Ada Lovelace seems to be experiencing something of a resurgence of popularity the last few years, and her story is a fascinating one. This biography, classified as children's non-fiction, does an excellent job of setting out the facts of her life and explaining what made her unique and why she is relevant today. The narrative of her life is fairly comprehensive but simply explained, covering even the scandals and the controversy of her family life but in a way that's age-appropriate.

As a children's book (or maybe more like a young teenager's book?) I think it would be most successful with kids who already have a fairly robust interest in math and/or computers. It's not overly complicated, but it does get into some specifics about Charles Babbage's difference engine and analytical engine, and Ada's calculations, which amount to the first computer program on record 100 years before computers. The book definitely doesn't dumb anything down, especially in the Appendix. It would be a fantastic read for girls interested in the STEM fields. With the early training that's available these days for kids to learn how to code, this book is perfectly timed for the young generation.

Thanks to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for access to this advance copy of the book. ( )

This biography for middle grade readers tells the story of Ada Byron Lovelace, who was, according to the author, “brilliant, mercurial, and ambitious.”

She was born in 1816 to Lady and Lord Byron, the latter of literary fame. A month after Ada was born, the couple separated, and Ada never saw her father again. Her bitter mother pushed Ada to learn mathematics and logic rather than reflect in any way the more artistic interests of her father.

When Ada was 17 she met Charles Babbage, a famous inventor and mathematician who held Isaac Newton’s chair at Cambridge University. Ada was captivated by him and his ideas, and he became her role model and mentor.

Meanwhlle, she married William King in 1835 and became Countess of Lovelace. While Ada “never worked up an ardor for William, she liked him, and marrying him allowed Ada to escape her mother’s “unceasing vigilance.” She threw herself into mathematics, in spite of the fact that she became pregnant almost immediately.

Over the years she became chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine. She is believed to have published the first algorithm intended to be carried out by such a machine. As a result, she is often regarded as on of the first “computer programmers.”

Ada died a painful death of uterine cancer in 1852 at the age of 36.

An Epilogue tells what happened to other “characters” in Ada’s story.

Evaluation: The book could have been told in a more interesting way to engage young readers in Ada’s story. There also wasn’t much about Ada’s legacy, which is extensive, ranging from the use of the computer language named for her by the U.S. Department of Defense, to “Ada Lovelace Day” - an annual event celebrated on the second Tuesday of October to "... raise the profile of women in science, technology, engineering, and maths," and to "create new role models for girls and women.” ( )

I'm fond of juvenile biographies as a way of familiarizing myself with historical figures about whom I otherwise might not have known. I'd heard the name Ada Lovelace, of course, but only had a vague idea of who she was. This biography, at about 120 pages not including appendices and glossary, offered a good deal of information about Lovelace and her historical significance. While it was a little dry at times, in part because Lovelace's life was by necessity mostly mental in nature, it had short chapters that helped break up the information into manageable chunks, and included portraits and some photographs. I could see this as a useful resource for middle school and high school students. ( )

Literary Merit: Good
Characterization: Good
Recommendation: Yes
Level: Middle School

A good detailed biography for middle grade readers, but I wish it had more visuals and fun facts pulled out in graphics to break up the larger paragraphs of text. It read more like an adult biography (which I enjoy) but I think more visuals would help connect it better with middle grade readers. However, it was very well researched and the author did include several portraits of Ada through her childhood and images of her work. I appreciated the extensive resources in the back. I think the larger physical size of the book helped the page count to be smaller so as to be less intimidating for readers. Good comprehensive biography about a women more students should know about ( )