PICTURE BOOK - She Persisted: Around the World by Chelsea Clinton

Illustrated by  Alexandra Boiger

2018, Philomel Books

HC $17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.44 - 806 ratings

My rating:  5 of course, my kind of book!

Endpapers:  solid red

Illustrations:  so perfect for this book of short entries on 13 different women!

1^st line/s:  ""It's not always easy being a girl --- anywhere in the world.  It's especially challenging in some places.  There are countries where it's hard for girls to go to school and where women need their husbands' permission to get a passport or even to leave the house.  And all over the world, girls are more likely to be told to bew quiet, to sit down, to have smaller dreams..  Don't listen to those voices.  These thirteen women from actross the world didn't.  They persisted."

My comments:  Chelsea Clinton has done it again, she's chosen thirteen women from around the world to highlight, some well known and others that you may have never heard over, a perfect comination!
Sor Juana Ines De La Cruz  (Mexico) First published argument for a women's right to education
 in the Americas.
Caroline Herschel (Germany) First woman to discover a comet
Kate Sheppard (New Zealand) Women's activist - New Zealand became the 1st country to grant all women the right to vote!
Marie Curie (Poland) scientist
Viola Desmond (Canada) Canadian Civil Rights movement
Mary Verghese (India) founded the first functional rehabilitation center in India
Aisha Rateb (Egypt) fought for women in government
Wangari Maathai (Kenya) Green Belt Movement/Nobel Peace Prize, one of my heroes!
Joanne (J. K.) Rowling (England) Author......author extraordinaire!
Sisleide "Sissi" Lima do Amor (Brazil) Queen of Brazilian football
Leymah Gbowee (Liberia) Nobel Peace Prize
Yuan Yuan Tan (China) most famous female ballerina of all time
Malala Yousafzai (Pakistan) youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize winner, author, spokesperson

Goodreads:  The companion to She Persisted.
          Women around the world have long dreamed big, even when they've been told their dreams didn't matter. They've spoken out, risen up and fought for what's right, even when they've been told to be quiet. Whether in science, the arts, sports or activism, women and girls throughout history have been determined to break barriers and change the status quo. They haven't let anyone get in their way and have helped us better understand our world and what's possible. In this book, Chelsea Clinton introduces readers to a group of thirteen incredible women who have shaped history all across the globe.

PICTURE BOOK - Sonia Sotomayor: Turning Pages: My Life Story by Sonia Sotomayor

Illustrated by Lulu Delacre

2018 Philomel Books

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.31 - 209 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers: two dozen photos of Sotomayor through her life

1^st line/s:

My comments: Wornderful story, words and wording, AND illustrations. Truly a lovely book.  She attributes books and libraries ass the stepping stones on her life path….Nancy Drew and Lord of the Flies in particular.  She also highlights her love of family and her roots in Puerto Rico.

Goodreads:  Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor tells her own story for young readers for the very first time!
          As the first Latina Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor has inspired young people around the world to reach for their dreams. But what inspired her? For young Sonia, the answer was books! They were her mirrors, her maps, her friends, and her teachers. They helped her to connect with her family in New York and in Puerto Rico, to deal with her diabetes diagnosis, to cope with her father’s death, to uncover the secrets of the world, and to dream of a future for herself in which anything was possible.
          In Turning Pages, Justice Sotomayor shares that love of books with a new generation of readers, and inspires them to read and puzzle and dream for themselves. Accompanied by Lulu Delacre’s vibrant art, this story of the Justice’s life shows readers that the world is full of promise and possibility–all they need to do is turn the page.

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 - Wangari Maathai: The Woman Who Planted Millions of Trees by Franck Prevot

Illustrated by Aurelia Fronty

2015 Charlesbridge Publishing

HC $17.99

40 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.28 - 414 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers"  Deep, sleek plum

1^st line/s:  "The immense forest around Wangari's childhood home is populated by bongo antelopes, monkeys, and butterflies."

My comments:  Woah, I've read five picture books about Wangari Maathai, but this is the one that's jam-packed with information for older readers, instead of just mentioning things, fleshing them out a little more.  We learn HOW she got to the US for college, HOW she protested, and WHY she ended up in prison.  Wonderful book, perfect to use with 4th, 5th, 6th graders studying the environment, making a difference in the world, activism, trees, Tu'Bshvat,......

