Celebrate Women's History Month

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh. Luz Jiménez was an Indigenous Nahua girl from Milpa Alta, on the outskirts of Mexico City, who grew up to realize her dreams of becoming a teacher and working to preserve the Nahua language and culture. As a child, she was not allowed to go to school--that is, until the government realized that education could be used as a tool to control Indigenous people ("to turn the native children into modern ones, like the descendants of the Spanish who ruled the country, who thought only their ways were right and proper") at the cost of preserving their traditional ways of life. When the Mexican Revolution came in 1911, Jiménez's father was killed in the fighting and chaos, and the family moved to Mexico City, where Luz was fortunate to find work as a model for some of the leading artists of the day, including Diego Rivera. When the war ended, she returned to Milpa Alta and found her true calling as a teacher. Tonatiuh's (Soldier for Equality, rev. 1/20; Feathered Serpent and the Five Suns, rev. 11/20) hand-drawn, digitally collaged illustrations, with an iconographic nod to the Mixtec codices, are rich in color and texture. Indeed, it's this complicated relationship between old traditions and modern influences that makes his art such a good complement to Amescua's text. Flowers, a Nahua metaphor for poetry, are incorporated throughout. An author's note, a timeline, a glossary, source notes, and a bibliography are appended.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Matthew Cordell. Just across the street from the Horn Book office sits the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, whose story is at least as interesting as its idiosyncratic collection. Cannily, Fleming (Honeybee, rev. 3/20; Cubs in the Tub, rev. 9/20) and Cordell (Hello, Neighbor!, rev. 5/20; Bear Island, rev. 3/21) begin this picture-book biography with a mystery: "On a tree-lined street in Boston, in an old mansion, at the top of the stairs, in a second-floor room, empty frames hang, waiting..." Throughout, author and illustrator find just those details about Gardner ("who wore baseball gear to the symphony"), her unusual museum (where she would follow visitors around, shouting "Don't touch! Don't touch!"), and the famous theft ("Private detectives searched. They are still searching") that will engage readers who might have otherwise found the subject stuffy. The text is clipped and clear; the line and watercolor illustrations have a raffish edge that suits the boho Isabella. Preceding an appended bibliography and source notes, a comprehensive endnote mentions both Gardner's sometimes unscrupulous acquisition methods and the ten-million-dollar reward still on offer for solving the 1990 robbery.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Elizabeth Baddeley. Already a college graduate and an instructor at a switchboard operators' school, Grace Banker (1892–1960) "was used to marching in a man's world" when she answered a newspaper ad to join U.S. troops in France as a telephone operator in the army's Signal Corps during World War I. Banker was named chief operator of the first-ever unit of women soldiers; the thirty-three women risked their lives on the dangerous voyage overseas in 1918 and on the front, where they tirelessly relayed orders until the final ceasefire was uttered from Banker's phone. Soon after, she received the Distinguished Service Medal--the army's "highest honor for someone not in combat"--the first and only woman operator to ever do so. Friddell's narrow focus on Banker's twenty months of service highlights an inspiring, little-known story of everyday "girls" (as the text calls them) stepping up to heroically serve their country--despite gender injustices--and making history. The text incorporates, via blue type and speech bubbles, Banker's own words from diaries and interviews, providing readers with a fascinating firsthand account of the experience. Baddeley's attention to historical detail in her ink, acrylic, and digital-media illustrations helps accurately depict potentially unfamiliar, antiquated concepts such as switchboards, dazzle ships, and trench warfare. Black-and-white photographs of Banker and her unit accompany a timeline in the back matter, which also explains their postwar fight to be recognized as veterans by the U.S. government, ­additional facts about operating a switchboard, statistics about these brave women, and a bibliography.