Thomas Jefferson loved to read and collect books on almost every subject. He built his first library as a young man, and kept on building until his book collection helped to create the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., the world's largest library.

"Carter G. Woodson was born ten years after the end of the Civil War, to parents who had both been enslaved. Their stories were not the ones written about in history books, but Carter learned them and kept them in his heart. Carter's father could not read or write, but he believed in being an informed citizen. So Carter read the newspaper to him every day, and from this practice, he learned about the world and how to find out what he didn't know....