SPECIAL FEATURE

Female Voices in Historical Narratives

This webpage will provide an annotated list of picture books which portray females from history who made significant contributions to society or whose lives were exemplary in some fashion. Criteria for inclusion are as follows:

1. Audience- grades 1-4
2. Availability- Books marked with an * are currently part of the Smith School Library. All others are available within the Bergen County Cooperative Library System.
3. Books by both older and contemporary authors are considered, but all narratives must take place in the past.
4. All books selected are classified as biography and are reasonably authentic representations of both the person and time period under discussion.
5. All books will meet objective standards for literary and illustrative quality.
6. It is a given that all books presented portray females as positive role models.

Where appropriate, websites which include information about either the period, person, or events under discussion will be noted.

BIOGRAPHIES

Atkins, Jeannine. Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon.illus.by Michael Dooling.New York: Farrar, Strauss, Girous, 1999.*
The story begins in 1810, when Mary Anning was eleven years old. She lives with her mother and siblings on the coast of England. They survive on the living they make from a small shop which sells curiousities from the sea. As Mary searches for these treasures, she uncovers a fossilized sea reptile. It takes over a year to painstakingly remove the fossil, which proves to be the first ichthyosaur discovered, from the surrounding stone. Mary Anning went on to uncover the first plesiosaur found in England, and her life's work became fossil-hunting. Atkins captures the imagination and perserverance which characterized Mary Anning, as well as the significance of her scientific discoveries.

Rocky Road: Mary Anning

McGill, Alice Molly Bannaky.illus.by Chris K. Soentpiet.Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.*
In 1683, Molly Walsh is a 17 year old English dairy maid. When the cow kicks over her milk bucket, she is accused of stealing the milk and is brought before the court. The usual punishment is hanging, but because she can read the Bible she is sold as an indentured servant in America instead. After serving her seven years, she does what was then unheard of. She stakes a claim in the wilderness, buys a slave, Bannaky, to help her, frees him, and then marries him in defiance of colonial law. Eventually their farm grows to over 100 acres. One of their daughters, who also marries a freed slave, has a son. That son grows up to be Benjamin Banneker, who became a highly respected scientist and mathemetician. This is an oversized book- it needs to be to contain the personality of this remarkable woman.

Banneker Center for Economic Justice

Younger, Barbara Purple Mountain Majesties.:The Story of Katharine Lee Bates and "America the Beautiful. illus. by Stacey Shuett.New York:Dutton Children's Books, 1998.
In 1893, Katharine Lee Bates was a professor of English at Wellesley College. That summer she was invited to lecture at a college in Colorado Springs. Her experiences on the ensuing train trip included stops at Niagara Falls, the World Columbian Exposition, and Pike's Peak. These sights inspired her to compose the first four stanzas of "America the Beautiful", which has come to be known as America's second national anthem. The book includes excerpts from Bates' actual journals, and is beautifully illustrated with full page paintings depicting the scenery Bates found so inspirational.

Katharine Lee Bates (Falmouth Historical Society

Wellesley College Person of the Week-Katharine Lee Bates

Corey, Shana You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer illus. by Shana Corey,New York: Scholastic Press,2000*
Although Amelia Bloomer was the first woman to serve as editor of a newspaper and was a stuanch advocate for women's voting rights, she is probably best remembered for her rebellion against restrictive women's clothing. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton's cousin came visiting one day,wearing baggy pantaloons such as European women recuperating from health problems wore, Amelia enthusiastically copied the outfit. The design spread, and it soon became associated with independent thinking. A light hearted look at a feminist pioneer.

Amelia Bloomer

Rubin, Susan Goldman Fireflies in the Dark:The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis and the Children of Terezin New York: Holiday House, 2000.
Friedl Dicker-Brandeis was 44 years old when she was taken to Terezin Concentration camp. When given an opportunity to pack necessities, she chose to pack art supplies. She used those supplies to brighten the lives of the children imprisoned along with her, providing them with not only a creative outlet but an emotional one as well. Along with Friedl's story, Rubin presents many of the actual paintings produced and commentary by the survivors. Friedl died at Auschwitz, but the book is a fitting memorial to her courage, self-sacrifice and spirit.

Friedl Dicker- Brandeis: Life in art and Teaching

The Jewish Online Reasearch Center:Terezin

Blos, Joan W. adaptor. The Days Before Now: An Autobiographical Note by Margaret Wise Brown. illus.by Thomas B. Allen . New York: Simon and Schuster, 1994.
Blos has adapted the text from an autobiographical note Brown originally wrote for inclusion in "The Junior Book of Authors." The writing has a dreamy quality as Brown recalls not facts and dates but rather little memories of her childhood experiences. A sweet introduction to this author for children enamored of her work..