Read the Text

Goodreads:  Wangari Maathai received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her efforts to lead women in a nonviolent struggle to bring peace and democracy to Africa through its reforestation. Her organization planted over thirty million trees in thirty years. This beautiful picture book tells the story of an amazing woman and an inspiring idea.

PICTURE BOOK - The World is Not a Rectangle: A Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid by Jeanette Winter

Illustrated by the author

2017 Beach Lane Books
(Bosler Memorial Library)

HC $17.99

56 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.2 - 447 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers:  Pale, plae, pale green

1^st line/s:  "In Iraq, rivers flow throught green marshes.
Wind swoops across sand dunes and through ancient cities.
Zaha Hadid sees the rivers and marshes and dunes and ruins with her father
and imagines what cities looked like thousand of years ago."

My comments:  It's no secret that I adore anything and everything that Jeanette Winter writes and/or illustrates,  but what I really appreciate is the diversity of people that she chooses to research and share with kids!  This book highlights another amazing woman in our world and will inspire kids (and architecture buffs!) in many, many ways.  Bravo!

Goodreads:  A Washington Post Best Children’s Book of 2017
Parents’ Choice Recommended
          Get to know Zaha Hadid in this nonfiction picture book about the famed architect’s life and her triumph over adversity from celebrated author-illustrator Jeanette Winter.
          Zaha Hadid grew up in Baghdad, Iraq, and dreamed of designing her own cities. After studying architecture in London, she opened her own studio and started designing buildings. But as a Muslim woman, Hadid faced many obstacles. Determined to succeed, she worked hard for many years, and achieved her goals—and now you can see the buildings Hadid has designed all over the world.

Poetry Picture Book- Shaking Things Up by Susan Hood

14 Young Women Who Changed the World
2018, Harper
40pgs.
Children's Poetry and AMERICAN HISTORY, Biography
Read June 21, 2018
Goodreads rating:  4.53 - 277 ratings
My rating:  5
Endpapers:  Aqua

14 Women:  The Contents including Poem title follow:

Molly Williams, First Known Female Firefighter in the United States, (1747 – 1821)

                “Taking the Heat”

Mary Anning, Paleontologist, (1799 – 1847)

                “Buried Treasure” CONCRETE POETRY

Nellie Bly, Investigative Journalist, (1864 – 1922)

                “Woman of the World”

Annette Kellerman, Champion Athlete and Inventor of the Modern Swimsuit, (1886 – 1975)

                “Turning the Tide”

Pura Belpre, Children’s Author and First Latina Librarian at the New York Public Library, (1899 – 1982)

                “The Storyteller” ACROSTIC

Frida Kahlo, Artist, (1907 – 1954)

                “Broken”

Jacqueline Nearne, Undercover Operative (1916 – 1982) and Eileen Nearne, Wireless Operator (1921 – 2010)

                “Secret Agent Sisters”

Frances Moore, Lappe, Anti-Hunger Activist, (1944 –

                “Full Circle”

Ruby Bridges, Civil Rights Pioneer (1954 –

                “A New School”

Mae Johnson, First Female African American Astronaut (1956 –

                “Lift-Off”

Maya Lin, Architect and Sculptor (1959 –

                “A New Vision”

Angela Zhang, Scientist and Cancer Researcher (1994 –

                “Break It Down”

Malala Yousafzai, Youngest Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize (1997 –

                “Books, Not Bullets”

Author’s Note

Further Resources for each woman

My comments:  Not only are the poems relevant and interesting, they're really GOOD, really well written and great models of superb poetry for kids.

