Tom Thumb: The Remarkable True Story of a Man in Miniature
George SullivanClarion Books, 2011. 200 pages. Nonfiction.
Born in 1838, Charles S. Stratton looked like any other infant at first. Then he stopped growing. At five years of age, little Charley was discovered by the great showman P.T. Barnum and renamed General Tom Thumb. After that Charley's life was never the same again. Tom Thumb was the first true superstar celebrity of his time. Everyone knew his name and everywhere he went (in the entire world) people flocked to see him. His miniature-sized wedding to a woman even smaller than himself, was nothing short of the event of the century. The newspapers of the time were more interested in printing news of "The Fairy Wedding" than they were about reporting the current Civil War happenings. The story of Tom Thumb's exciting and adventurous life in show business makes for a fascinating read that kids will not be able to put down. Next time a child in your family needs an interesting and unusual biography for a school report, check out Tom Thumb: The Remarkable True Story of a Man in Miniature.
For some great follow-up reading make sure you also check out The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P.T. Barnum by Candace Fleming.
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