Margaret Wise Brown Official Website

Margaret Wise Brown: children's Book Author

Vaughan, Marcia Abbie Against the Storm illus.by Bill Farnsworth .Hillsboro, Oregon: Beyond Words Publishing, 1999.
Abbie Burgess is fourteen when this story takes place(1853). She lives in a lighthouse off the coast of Maine with her parents and siblings. She understands the importance of the lights in keeping sailors safe and often helps her father tend them. When her mother becomes ill and the supply ship fails to arrive,her father leaves the island for supplies, leaving Abbie in charge. The worst storm in 200 years attacks the island, but Abbie keeps both her family safe and the lights burning. Vaughan's dramatic prose aptly captures Abbie's heroism, and Farnsworth's paintings keep pace with the action.

A Special Woman in the History of Lighthouses

Women in History: Abbie Burgess Grant

Lindbergh, Reeve Nobody Owns the Sky Cambridge: Candlewick Press, 1996.*
Bessie Coleman was born in 1892 of a native American father and an African American mother. She grew up in Texas picking cotton and made it into college, but was forced to leave because of financial reasons. She worked for a time as a manicurist before deciding to pursue her dream of flying. She was turned away by American flight schools because she was both black and a woman,but made her way to France. In 1921, she became the first licensed black aviator in the world. She returned to the U.S and became known as "Brave Bessie Coleman' as she barnstormed her way across America, only to die tragically at an air show in Jacksonville ,Florida. Lindbergh tells Bessie's story in verse, emphasizing her spirit more than the facts of her life, and the message about pursuing dreams despite the odds comes across with clarity.

American Experience: Bessie Coleman

Ourstory: Bessie Coleman, pilot

Adler, David America's Champion Swimmer: Gertrude Ederle New York: Harcourt Inc., 2000.
When Gertrude Ederle almost drowned at the age of 7, her father insisted she learn to swim. The rest is history. At the age of 16 she became the first woman to swim from lower Manhattan to Sandy Hook, and at the age of 18 she made the U.S. Olympic team, winning three medals. When she was 19, she made her first atempt to cross the English Channel, but the swim was disqualifired because her trainer touched her in the water. One year later, with a different trainer, she tried again, and despite miserable weather conditions, she succeeded in record time. Adler captures Ederle's courage and determination perfectly, and the illustrations exhibit a clarity and strength that are a perfect match.

Women in American History

Celebrating Women's History Month

Winter, Jeanette My Name is Georgia New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1998.*
Winter refers to this book as a "portrait", and that is an appropriate description. Using O'Keeffe's own voice, she places her emphasis not on the circumstances of the O'Keeffe's life, but rather on her vision as an artist. "I did things other people don't do..." is a refrain that appears and reappears at the various stages in O'Keeffe's life. The book could be paired with Robyn Montana Turner's more conventional biography for a more rounded picture of this unique woman.( Turner, Robyn Montana Georgia O'Keeffe New York: Little Brown, 1991)

Georgia O'Keeffe

Georgia O'Keeffe Museum

Ringgold, Faith. If a Bus Could Talk: the Story of Rosa Parks. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1999.*
On her way to school ,Marcie finds herself on a very unusual bus. This bus can talk, and on its journey down Rosa Parks Boulevard, the bus and the other passengers tell Marcie the story of how Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on that bus one day, and put in motion the movement that would eventually bring an end to segregation. Parks earlier and later contributions to the NAACP are also covered. This is a unique presentation that may attract more reluctant readers.

Rosa Parks: the Woman who Changed a Nation

Wallner, Alexandra Beatrix Potter New York: Holiday House,1995.
Beatrix Potter was born in 1866. Like many children of wealthy parents, she and her brother Bertram were raised by governesses and rarely saw their parents or other children. To ease their loneliness, they made pets of many garden animals- rabbits, hedgehogs, lizards, etc. Beatrix was able to observe these animals at close range, and often painted them. Eventually these animals became the inspiration for the 23 animal tales she would write, including the now classic "The Tale of Peter Rabbit". When Potter stopped writing because of failing eyesight, she devoted her time to raising sheep and creating protected woodland areas.

Betrix Potter- More than just a Rabbit's Tale

The Beatrix Potter Society

Brown, Don Alice Ramsey's Grand Adventure Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1997*
In 1909, Alice Ramsey became the first woman to drive across America. At the time there were no reliable maps, few paved roads, and frequent mechanical problems with her Maxwell Touring car. Ramsey took 59 days to make the trip. Over the next 70 years,, Alice Ramsey repeated her grand adventure more than 30 times, in true personification of the pioneer spirit. Watercolor illustrations capture the humor as well as the drama of her experience.

Coast to Coast: Past to Future

Teacher tips- Things to do and discuss for Alice Ramsey

Cooney, Barbara Eleanor New York:Viking,1996.*
Eleanor Roosevelt's lonely,loveless childhood is the focus of this biography. Despite her life of privilege, Eleanor was often the subject of ridicule, even by her own mother. Orphaned by the age of nine, she was raised in the gloomy house of her grandmother, whose lack of interest in Eleanor left her shy and self-conscious. Only went sent to boarding school as a young woman did she discover the inner resources that would eventually make her the First Lady whose humanitarian efforts are still unsurpassed. Cooney's masterful illustrations perfectly capture Eleanor's isolation. Although the book ends with Eleanor's graduation from boarding school, an afterword supplies the remainder of her remarkable story.