Goodreads synopsis: "Well-behaved women seldom make history." —Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian
          Fresh, accessible, and inspiring, Shaking Things Up introduces fourteen revolutionary young women—each paired with a noteworthy female artist—to the next generation of activists, trail-blazers, and rabble-rousers. From the award-winning author of Ada’s Violin, Susan Hood, this is a poetic and visual picture book that celebrates persistent women throughout history. 
          Among the powerful pairings: Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall takes on heroic World War II spies Eileen and Jacqueline Nearne; Selina Alko is matched with the brave Malala Yousafzai; New York Times bestselling illustrator Emily Winfield Martin is paired with the inventor of the controversial one-piece bathing suit, Annette Kellerman; and Shadra Strickland introduces America’s first known female firefighter, Molly Williams.
          While women make up over half of the U.S. population, they face discrimination, have less representation in government and other fields, and struggle every day for their human rights. It is more important now than ever to raise a generation of girls who, in the face of adversity, persevere. This book was written, illustrated, edited, and designed by women.
          Includes a foreword by a prominent female activist, an author’s note, a timeline, and additional resources.    
          This book features: Selina Alko, Sophie Blackall, Lisa Brown, Hadley Hooper, Emily Winfield Martin, Oge Mora, Julie Morstad, Sara Palacios, LeUyen Pham, Erin Robinson, Isabel Roxas, Shadra Strickland, and Melissa Sweet.

PICTURE BOOK - She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton

Illustrated by Alexandra Boiger

2017, Philomel Books

HC $17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.45 - 2139 ratings

My rating: 5

Endpapers:  Bright red

1^st line/s:"Sometimes being a girl isn't easy.  At some point, someone probably will tell you no, will tell you to be quiet and may even tell you your dreams are impossible.  Don't listen to them."

                           

My comments:  Chelsea Clinton, herself someone to be admired, chose 13 really interesting women to inspire the young girls of today.  Each double page consists of a short, informative piece about each woman's accomplishment/s, a quote from her, and an illustration of her "in action."  It was fun to turn each page and anticipate who would be the next person included.  If you, too, would like to anticipate the thirteen persistent women, read no further. 
The are: 
Harriet Tubman, 
Helen Keller, 
Clara Lemlich, 
Nellie Bly, 
Virginia Apgar, 
Mari Tallchief, 
Claudette Colvin, 
Ruby Bridges, 
Margaret Chase Smith, 
Sally Ride, 
Florence Griffith Joyner, 
Oprah Winfrey, and 
Sonia Sotomayer. 
(I would then include Gabby Giffords.)  Great book.

Goodreads:Chelsea Clinton introduces tiny feminists, mini activists and little kids who are ready to take on the world to thirteen inspirational women who never took no for an answer, and who always, inevitably and without fail, persisted.
          Throughout American history, there have always been women who have spoken out for what’s right, even when they have to fight to be heard. In early 2017, Senator Elizabeth Warren’s refusal to be silenced in the Senate inspired a spontaneous celebration of women who persevered in the face of adversity. In this book, Chelsea Clinton celebrates thirteen American women who helped shape our country through their tenacity, sometimes through speaking out, sometimes by staying seated, sometimes by captivating an audience. They all certainly persisted.
          She Persisted is for everyone who has ever wanted to speak up but has been told to quiet down, for everyone who has ever tried to reach for the stars but was told to sit down, and for everyone who has ever been made to feel unworthy or unimportant or small.
          With vivid, compelling art by Alexandra Boiger, this book shows readers that no matter what obstacles may be in their paths, they shouldn’t give up on their dreams. Persistence is power.
          This book features: Harriet Tubman, Helen Keller, Clara Lemlich, Nellie Bly, Maria Tallchief, Claudette Colvin, Ruby Bridges, Margaret Chase Smith, Sally Ride, Florence Griffith Joyner, Oprah Winfrey, Sonia Sotomayor—and one special cameo.

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. 

Heroes and She-roes - J Patrick Lewis

Poetry
Poems of Amazing and Everyday Heroes
Illustrated by Jim Cooke
Dial Books for Young Readers, 2005
40 pages
for: elementary school kids (and all the rest of us, too)
Rating: 5
Endpapers: Avocado

Poems of heroes in general. Poems about specific heroes. Heroes that I didn't know about. Heroes I never really thought about. There are so many heroes in our lives to consider. This is book to help kids - and us all - remember that!

Each of the 21 poems has information about the person or event that is the subject of the poem, which makes the book even more interesting. The illustrations are portraits: witty, colorful. I can picture an overhead for each page or double page to greet the kids in the morning as they enter the classroom, for reflection, journaling, even handwriting, and of course, for plain old enjoyment!

