the Broadway musical Hamilton and American history lovers will want to share this illustrated biography of Alexander Hamilton with their young readers". Here, the writers acknowledge that the story of Alexander Hamilton was made popular because of Hamilton the Musical, and are using this information to drive their marketing techniques.
The book description goes on to describe Hamilton as "An orphan from the West Indies", focusing on his now well-known immigration status. The description continues, labeling Hamilton as "General George Washington’s right-hand man", whihc is an expression used directly in the musical. The book overview continues to praise Hamilton's accomploishments, explaining that "his accomplishments don’t stop there! He helped obtain the ratification of the Constitution; he was America’s first secretary of the treasury; and he established the first national bank and the U.S. Mint. A man of ambition, loyalty, and principle, he is now being celebrated as the prominent patriot he was". Not only does this narrative paint Hamilton an american hero to young readers, but it also creates the image of an ambitous, morally-sound character that children want to root for.
As a book that is easily accessible to young children, since it introduces the Hamilton narrative using comprehensive language accompanied by colorful images, we must acknowledge the influence that children's books, like this, can have. If this is the first book that is introducing Alexander Hamilton to a child, the book is suddenly responsible for the child's perception of Alexander Hamilton. If the book paints Hamilton in a positive light, which is does, following the lead of Hamilton, than the student will support Hamilton and his beliefs, creating a personal memory that memorializes Alexander Hamilton a hero. Since children are unlikely to research Hamilton using a variety of resources, it is the text's responsibility to create a well-informed, un-biased narrative.
Like the musical, this book alters how multitudes of American's remember Alexander Hamilton. Although I hardly believe that the authors should have included Hamilton's cheating scandle, I do think that the erasure of information leads to a glorified image of the figure. Regardless of this, the musical is able to retain both good and bad actions, while still sustsaining a positive interpretation of Alexander Hamilton's life and legacy.