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow. This picture-book biography isn't just the story of NASA "computer" ­Katherine Johnson (1918–2020), who, among many noteworthy achievements, calculated the orbit for astronaut John Glenn's historic spaceflight around the Earth. It's also, importantly, the story of Johnson's three daughters, Joylette, Connie, and Kathy (two of whom are co-authors of the book)--and it's a poignant chronicle of the racism they all confronted. The book's scrapbook-like design features an impressive array of photographs: personal snapshots of Johnson and her family, photos of Johnson at work, images of her NASA badge and the pearl ­necklace she always wore, archival photos of segregated public spaces and of segregation protestors, and stock images of ­astronauts--the list goes on. Grounding all these photographs are Barlow's colorful illustrations; they unpack the emotion and lend immediacy, particularly to the daughters' experiences. For example, after the family's move to Newport News, Virginia, where Johnson soon started work at NACA (NASA's predecessor), a beach scene shows the three frowning girls, with Joylette saying, in a speech bubble: "We were forced to go to the 'Colored Only' beach. White people were mean to us because of the color of our skin." The blend of Johnson's and her daughters' voices is intimate and inspiring: "This is our story," they tell us, proclaiming their history with courage and pride. Back matter includes historical context on racial segregation in America, a biographical profile of Johnson, a timeline, and a glossary.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ekua Holmes. American Beach in northeast Florida is now a protected part of the National Park Service, but it began as a private beach bought by African American millionaire Abraham Lincoln Lewis in 1935 to allow Black people a respite from segregated beaches (where "there was even a rope in the ocean" to keep the races separate). It was a childhood haven for future opera singer (and Lewis's great-granddaughter) MaVynee Betsch, who found a second career in saving the beach, which fell into neglect after civil rights gains had made it redundant. Author and illustrator work in exceptional harmony here to bring MaVynee and the beach to life, with Holmes depicting in acrylic and collage the beauty of the "ocean paradise where [­Lewis's] family and other black people could swim, picnic, and build sandcastles." Even later, when MaVynee returns to the now-abandoned beach, nursing her own depression, Holmes finds beauty in the sadness, using the long horizontals of the spreads to glorious and poignant effect. Author and illustrator notes along with sources provide and point to further information about MaVynee Betsch.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Becca Stadtlander. As a teenager, Marianne North (1830–1890) acquired a love of music, art, and especially botany (all things that her wealthy Victorian parents disapproved of), teaching herself about plants from books and observation. At the age of forty, after the death of her widowed father, North was finally free to pursue her passions. Initial trips to paint plants in North America and the Caribbean inspired her to go from being "a traveler who painted" to "a painter who traveled," visiting fifteen countries--and creating copious art there--over the next fourteen years. In this fascinating and detailed account of North's life, Lawlor (Rachel Carson and Her Book That Changed the World, rev. 7/12) covers the difficult traveling conditions and accommodations North often encountered; even though "traveling alone was frowned upon for 'unprotected ladies,'" she remained undeterred. A few years before her death, North convinced the director of London's Kew Gardens to let her build the Marianne North Gallery to house her collection, of which 832 paintings are still viewable today. Grouped by geographic regions, they form an "astonishing" mural-like display, captured by Stadtlander (On Wings of Words, rev. 5/20) on an impressive spread. An appended note about North's legacy cogently characterizes her work in oil paint, which placed plants in their natural surroundings, as "unlike traditional botanical illustration of her time"; and Stadtlander's vibrant ink, watercolor, and colored-pencil art in lush, natural colors echoes North's own realistic style (exhibited on the endpapers via eight reproductions). Back matter also includes sources, notes, and picture credits, plus a "who's who" of other well-known people in North's noteworthy life.