Heroes and She-roes

Give thanks to the he- and she-roes
Who will turn upon a dime
When occasion calls for action ---
And be there in half the time.

Roll red carpets out for she-roes
And to heroes raise a toast
For extraordinary courage ---
Yet you’ll never hear them boast.

Lend your hand to he- and she-roes,
To the valiant and the brave,
To those simple people know by
Two simple words: The gave.

The Elementary School Teacher

A teacher is a person
Unafraid
To get the third degree
From Second Grade!

Teachers are pathfinders, guides, truth-seekers, champions, role models, and guardians. Some of the greatest heroes and she-roes can be found in classrooms.


(I had to include this. It makes me feel really good...and reminds me of the many teachers and mentors that have helped create the teacher that I am today.)

The Organizer

Cesar Chavez
Migrant Labor Organizer, 1927-1993

Cesar was a peaceable fighter
With his back against the wall.
He was the David to Goliaths,
One worker against them all.

Up from the Mexican culture,
He rallied migrants to unite
And challenged consumers to boycott
Five years for the grape pickers’ plight.

Cesar won and lost many battles
But never resorted to arms,
And the carried the torch for La Causa
Across California farms.

Poor migrants, whose harvest was hunger,
Depended on him to be strong,
To ignite the fight and fight for right
And everywhere right the wrong.


Here are the other subjects included:

The Seeker (Helen Keller)
The Explorers (Meriwether Lewis & William Clark)
The Unknown Rebel (Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China, June 5, 1989)
The Wonder Dog (Togo, Alaska, 1925)
The Little Angel of Colombia (Alabeiro Vargas, Columbia South America) REALLY INTERESTING!
The Peacemaker (Mohandas Gandhi)
The Nun (Sister Jeannette Normandin)
The Great One (Roberto Clemente) Includes some unknown-to-me information
The Bareback Rider (Lady Godiva) No kidding - talk about fascinating...
The Preachers (MLK, Jr. & Mahalia Jackson)
The Riveter ("Rosie the Riveter)
The Journalist (Ida Wells-Barnett)
The Soldier (Joan of Arc)
The Steadfast (Rosa Parks)
The Immigrants
The Child Laborer (Iqbal Masih) Whoa! This'll make me dig deeper...


Wonderful. Should be in every 3-6th grade classroom!

Hillary Rodham Clinton - Kathleen Krull

Dreams Taking Flight
Illustrated by Amy June Bates
Simon & Schuster, 2008
For: ages 5-10
36 pgs.
Endpapers have copyright info & title page

In this picture book biography for kids we learn a great deal about Hilary Clinton - and because we know so much about her from the media, none is surprising - but it's really interesting. (She wanted to be an astronaut -- and a doctor!)

At the end of the book are more detailed facts and information for each two-page spread. I read every word- it was really interesting.

Whether you agree with Hilary's politics or not, you've got to agree that she has championed and pioneered women's rights like very few others. A groundbreaker.

Amy June Bates' illustrations cover the entire page. It was interesting to see she lives in Carlisle, PA, where I visit at least three times a year (that's where Laura lives).

On each two-page spread is a great quote. For example:
"Take a deep breath, look ahead, and keep trying to fly."
"Stank up for yourself, and keep your balance."
"Even if you jake a mistake, never be afraid to show your intelligence."
"Find heroes to lift you up."
"When borders surround you, try to break through.
"You don't have time for fear."
"Try harder - you can do better."
"Dare to compete."
"Think of the world as bigger than yourself, and carry on."
"Be who you are, get through it, and wait for times to change."
"When something makes you fall, rise up again."
"Take the lead role in your own life."
"Take a risk and dare to change the world."

The author's website: www.Kathleen Krull.com

Rachel - Amy Ehrlich

The Story of Rachel Carson
Illustrated by: Wendell Minor
Silver Whistle/Harcourt 2003
32 pgs. ages 5-8 930L
Endpapers: Palest blue with white seashells

What a lovely short biography - a perfect read-aloud-in-one-sitting length. And there's lots of wonderful writing to model, even starting at the very beginning What a nice way to set up a story:
"Rachel's house was far from the ocean, hundreds of miles inland at a bend on the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. There were no seagulls there, no sharks or whales. But one day she found a fossil, a single dark spiral lodged in a rock at her feet. She brought it to show her mother, and they looked it up in a book. The fossil was a sea creture, her mother said. Millions of years ago the ocean had covered their land and left it behind."

Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring in 1962. It's an expose of all the toxics that are being put into our environment. Most environmentlists feel this book is what started the green/environmental movement. She died of cancer in 1964. She seems like an odd, thoughtful, creative person...and she loved and lived in Maine. I'd like to learn more about her.

Wendell Minor's artwork is stupendous, taking up either a full page or, in two cases, full two-page wordless spreads. They get me homesick for the coast of Maine. Delicious.

Americans Who Tell the Truth - Robert Shetterly

Puffin, 2005
Paper $7.99
for: middle grades

To open a book and be greeted by Samantha Smith -- well! And then a few pages along comes Howard Zinn! Be still my heart! Throw in 48 other very special Americans....many of whom we don't see written up for kids....and we have this fascinating book.

The portraits of each person are etched with one of their own quotes. (I DO with the quotes were a little easier to read.) At the back of the book there's a short biographical blurb about each of them. But the fifty pages depicting the "celebrites" are hand drawn, hand etched, and beautiful.

(I met Robert Shetterly years ago at the Northeast Harbor Library AND at Oz Children's Bookstore in Southwest Harbor.... both on Mt. Desert Island, Maine. He's from Brooksville, ME, and he and his wife, also a writer, are lovely people.)

He says that after Sept. 11 he was "inspired to draw strength from this community of truth tellers." Cool way to put it.

Add more to the list. Create your own anthology with a different theme. Art, quotes, and information....just like Amelia to Zora.

The fifty:
Jane Addams
Muhammed Ali
Susan B. Anthony
James Baldwin
Wendell Barry
Rachel Carson
Cesar Chavez
Chief Joseph
Noam Chomsky
William Sloane Coffin
Dorothy Day
Frederick Douglass
W. E. B. DuBois
Marian Wright Edelman
Dwight Eisenhower
Emma Goldman
Amy Goodman
Woody Guthrie
Doris Haddock
Jim Hightower
Zora Neale Hurston
Molly Ivins !!
Mary "Mother" Jones
Helen Keller
Kathy Kelly
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Jonathan Kozol
Dorothea Lange
Lewis Lapham
Frances Moore Lappe
Perry Mann
John Muir
Ralph Nader
Rosa Parks
Paul Robeson
Eleanor Roosevelt
Frank Serpico !
Margaret Chase Smith
Samantha Smith
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Louis "Studs" Terkel
Henry David Thoreau
Sojourner Truth
Mark Twain
Ida B. Wells
Walt Whitman
Judy Wicks
Jody Williams
Terry Tempest Williams
Howard Zinn

Hard to top THEM!

Amelia to Zora - Cynthia Chin-Lee

Twenty-six Women Who Changed the World
Illustrateda by Megan Haley & Sean Addy
Charlesbridge, 2005
$15.95
Rating: 4
for: middle grades
920.72C PCPL
Endpapers: dusty purple

The illustrations for each page are done in mixed-media collage, with an actual photograph for the face. Also included on the page is a short biography and quote. This would make a great model for a class ABC book.

Women included are:

Amelia Earhart (flight, adventurer)
Babe Didrikson (golf)
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (astronomer, 1st female professor at Harvard)
Dolores Huerta (United Farm Workers co-founder)
Eleanor Roosevelt
Frida Kahlo
Grace Hopper (computer pioneer)
Helen Keller
Imogen Cunningham (photographer)
Jane Goodall (naturalist/chimps)
Kristi Yamaguchi (gold-medal figure skater)
Lena Horne (singer, activist)
Maya Line (architect/Vietnam War Memorial)
Nawal El Sadaawi (women's right's activist)
Oprah Winfrey
Patricia Shroeder (politician)
Quah Ah (Pueblo painter)
Rachel Carson (environmentalist)
Suu Kyi (soo CHEE)(activist/Burma/Myanmar)
Teresa (Mother Teresa) (missionary)
Ursula K. LeGuin (SciFi writer)
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit (India/UN peace pioneer)
Wilma Mankiller (Cherokee politician)
Xiefen (she EH fun) (China/women's rights)
Yoshiko Uchido (author)
Zora Neal Hurston (Black author)

FRIDA KAHLO

I've been reading a lot of kid's books about Frida Kahlo this past week, preparing to begin this year's teaching with some overall history of MEXICO before I jump into Maya History. What a fascinating woman!

