Meet Chicago Children’s Author Dennis B. Fradin

To finish our year long series of Chicago Children's author's, we like you to meet another amazing Chicago nonfiction writer Dennis Brindell Fradin. Born in Rogers Park in 1945, he spent part of his life as a CPS teacher when he began to write books for children. He wrote many of the books that you have probably used to write reports or finish your homework.

He wrote on many topics, from weather and volcanoes to money and history. Dennis was best known for his American history series titles, especially the From Sea to Shining Sea series, a set of state books for students in grades 3 to 5, and his partnership with his wife Judith Bloom Fradin on several of the clear eyed Who Was-- biographies for students in grades 2 to 4. 

Dennis Fradin also wrote and co-wrote several stand alone books about famous Americans. He wrote about those who had trouble agreeing on how to get our country started in The Founders (of our constitution) and about the famous Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr Duel!

And he wrote about those who changed Americas course in spite of hardship, violence and intolerance like Ida B. Wells, Mary Church Terrell in Fight On! and the townspeople of Oberlin, Ohio in The Price of Freedom.


After writing nearly 300 books on his own or with his wife, Dennis Fradin died in 2012.