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Maris Wicks. Mary Anning (1799–1847) loved "treasure hunting" with her father and brother along the storm-pounded cliffs of their seaside English hometown, Lyme Regis. The treasures were fossilized shell and bone "curios" they'd sell to tourists. After their father died, her brother discovered what he thought was a giant crocodile head, but it was Mary, at just thirteen, who painstakingly uncovered the entire body. The skeleton (which she thought looked like a dragon) made newspaper headlines before being sold and displayed in a museum and named an "ichthyosaur" (fish lizard). During her lifetime, self-taught Anning discovered five additional extinct creatures, including two species of plesiosaurs. Though she rarely received proper credit at the time, today she is considered the "mother of paleontology." Marsh's mainly upbeat, child-centered text is complemented by Wicks's (Primates, rev. 5/13; Astronauts, rev. 5/20) comic illustration style. Bold pencil outlines and vibrant, digitally colored hues almost pop off the page. Wicks incorporates a few graphic-novel staples--dynamic character expressions, sound effects, and speech bubbles--to add playful touches to the story. Also noteworthy are the recurring luminescent drawings outlined in white that denote Anning's imaginings, whether of extinct creatures she hopes to (or does) discover or of her deceased father watching over her. Back matter includes more details about Anning's life, quick facts about "Mary's dragons" (also creatively featured on the endpapers), information on "How to Become a Paleontologist," and a selected bibliography.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Yuko Jones. Michalak and Florence dish up a sumptuous celebration of chef Niki Nakayama. Born in Los Angeles to immigrant parents, Nakayama grew up in two cultures. "Outside of Niki's house was Los Angeles. Inside of her house was Japan." But Niki's mother combined the two cultures for family meals, cooking American food with Japanese influences--meatloaf with soy sauce, rice instead of potatoes, and Thanksgiving turkey with teriyaki sauce. Niki wanted to do things her way, too. When young, she would experiment with food, creating such treats as wonton-wrapper pizzas. On a trip to Japan after high school, she learned about kaiseki, a meal of many courses, a "storytelling feast," which begot the passion on display at her current Los Angeles restaurant, n/naka. In an effective matching of book design and content, Nakayama's story is dished up like a kaiseki meal: thirteen bites, from her early years in "Bite 1" to a gorgeous dish resembling an abstract painting viewed from above in "Bite 13." A palette of rich, vivid colors; playful shifts in perspective; and a text emphasizing active verbs highlight the artfulness of Nakayama's meals and the spirit behind them. Not just about food, but also the importance of gathering, love and laughter, and the can-do spirit of a girl finding her path in life. Back matter includes "Ingredients" (timeline), "Kuyashii" (an explanation of the "Yes I Can" spirit), more information about kaiseki, and the recipe for wonton pizzas.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Translated by Jethro Soutar. Spare first-person text describes Alfonsina Strada's early childhood explorations with a bicycle and lightly sketches her groundbreaking career as a female cyclist in early-twentieth-century Italy. Creating chaos wherever she cycled, and at first dressing as a boy, Strada soon throws off her trousers, hat, and suspenders--shown in a striking double-page spread--to openly ride as a girl. Townspeople react with shock, leaping out of the way as she barrels, carefree, through crowds. The text is extremely brief, providing more of a peek into an intriguing life than actual biographical information. Major life events, including the notable fact that she was the only woman to have ridden one of cycling's three major stage races, are not included in the text (end matter would have been welcome for readers wanting to learn more about a fascinating character, but no additional information is provided). The illustrations, in a limited palette of bold oranges, yellows, blues, and greens, echo the style of the screen-printed flyers for cycling races that appear in the background through the book. Animals in the illustrations seem fascinated by Strada, their gaze emphasizing her wildness as she describes how riding and racing allow her to be free. A compelling, if incomplete, introduction to a little-known pioneer in women's sports.