Eleanor Roosevelt- biography and links page

Eleanor Roosevelt: the American Woman

Krull, Kathleen Wilma Unlimited New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1996*
In 1960, Wilma Rudolph won 3 gold medals at the Olympic Games and became known as the World's Fastest Woman. To accomplish this she had to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles, including a childhood bout with polio, and prejudice as both an African American and a woman. The best word to describe Rudolph is indomitable, and Krull aptly captures her spirit. Diaz' illustrations are stylized but effective.

"My Hero"- Sports heroes, Wilma Rudolph

Rudolph Ran and the World Went Wild

San Souci, Robert D. Kate Shelley: Bound for Legend New York: dial books for Young Readers, 1995.*
In 1881 Kate Shelley lived on a farm near the railroad with her mother and younger siblings. Her father had died andher mother was in poor health, so although she was only fifteen she shouldered a great deal of the family's responsibility. One night a severe storm washed away the railroad bridge that crossed the creek near her home. Kate knew she had to help not only the survivors of the first train that crashed in the water, but must prevent a second train loaded with passengers from coming to the same fate. Her efforts to effect this rescue include crawling across a 700 ft. long railroad cross-tie bridge on her hands and knees. Her courage won her national fame. The book is a good introduction to a now little known heroine.

The Story of Kate Shelley

Kate Shelley Railroad Museum

McCully, Emily Arnold The Ballot Box Battle illus. by authorNew York: Viking Press, 1996 *
It is 1880. Cordelia lives next door to Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the voting rights activist. Every afternoon Cordelia feeds and grooms Mrs. Stanton's horse, and Mrs. Stanton gives her a riding lesson. During these lessons she also talks to Cordelia about her own childhood and her father's eternal disappointment that she was was a girl, as well as her various battles in trying to get women the right to vote. This story details what happens one afternoon when Cordelia accompanies Mrs. Stanton as she make an historic effort to vote in Tenafly, New Jersey.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Schroeder, Alan Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman illus. by Jerry Pinkney .New York: Dial books for Young Readers,1996. *
This is a fictionalized account of Harriet Tubman's childhood as a field slave on a Maryland plantation. Schroeder depicts a child who, even at the age of eight, yearns for her freedom and rebels against her situation. He describes how her father taught her to read the stars and survive in the woods. An afterword details her life as "conductor" on the Underground Railroad.

Harriet Tubman Historical Society

The Harriet Tubman Home

Lasky, Kathryn Vision of Beauty: The Story of Sarah Breedlove Walker . illus by Nneka Bennett . Cambridge: Candlewick Press, 2000
Sarah Breedlove Walker was born just after slavery ended. Orphaned at an early age and raised in poverty, she became interested in hair care products after the harsh straightening treatments commonly used on black women caused her to start losing her hair. She eventually started her own business, and went on to become one of the wealthiest women in Louisiana. She used her wealth and success to empower other black women. An inspirational story accompanied by watercolor and pencil drawings that provide additional historical detail.

Madame C.J. Walker

Anderson, William Pioneer Girl: the Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder illus. by Dan Andreason .New York: HarperCollins Publishers,1998
Anderson has condensed his 1992 biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder into picture book format. He selects the incidents which would have the most appeal for this younger audience. Anderson carries Laura through all the restless moves, daily chores and disaster that she was later to immortalize in her "Little House" book,but continues with Laura's later years as well. Accompanied by beautiful painings by Dan Andreason, this is a good way to introduce the author before reading her works.

Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society, Inc.

Laura Ingalls Wilder-Author

Ryan,Pam Munoz. Amelia and Eleanor Go For a Ride. illus. by Brian Selznick.New York: Scholastic Press, 1999. *
Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt wer two of the most famous and inspiring women of their time. This book recounts a little known incident in which the two, still wearing formal evening dress, go for a brief airplane ride together. Ryan captures the spirit and independece of both women and their common love for adventure. An unusually informative source note documents the incident.

Amelia Earhart

Official Amelia Earhart Website

Lasky, Kathryn She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head. illus by David Catrow. New York: Hyperion Books for Children ,1995.
Harriet Hemenway and Minna Hall are proper Boston ladies disgusted with the current (1896) trend in women's hat fashions. Women are seen wearing feathers, wings, and entire dead birds on their heads. Harriet and Minna object to the fact that birds are being slaughtered and endangered, and also feel that women look silly, which harms the voting rights cause. They band together to form the first chapter of the Audubon Society in Massachusetts, and were very effective in both educating the public and getting legislation passed and enforced to protect the birds. A light hearted look at an interesting slice of history.

National Audubon Society's Endangered Species Campaign

Audubon Adventures, grades 4-6