Helen Keller

Margaret Davidson’s Helen Keller, a biography of the titular Helen Keller, is a middle grade book of nonfiction that was originally published in 1969. Helen, born in 1880, lost both her vision and her hearing after a bout of scarlet fever when she was a toddler. The book chronicles Helen’s plight to learn to communicate with the guidance of her teacher, Anne Sullivan, of the Perkins Institute in Massachusetts. The biography provides an overview of Helen’s life, beginning with her journey as a young child to learn to communicate via American Sign Language, to read via braille, and, eventually, to speak aloud in English. Davidson charts the Dedication and Perseverance Helen displays in overcoming the obstacles that her disabilities present. Through the unfailing guidance and support of Anne, Helen’s accomplishments defy her circumstances and solidify her role as an extraordinary woman in US history. Helen’s life has been the subject of numerous biographies and films, most notably The Miracle Worker, which was released in 1962.

Davidson is the author of multiple books for middle grade readers, especially biographies of well-known figures. These include Jackie Robinson, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Graham Bell, Golda Meir, and Eleanor Roosvelt, to name a few.