Reviewer: Laura Koenig | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Magaly Morales. "Pura Belpré always knew that many stories worth telling aren't in books" is the lingering message of this picture-book biography. Growing up in Puerto Rico, Belpré listened as her abuela told vivid cuentos that elicited "giggles...shivers...sighs," reactions later mirrored by the enthralled library audiences with whom Pura shared those same folk stories. Belpré began library work in Harlem among a growing Spanish-speaking diaspora, at a time when the library lacked both staff to communicate in their patrons' language and books to reinforce a connection. Recognizing how the rigid traditions of storytime limited her ability to promote culturally relevant stories--stories shared had to be read from a book--Belpré proposed her own oral storytelling practice to the library "bosses" (all depicted as white). Eventually she published those stories and devoted herself to reaching the public beyond library walls, paving the way for practices of modern librarianship. Pimentel (Girl Running, rev. 3/18) captures Belpré's dazzling storytelling ("She hisses...murmurs...roars") through text that carries a soft rhythm apt for reading aloud. Morales's (A Piñata in a Pine Tree, rev. 11/09) digital images feature a bright and distinct color palette and illustrate Pura's liveliness through dynamic perspectives and expressive gestures. Deftly incorporated details throughout the art, including a coqui and characters such as Pérez and Martina, evoke Belpré's childhood influences and culture. An author's note, a source list, and a selected bibliography are appended. Pair with González and Delacre's The Storyteller's Candle and Denise and Escobar's Planting Stories (rev. 1/19).

Reviewer: Jessica Agudelo | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Daniel Duncan. Text and pictures work together to capture the life and spirit of a remarkable woman. As a child in England, Beatrice ­Shilling (1909–1990) "wasn't quite like" other children, preferring tools to candy. She grew up to be so clever with tools and so interested in fixing engines and machines that at fourteen she bought and rebuilt her own motorcycle; was later accepted to university to study engineering (art shows Beatrice walking into a room full of men as the text states that she "wasn't quite like" the other students); and subsequently got a job in the Royal Aircraft Establishment. During WWII, when it was discovered that Spitfire and Hurricane planes had a fatal flaw in their fuel delivery systems that caused the engines to fail in crucial moments, it was Beatrice who solved the problem. She devised a simple restrictor--"a little piece of metal with a hole in it"--that was cheap and easy to install. "When Beatrice roared up on her motorcycle with her bag full of tools, pilots knew they didn't have to worry anymore." The text is lively and succinct, full of vigorous action verbs. The expressive illustrations convey time and place beautifully and are infused variously with humor (such as when apprentice-engineer Beatrice, helping to bring electricity to villages, falls through a ceiling) and drama (as in a stunning double-page spread of London aflame during the Blitz). An author's note stresses the support Shilling received from individual women and women's ­organizations, enabling her to break through the barriers she faced; a list of selected sources completes the book.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Rockliff and Christie focus their story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott on a little-heralded--yet integral--member of the movement, culinary whiz Georgia Gilmore (1920–1990). Once the boycott began, Gilmore and her "Club from Nowhere" (so dubbed to help members avoid retaliatory action) sold baked goods and donated their earnings to the cause. Although Gilmore did, in fact, lose her job after testifying at Dr. King's trial following his arrest for organizing the boycott, she was able to succeed when he encouraged her to start her own catering business. Gilmore's home became a place for members of the movement to gather not just to eat good food but to hash out matters relevant to the boycott. Rockliff repeats certain phrases to great effect ("Summer heated up... The boycotters trudged on. Fall passed... The boycotters plodded on") and nods to Gilmore's mouthwatering menu offerings ("The empty buses made city officials hotter than Georgia's collard greens with pepper sauce"). Christie's vivid, painterly illustrations bring the 1950s setting to life and show Gilmore's importance to the cause; she is pictured in nearly every spread, cooking, baking, bringing money to a boycott strategy meeting, and more. Appended with an "After the Boycott" page, which focuses on Gilmore's later life; an author's note on sources; and a source list. Pair with Romito and Freeman's Pies from Nowhere (rev. 11/18).

