Biography

A Lady Has the Floor: Belva Lockwood Speaks Out for Women’s Rights by Kate Hannigan, illustrated by Alison Jay

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Calkins Creek

Image result for a lady has the floor amazon

Image result for a lady has the floor kate hannigan

Summary:  Although a contemporary of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Belva Lockwood is (unfairly) less well-known for her contributions to women’s rights.  Starting as a teacher at the age of 14, Belva began her activism in the world of education, introducing public speaking and physical education for both boys and girls, and eventually opening up her own private school.  From there, she went to law school, sticking it out when other female classmates quit. She graduated, but had to petition President Ulysses S. Grant to receive her diploma. As a lawyer, she fought for the underserved: widows, Civil War veterans, and former slaves, and eventually became the first woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court.  In 1884, she ran for President of the United States and received over 4,000 votes. Sadly, Belva Lockwood died in May, 1917, a little more than three years before the Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote. Includes author’s note, timeline of U.S. women’s history to 2016, and bibliography.  32 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  A lively and engaging biography of an important and often overlooked suffragist; the timeline does a nice job of placing her life in the context of history.  

Cons:  Some readers might struggle with the cursive font that appears on some pages.

If you’d like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Midnight Teacher: Lilly Ann Granderson and Her Secret School by Janet Halfmann, illustrated by London Ladd

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Lee and Low

Image result for midnight teacher amazon

Image result for midnight teacher london ladd

Summary:  As a young child working in the master’s house, Lilly Ann Cox was sometimes included in games of school with the other children.  She learned how to read and write, and enjoyed teaching other slaves when the master’s family went visiting on Sundays.  When the master died, Lilly was sold to a plantation in Mississippi, where she was forced to work in the cotton fields, often beaten for not being able to keep up.  When she became ill, she was moved into the kitchen.  On her trips to the market, Lilly discovered an abandoned cabin, and eventually opened a school there.  Slaves would sneak out in the middle of the night.  The penalty if they were caught was 39 lashes with a whip; however, when they were finally found out seven years later, they were miraculously allowed to keep the school going with no punishment.  After the Civil War, Lilly married and raised three children, while continuing her career as a teacher.  An afterword describes her work in greater detail and how it positively influenced her descendants, including great-grandson Charles C. Diggs, Jr., who became a Congressman and helped found the Congressional Black Caucus.  40 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  A fascinating story about one woman’s courage to improve the lives of others that had an impact for generations after her.  The acrylic paintings nicely illustrate Lilly’s story.

Cons:  Be prepared to answer questions about Lilly’s difficult days working in the cotton fields of Mississippi.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian’s Art Changed Science by Joyce Sidman

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by HMH Books for Young Readers

Image result for girl who drew butterflies amazon

Image result for maria merian paintings

Summary:  Maria Merian faced some tough obstacles to studying science in the 17th century, not the least of which was the risk of being painfully executed for practicing witchcraft.  Fortunately, she had a supportive family who was pretty tolerant of her obsession with insects.  Her father was a printer and engraver; after he died, she had an artist stepfather.  Both included her in the family business, and Maria used her artistic skills to capture what she observed in nature.  She set about disproving the theory of spontaneous generation by studying the life cycles of as many moths and butterflies as she could.  As an adult she produced books of her subjects, usually in their natural habitats, making connections between plants and animals that few of her contemporaries observed.  In her 50’s, she traveled with her daughter to Suriname, where she was among the first European naturalists.  Her final masterpiece, an illustrated guide to the insects and plants she observed there, was well-received throughout Europe and influenced John James Audubon and other naturalists more than a century later.  Includes an author’s note, timeline, bibliography, and index.  160 pages; grades 5-8.

Pros:  A fascinating biography of a woman who was many centuries ahead of her time, balancing family and running a household with her art and science careers.  Her paintings and engravings throughout the book are almost unbelievably detailed and realistic.  Newbery poet Joyce Sidman named each chapter for a stage of a butterfly’s life and wrote an appropriate poem for each.