Frida Kahlo was born Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderon on July 6, 1907, just before the Mexican Revolution, in Coyoacan, Mexico. There was much tragedy and anguish in her life, but it sure looks like she tried to live every minute to the fullest.

Here are some excellent BIOGRAPHICAL WORKS . They all include some of her paintings, and many include photos.

Frida by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand
2007
64 pgs.

This is the book that got me started, then fascinated. You can read my review here.






Frida Kahlo: Painting Her Lifeby Lila & Rick Guzman
Enslow Publishing - Famous Latinos series
2006
32 pgs.

This is a biography that would make a good read aloud -- the text is linear, with not a lot of boxes and sidebars (other than the paintings and photos and their captions)--yet simple, sttraightforward, full of information but interesting, quick. Broken into five chapters (one/day?):
1 - Frida's Childhood
2 - Learning to Paint
3 - Frida and Diego
4 - Frida's Art
5 - Becoming Famous

The book ends with a timeline and resource list.

Frido Kahlo
by Adam G. Klein
ABDO Publishing Co. Checkerboard Library "Great Artists"
2007
32 pages
Easy Reader

Includes 10 paintings, 7 photos, glossary, punctuation key, as well as a simple timeline of her life.

Each two-page spread has an easy amount of text, painting or photo, and a "Chapter" title that's surrounded by colorful swatches of dripping color.

I would certainly encourage a 3rd or 4th grader to read this book. Very appropriate.

Frida KahloArtists in Their Time Series
Jill A. Laidlaw
Franklin Watts, 2003
48 pgs.

Each two-page spread has a title ("Who Was Frida Kahlo? Childhood Years. Declining Health. What is Communism?), numerous photos and paintings with captions, boxes with interesting information, and a timeline across the bottom of each beginning page.

This is a particularly interesting, informative book to read. I'd use it with grades 4 and 5.

Amelia to ZoraTwenty-Six Women Who Changed the World
2005
An ABC collection of simple biographies and quotes.

Frida Kahlo represents "F".
My review.


Me, FridaAmy Novesky/David Diaz
Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2010
Young Frida has just married Diego Rivera and spends a year in San Francisco. Not my favorite of Frida, but details this time she spent in Calfornia, the first time away from Mexico.
My review.
More Coming....

Frida - Carmen T. Bernier-Grand

Viva la vida! Long Live Life!
Illustrated with Kahlo paintings and a few photos
Published 2007
Marshall Cavendish Children
$18.99
Written for children, good for all ages
64 pgs.
Rating: 5

This is my favorite of all the Kahlo books I've been reading this week. It's a biography, but written in first person free verse and illustrated with Kahlo's own paintings. Each painting includes the title, date, and an interesting caption. I learned a terrific amount of information about her life, her loves, her misfortunes and illnesses. She had a "messy" life, but there sadness is not overpowering, it stresses more a joy in living than the anguish of many heartbreaks - which were very real.

San Francisco

Women in slinky dresses and pert little hats
stare at my frilly skirts, my sun-shaped earrings,
the ribbons of purple light adorning my braided hair,
the thousand-year-old jade necklace Diego gave me.
I giggle, enjoying the attention!

Diego disappears for days,
painting a mural at the San Francisco Stock Exchange,
another at the California School of Fine ARts.

I hardly paint.
Instead I play at being his wife.
Frida Kahlo de Rivera
--"de" Rivera, "of" Rivera--
I belong to my owner.

I got a wonderful feel for this woman, she became flesh and blood for me. The verse is powerful, telling, illuminating and illuminated. Good stuff.

Wangari's Trees of Peace - Jeanette Winter

2008
Rating: 5
$17.00

Jeanette Winter''s recognizable artwork, framed by her signature rich color to the edge of tghe page is in itself a great reason to read this book. But the story --- and the way she tells it --- are both rich in language and information.