Reviewer: Sam Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Raissa Figueroa. Dovey Johnson Roundtree (1914–2018) would grow up to be a civil rights warrior; this picture-book biography focuses on a pivotal moment in her childhood. One pre-dawn summer morning in North Carolina, her grandmother takes her blackberry picking, joined quietly by other women from their community. Intimidated by the dark, Dovey gains courage from Grandma Rachel, who tells her she need not fear it. "If you wait a little, your eyes will learn to see, and you can find your way." Awash in blues and purples and then pinks, reds, and golds as the sun rises, Figueroa's stunning illustrations, many of which depict a view from above the woodland scenes, illuminate the landscape, the diligent work of the women, and the lessons Dovey learns from her loving grandmother, which feed her tenacity and determination as an adult. Several pages of back matter, which include family photographs, detail the remarkable life of this unsung hero, who graduated from Spelman College, served in the Women's Army Corps, earned a degree from Howard ­University Law School, and fought diligently for civil rights throughout her long career and life. An author's note by McCabe explains that the book was "adapted from the final chapter of the autobiography Dovey and I wrote together." Inspiring and exquisitely illustrated, this well-researched true story will spark conversations that prompt young readers to learn more about Roundtree.

Reviewer: Michelle H. Martin | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Richie Pope. Mary Seacole was raised by a Jamaican Creole mother who taught her herbal medicine and a Scottish soldier father whose stories inspired her to see the world. After using her skills during a cholera outbreak, Seacole is determined to volunteer as a nurse in the Crimean War, but first in London and then again on the battlefield she is turned away--by Florence Nightingale herself--because of her skin color. But Mary Seacole is not easily stopped, and she becomes a familiar sight welcoming people to her guest house/hospital and bringing her supplies to the battlefield, where she becomes known as Mother Seacole and eventually gains fame when a British journalist tells her story. Rubin sprinkles Seacole's own words throughout the book, bringing in some of her larger-than-life personality. The text is longer than a typical picture-book biography, making this a good choice for readers who may be ready for but intimidated by chapter-book biographies. Pope's illustrations have the difficult job of showing the devastating circumstances Seacole often finds herself in as a battlefield nurse, and his soft, cartoony watercolors deftly walk that line. Back matter includes source notes and a brief bibliography.

Reviewer: Laura Koenig | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021

(2) K-3 Born into slavery, Elizabeth Keckly (sometimes spelled Keckley) followed in her mother's footsteps as a seamstress and dressmaker, eventually earning the twelve hundred dollars she needed to buy her and her son's freedom. One the eve of the Civil War she moved from St. Louis to Washington, where her work caught the attention of the wives of leaders on both sides of the growing conflict--Varina Davis, wife of Jefferson Davis; Mary Anna Custis Lee, wife of Robert E. Lee; and Mary Todd Lincoln. When Keckly's party dress for Mrs. Lincoln was a success, she was commissioned to make at least fifteen more over the next couple of years. Schofield-Morrison's (I Got the Christmas Spirit, rev. 11/18) text effectively combines a third-person narrative with italicized, unflinching first-person quotations drawn from Keckly's memoir, Behind the Scenes, or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House. The refrain "stitch by stitch" runs throughout the text, a thread complemented by Zunon's (I Am Farmer, rev. 1/19; Off to See the Sea, rev. 1/21) illustrations using a variety of media, including fabric, lace, ribbon, and appliqué. A handsome introduction to a remarkable woman and her craft. An author's note and a bibliography are appended.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Melissa Sweet. This poignant picture-book biography opens on an illustration of Joyce Scott and her twin sister Judith as children, snuggled in bed "like two spoons nesting in a drawer." Joyce and Judith do everything together until Judith, who has Down syndrome and is later also diagnosed as deaf, is sent away to an institution when the girls are seven years old. Judith spends thirty-five bleak years in the facility until Joyce brings her to California and enrolls her in a nonprofit art studio for adults with disabilities. There, Judith begins to create the astounding pieces, consisting of colorful fibers and found objects woven tightly together, which will bring her renown. The tender and evocative narration is written in the first person, present tense, which lends intimacy and immediacy to the story. Meanwhile, Sweet's illustrations evolve with the narrative, from sunny colored pencil for the girls' childhood to more subdued hues during Judith's institutionalization. Sweet (Caldecott honoree for A River of Words and The Right Word, rev. 11/14) then switches to her signature vibrant mixed media to represent Judith's later years and fiber art. Text and illustration join together beautifully to tell a story of art, resilience, and familial love. Appended with author and illustrator notes, a list of sources, further information about Down syndrome, and a timeline of disability rights.