Cons:  While the book seems like it could appeal to third and fourth graders (only 120 pages of text and lots of pictures), the subject matter makes it more appropriate for grades 5-8.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

 

Shaking Things Up: 14 Young Women Who Changed the World by Susan Hood, illustrated by 13 extraordinary women

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by HarperCollins

Image result for shaking things up hood amazon

Image result for shaking things up hood

Summary:  13 poems honor 14 girls and women (sisters Jacqueline and Eileen Nearne, secret agents during World War II, share a poem), with art for each one from a different children’s book illustrator.  Some of the subjects are better known (Frida Kahlo, Malala Yousafzai) than others (Annette Kellerman, Angela Zhang).  Their fields range from art to science to sports, and each one is in a different form of poetry.  A brief biographical paragraph accompanies each poem, and a timeline at the beginning shows where each woman fits into history, from the early 1780’s to 2014.  Sources and additional resources are listed for each woman at the end.  40 pages; grades K-5.

Pros:  Readers will be inspired to learn more about these girls and women, many of whom were well on their way to success in their teens.  The variety of illustrations celebrates women artists as well.

Cons: I was occasionally frustrated by only having a little information about someone I would have liked to learn about in greater depth.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Chasing King’s Killer: The Hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Assassin by James L. Swanson

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Scholastic

Image result for chasing king's killer amazon

Summary:  After James Earl Ray assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4, 1968, he was able to elude an international manhunt for more than two months.  James Swanson, author of Chasing Lincoln’s Killer and other books about assassins, tells the stories of Martin Luther King, Jr. and James Earl Ray leading up to the moment their lives intersected.  He then goes on to detail the desperate attempts to save King’s life, and Ray’s escape to Canada and London, where he was finally arrested.  The impact of the assassination on the country and the FBI’s tenacious hunt for the killer (despite J. Edgar Hoover’s hatred of MLK) are also detailed. There are plenty of photos throughout the text and over 100 pages of back matter, including places to visit, timelines, source notes, extensive bibliographies divided by topics, and a very complete index.  384 pages; ages 12 and up.

Pros:  A gripping history (I was almost late for work as I approached the moment of the assassination and didn’t want to put the book down) that is also extremely well documented.  The reading lists are complete enough to use for an entire college class. Even reluctant readers will get caught up in the narrative.

Cons:  This length of the book may be off-putting to some readers, which is unfortunate; with all the photos and back matter, it is really a pretty quick read.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

The Secret Kingdom: Nek Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Claire A. Nivola

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Candlewick

Image result for secret kingdom nek amazon

Image result for secret kingdom nivola

Summary:  Nek Chand grew up in a tiny village in the Punjab region of Asia, collecting stories from family members and the traveling minstrels who visited during holidays.  Those stories inspired him to create his own world from rocks, sticks, and clay.  As a young man, he was forced to leave his home in 1947 when the Punjab was divided into India and Pakistan, and those who practiced the Hindu religion had to leave Muslim Pakistan.  Nek settled in the city, but longed for his home.  He found a deserted plot of government land and created a secret kingdom from trash that he found along the roads.  He kept his creation hidden for 15 years until government officials discovered it and threatened to tear it down.  When people from the city came to see it, though, they knew it was a work of art worth saving.  They convinced the officials to preserve it, and have continued to do so following Chand’s death in 2015.  Includes an author’s note about Nek Chand and an extensive bibliography.  48 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  A fascinating story of an artist who worked to create his vision without much hope of ever profiting from it or even being able to share it with others.  The beautiful illustrations bring the story to life, including a foldout page with photos of the actual “secret kingdom”.

Cons:  A map of the region and additional historical information about India and Pakistan would have been useful.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Rising Above: Inspiring Women in Sports by Gregory Zuckerman with Gabriel and Elijah Zuckerman

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Philomel Books

Image result for rising above zuckerman amazon

Summary:  When I reviewed the book Rising Above in 2016, one of my “Cons” was that it only included one woman.  From my lips to the Zuckermans’ ears, apparently, because they’re back with more inspiring sports stories, this time profiling 10 women in 9 chapters (Serena and Venus Williams share).  A variety of sports is included: gymnastics, soccer, basketball, baseball, track, surfing, and mixed martial arts (a sport I was blissfully unaware of until I read this book). The common element in all the stories is the difficulty each athlete had to overcome to reach her full potential.  These include racism (Wilma Rudolph), losing a limb (Bethany Hamilton), an eating disorder (Ronda Rousey), and being one of the only females in a sport (Mo’ne Davis in Little League). An afterword summarizes the personality traits that helped all of these women succeed. Includes an extensive bibliography and an index.  224 pages; grades 4-8.

