PICTURE BOOK - Dangerous Jane by Suzanne Slade

Illustrated byAlice Ratterree

2017, Peachtree

HC $17.95
40 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.19 - 172 ratings

My rating: 4.5  (just a tiny bit too simplistic...)

Endpapers: Beige

1^st line/s:  "Jane was born beside a sparkling creek on an Illinois prairie in a friendly town called Cedarville."

My comments:  Beautifully illustrated and simply told, the story of Jane Addams is intriguing and informative.  Although she was the first American woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, she was named by the FBI as "the Most Dangerous Woman in America" just 12 years prior!  Why?  For being a woman, and caring about people and peace - people and peace beyond American borders..  I sure want to read more about her now!

Goodreads:  Jane's heart ached for the world, but what could she do to stop a war? This energetic and inspiring picture book biography of activist Jane Addams focuses on the peace work that won her the Nobel Peace Prize. From the time she was a child, Jane's heart ached for others. At first the focus of her efforts was on poverty, and lead to the creation of Hull House, the settlement house she built in Chicago. For twenty-five years, shed helped people from different countries live in peace at Hull House. But when war broke out, Jane decided to take on the world and become a dangerous woman for the sake of peace. Suzanne Slade's powerful text written in free verse illuminates the life of this inspiring figure while Alice Ratterree's stunning illustrations bring Jane Addams and her world to life. 

PICTURE BOOK - Malala's Magic Pencil by Malal Yousafzai

Illustrated by Kerascoet (a husband wife team)

2017, Little Brown & Co.
HC $17.99
40 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.47 - 777 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers:  BOTH sides are a burst of journal and pencil in white on shiny gold background

Illustrations:  Edge-of-page to edge-of page, though lots of white is used in the background

1^st line/s:  "When I was younger, I used to watch a TV show about a boy who had a magic pencil."

My comments:  A biography/memoir for young kids, written by Malala herself.  It's a gentle story of hope and dreams, touching on the ugliness of what happened to her but not dwelling on it.  The illustrations are magical, with lots of shiny gold used throughout and on the endpapers.  Highly recommended.

Goodreads: Nobel Peace Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Malala Yousafzai's first picture book, inspired by her own childhood.
          Malala's first picture book will inspire young readers everywhere to find the magic all around them.
          As a child in Pakistan, Malala made a wish for a magic pencil. She would use it to make everyone happy, to erase the smell of garbage from her city, to sleep an extra hour in the morning. But as she grew older, Malala saw that there were more important things to wish for. She saw a world that needed fixing. And even if she never found a magic pencil, Malala realized that she could still work hard every day to make her wishes come true. 
          This beautifully illustrated volume tells Malala's story for a younger audience and shows them the worldview that allowed Malala to hold on to hope even in the most difficult of times.