When Wangari returns from six years of schooling in America, she realizes that a huge amount of Kenya's trees have been cut down. She starts by planting and nurturing nine seedlings. And then she begins to give them away to the village women to grow, care for, and protect. "The women spread out over their village, planting tiny trees in long rows, like a green belt stretching over the land." She protects old growth threes and is even arrested. But she does not give up. "The umbrella of trees returns."

Read the text.

Excellent author's note. Wangari won the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize and is now a member of the Kenyan Parliament! Wonderful storytelling. 

Coretta Scott - Ntozake Shange

Illustrator: Kadir Nelson
2009
For: School-age kids
Rating: 4
Endpapers: blue
$17.99

Kadir Nelson's been very, very busy recently...I think this is the third of his books published in 2009. It's gorgeous (as usual). And wow, what a cover!

Coretta Scott King (1927-2006)

This story, in verse form, does not take us to or beyond her husband's assassination. It's really the story of how the two of them moved on their journey toward civil rights.

"... hundreds then thousands
white and black
marched
in Alabama
Carolina
Georgia
and Chicago."

Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude - Jonah Winter

Illustrator: Calef Brown
Published: 2009
For: Kids
Rating: Still mulling
Endpapers: Deep purple
$16.99

Okay, I've heard of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas and their marijuana brownies and interesting soirees with artists and writers, but I had no clue what kind of writer Gertrude was. This book let me know. At first, as I read, I wondered what in heck was going on, but it slowly dawned on me that this must be modeled by Stein's writing. For example:

"Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude. And Alice is Alice. And Gertrude and Alice are Gertrude and Alice. Well it's like this. You walk up the stairs, and there they are. They are sitting in chairs and there they are, staring where they are staring. Not the chairs. Chairs never stare. Chairs are where you sit and stare....."

In the author's note at the end, Winter states: "Her very famous writing was famous for being repetitive, playful, childlike, conversational, and often quite nonsensical. And her very famous writing has bee imitated by many other writers, including the author of this book, whose title is an imitation of her most quoted line: 'Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose......Often mocked in her lifetime, Stein is now praised for being among the most original and influential voices of the twentieth century."

Mentioned particularly are Picasso, Matisse, and Hemingway. But how much will kids get this? I bet there aren't a lot of ADULTS who would recognize her style of writing. Her name, perhaps, and the title of one of her books, The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas. But has anyone of this generation read it? I'm going to look it up and see if it's readily available, or at the library.....

I recognize Caleb Brown's work. His illustrations fit perfectly with the text and funky writing, full color from edge-of-page to edge-of-page. A fun book.

Ed Spicer writes a "rave" review on his blog, Reading Roadtrips. Check it out!

Anne Hutchinson's Way - Jeannine Atkins

Illustrator: Michael Dooling
Published: 2007
Rating: 4
For: Gr. 3-6
$17.00
Endpapers: Crimson

Magnificent full page oil paintings. Text usually on the sky or the ground. Lovely to look at.

I'm so glad that this story is told, but it seems just a little bit awkward at first. The story seems to begin with Anne's point of view, but then switches to Susanna's, the youngest of her many, many children. But once the point of view becomes clear, the story flows very nicely.

Anne Hutchinson and her husband arrive with their ten or eleven or twelve children in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634. Anne helps birth babies, raise her children, keep her household, and also reads scripture and "talks" with the women - and some of the men- of the community, to the disdain of Gov. Winthrop. This is not a woman's place! Within three years she is tried and told to leave. So she, with her entire family, move to an island in Narragansett Bay -- in Rhode Island.

The afterword tells of what happens to her in the years following; the story is told well and illustrated beautifully.

The Librarian of Basra - Jeanette Winter

A True Story from Iraq
Published: 2005
Rating: 5
Endpapers: Aqua

"In the Koran, the first thing God said to Muhammed was 'Read' " (NYT 7/27/03, from the book's preface.

Just to open a Jeanette Winter book brings a simple joy to me. You see orderliness and color and terrific illustrations - framed boxes and no white. Really tugs at my anal heart.

Simply told, beautifully illustrated, here is another version of the bombing of the central library in Basra, Iraq. Ensconced in rich purples and yellows and blues, Winters' recognizable artwork accentuates the story beautifully. A great companion book to Alia's Mission.