Pros:  Based on the heavy circulation of the first book in my libraries, I have no doubt this one will fly off the shelves.  Even non-sports fans like myself can’t help but be inspired by these athletes’ stories.

Cons:  My other “con” for the first book was that there were no pictures, and that remains true for this one.  I had never heard of some of these women, and had to keep going to YouTube for visuals.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes Went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery by Sandra Neil Wallace, illustrated by Bryan Collier

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Simon and Schuster

Image result for between the lines how ernie amazon

Image result for between the lines bryan collier

Summary:  Growing up in segregated North Carolina, Ernie Barnes wasn’t allowed to go to art museums.  He loved to draw, though, and his mother often took him with her when she worked at a wealthy lawyer’s house so that Ernie could see the paintings hanging on the walls.  In high school, his size caught the attention of the football coach, and he did well enough on the team to earn 26 college scholarships.  After college, he played professionally, but his first love was always art.  In 1964, he quit football to pursue painting full time, eventually winning fame for his portrayal of sports scenes (he was the official artist of the 1984 Olympics) and African Americans that he remembered from his childhood.  Includes an historical note, notes from the author and illustrator, and a substantial list of additional resources.  48 pages; grades 1-5.

Pros:  The large, beautiful illustrations by Bryan Collier pay homage to Ernie Barnes, and include copies of some of his work.  Barnes’s story is an inspiration to follow your dreams.

Cons:  Although a few of Barnes’s works are reproduced with the endnotes, Sugar Shack, one of his most famous that is mentioned several times in the notes, isn’t shown.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Girl Running: Bobbi Gibb and the Boston Marathon by Annette Bay Pimentel, illustrated by Micha Archer

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Nancy Paulsen Books

Image result for girl running pimentel amazon

Image result for girl running pimentel

Summary:  Bobbi Gibb had to wear a skirt to school, and she wasn’t allowed to join the track team.  But when she got home, she headed outside to run as much as she liked.  Bobbi grew up near Boston, and after seeing the Boston Marathon one year, she decided to train.  Running in nurses’ shoes (there were no women’s running shoes at the time), she sometimes covered 40 miles in a day; yet her application for the marathon was rejected with a letter saying “women are not physiologically able to run twenty-six miles”.  Undaunted, Bobbi bought herself a baggy sweatshirt and some boys’ running shoes and snuck into the 1966 race.  Other runners cheered her on, as did spectators along the course.  Despite painful blisters from her new shoes, Bobbi crossed the finish line after three hours and twenty minutes, 124th in a field of over 400 racers.  The final page shows Bobbi leading other female runners across a field emblazoned with the names of other women winners of the Boston Marathon.  Includes an afterword and brief bibliography. 32 pages; grades K-4.

Pros:  Readers will be inspired by Bobbi’s hard work and perseverance in challenging the status quo and achieving her goal.  Unique mixed media collage illustrations often include place names to show the routes that Bobbi ran when she trained and in the marathon.

Cons:  A photo or two with the afterword would have been a nice addition.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

 

Brave Jane Austen: Reader, Writer, Author, Rebel by Lisa Pliscou, illustrated by Jen Corace

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Henry Holt and Co.

Summary:  Jane Austen grew up in England at a time when women received little education, and marriage seemed like the only way to get ahead.  Her family was poor, and when they did manage to send her to school, she learned only what she would need to know to become a good wife.  But Jane was observant and she loved to read.  As she grew older, she began to write about the people she saw around her, poking fun at them and the conventions of the day.  Her first book, First Impressions, was rejected by a London publisher, but she continued writing, even turning down a marriage proposal to live life on her own terms.  Finally, she published Sense and Sensibility, soon followed by First Impressions which was renamed Pride and Prejudice.  She died at age 41 in 1817, the same year two more of her books, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey, were published.  Includes biographical information, Jane Austen quotes, others’ quotes about her work, and sources of additional information.  48 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  Quite a thorough look at Jane and her times, placing her and her work in the context of her era.  The gouache illustrations are charming and bring the time period to life.

Cons:  Most kids won’t have any idea who Jane Austen is or be familiar with her work.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.