Lookup! Henrietta Leavitt, Pioneering Woman Astronomer - Robert Burleigh

Illustrated by Raul Colon

2013, Paula Wiseman; Simon & Schuster

HC 16.99 Carlisle's Bosler Library

32 pages

Goodreads rating: 3.79

My rating: 4

Endpapers: Dark Blue

Title Page:  two-inch strip on the top and a 1/2-inch strip on the bottom is an illustrations of the night sky looking through tree branches.  this is a nice model to share with kids what an appealing title page looks like.

Illustrations: Full page drawing on one page, text (many with lined borders) on the facing page, some double-page spreads

1^st line:  "Night after night, Henrietta sat on her front portch, gazing up at the stars."

Goodreads:  Look up! is a picture book biography of the astronomer Henrietta Leavitt. The story is of a little girl who loved the night sky, who loved the stars, who followed her dream and persevered academically in a man's field. Most astronomers, at the time, being men, of course. But she knew what she wanted, and she knew she could do it. Henrietta's job--she got paid thirty cents an hour--was not to gaze through the telescope. Her job was to examine, to study, the photographs taken by others. She was good at her job, and through her measuring, through her detailed study, she made an important discovery, a discovery having to do with measuring distances and the vastness of galaxies.

My comments on Goodreads:  Henrietta Leavitt certainly made huge contributions to astronomy, and this book clearly and cleverly shows the process she went through to discover them.  The illustrations are lovely, and the three pages of additional information at the end are perfect for the older reader and teacher (or parent) that want to learn more.  Included at some great quotes about stars, a glossary, deeper information about Leavitt's discovery, and a bibliography and list of internet resources. A MUST addition to a study of astronomy, women in history, or just a fascinating read for star gazers!

Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? - Tanya Lee Stone

The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell
illustrated by Marjorie Priceman

Ella (6 yrs. old) says:  "I liked the book because she was the first woman doctor.  It was hard getting there, but she worked harder and harder and then she got there."

2013 Christy Ottaviano Books, Henry Holt
HC$16.99 Carlisle's Bosler Library

40 pages

Goodreads rating: 4.28

My rating: 4/ Super story

Endpapers:  Dark royal blue

Title Page:  Sweeping across the double pages are a stethoscope, necklace, bonnet, open book, bottles of medicine - plus font that is cursive-y.

Illustrations: Unfortunately, a little too Chris Raschka-y for me, though Ella liked them a lot and noticed  some of the details well before I did.

1^st line:  I'll bet you've met plenty of doctors in your life.  And I'll bets lots of them were women."

Goodreads: In the 1830s, when a brave and curious girl named Elizabeth Blackwell was growing up, women were supposed to be wives and mothers. Some women could be teachers or seamstresses, but career options were few. Certainly no women were doctors.   But Elizabeth refused to accept the common beliefs that women weren’t smart enough to be doctors, or that they were too weak for such hard work. And she would not take no for an answer. Although she faced much opposition, she worked hard and finally—when she graduated from medical school and went on to have a brilliant career—proved her detractors wrong. This inspiring story of the first female doctor shows how one strong-willed woman opened the doors for all the female doctors to come.

My comments on Goodreads: I really like the way that Elizabeth Blackwell's story is told in this charming picture book.  My 6-year old granddaughter loved it, and I will read it to my fourth grade class and talk about the woman AND about the way the book was written...the inserted quotes, using prepositions to begin sentences, the use on incomplete sentences and their impact on the story. Priceman's illustrations are not my favorites - as with Chris Rashka's I find them a little too abstract (although my favorite art is abstract), it doesn't work for me in a picture book. 

Write On, Mercy! – Gretchen Woelfle

The Secret Life of Mercy Otis Warren

Illustrated by Alexandra Wallner

2012, Calkins Creek, Honesdale, PA

Rating:  5

For:  older kids, probably not preschool

40 pages

HC $16.95

Endpapers:  Orange

Title Page:  Mercy’s arm and hand, with quill and melting candle, writing on a stack of papers.

Setting:  Late 1700’s during the American Revolution, in Massachusetts

1^st line/lines:  “From her parlor window in West Barnstable,  young Mercy Otis could watch the tide flow in and out of the Great Marsh on Cape Cod Bay.”

OSS:  Tells the life of Mercy Otis Warren, a woman who told the story of the Revolution in over 1,000 pages that took thirty years.  She would have been a politician if she had lived in contemporary times!

This was an exceptionally fine story about a really interesting person – of the female persuasion – in our history.  The writing is beautiful and sophisticated, the story well-researched and finely told.  A keeper.  Perfect for my 4^th grade biography unit.

Includes Author’s Note, a painting of Mercy Otis Warren by John Singleton Copley (this REALLY makes her a real person for the kids), a 2-page timeline of her life and what was going on politically, an excellent bibliography, and a number of websites.  What a perfect model for a well researched book of history to share with kids! 

Bravo!

About the author:  Woelfe is a writer from LA who loves history, especially stories of little-known people in history.  She’s written Katie the Windmill Cat, All the World’s a Stage: A Novel in Five Acts, and Jeannette Rankin: Political Pioneer.

The illustrator, also a love of history, lives in Yucatan, Mexico.