Leonardo Da Vinci
Fascinating descriptions of a fascinating man--the original Renaissance Man--Leonardo da Vinci. I think the descriptions paint a picture that middle schoolers can understand and learn from. The breadth of da Vinci's curiosity was amazing. From art to anatomy to hydraulics to optics to paleontology, it seems there was nothing that didn't interest him. The story of his notebooks and the way he wrote them and what happened to them is a wonderful mystery.