Reviewer: K Rachael Stein | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Natasha Donovan. Sorell (We Are Still Here!, rev. 5/21) opens the book with a note on four "Cherokee values" that she uses to frame Ross's (1908–2008) long life: "Gaining skills in all areas of life (both within and outside the classroom), working cooperatively with others, remaining humble when others recognize your talents, and helping ensure equal education and opportunity for all." Through realistically cartooned digital illustrations and straightforward text, readers learn how Ross's experiences reflected these traits. Because she valued learning and had a passion for math, Ross was able to persevere when "the boys refused to sit next to the only girl in math class." This passion led her to a job as a mathematician for Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, where she worked with others to design fighter planes as well as spacecraft. Her most important contribution was encouraging other women and American Indians to become engineers. An appended timeline, an author's note, source notes, and a bibliography provide more details about Ross's life and times. Also appended with Sorell's Four Cherokee Values written using Cherokee syllabary and its transliteration; phonetic pronunciation in English; and English-language ­translation--features that help to preserve the language for future generations.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully. This thorough and visually evocative picture-book biography tells the story of Kate Walker (1848–1931), who became one of the first women to serve as an offshore lighthouse keeper. An archival Currier & Ives map of New York Harbor on the endpapers sets the historical scene in the late nineteenth century, when Kate emigrates from Germany. A widow with a small child, she begins work as a cook at Fort Hancock, where she meets and marries John Walker and, after his appointment as lighthouse keeper, settles with him on Robbins Reef. The octagonal iron structure stood on a granite foundation surrounded by water; Spires describes the lighthouse as looking, from far off, like a "tiny candle on a birthday cake." When John dies, Kate remains; four years later she becomes the permanent keeper. Giving equal measure to her devotion to John's last words ("Mind the light, Kate"); her isolation; and her bravery (she rescued fifty people during her near thirty-year career), Spires shows Walker as a quiet heroine meeting challenges calmly and efficiently. McCully's hallmark watercolors support this focus, whether depicting the cramped conditions on Robbins Reef, the pattern of life at the lighthouse, Kate braving dangerous weather, and two spectacular seascapes. Appended with an author's note, documentation, and a bibliography.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Christian Robinson. Pianist, singer, and composer Nina ­Simone was born Eunice Waymon in rural North Carolina in 1933, a child "who had music on the inside." Treated by turns as a prodigy, curiosity, and nuisance, after high school Eunice left North Carolina for NYC and Juilliard. After a series of indignities and disappointments, she began performing at a nightclub in Atlantic City; her growing fame led Eunice to change her name to Nina Simone in an attempt to hide her "unholy" music from her mother. At the same time, the momentum of the ongoing civil rights movement was a "relentless, demanding" drumbeat that proved impossible to ignore; and as Simone felt more pressure (internal and external) to speak out against racism, she decided she was done playing nice, as politeness "had gotten her people nothing." Robinson (You Matter, rev. 9/20; Milo Imagines the World, rev. 3/21) punctuates this section with flame-like cut paper and sooty smudges symbolizing the "steady, rising roar" of injustice, culminating in a double-page spread showing Nina and her band playing against a fiery backdrop. Todd ends her unflinching narrative with a perfectly placed, direct-address line: "And when she sang of Black children--you lovely, precious dreams--her voice sounded like hope." This unexpected, yet needed, outpouring of love is the perfect end to a stunning book. An author's note "About Nina Simone" and a bibliography are appended.

Reviewer: Sam Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Sophie Diao. Tsui's picture-book debut introduces young readers to Sarah Gerhardt, a pioneering figure in modern women's surfing. The text opens in 1999 with Gerhardt facing her first massive ­Mavericks wave (so named for the waves' location, a surf break in ­Northern ­California) and then jumps back in time to her childhood in Hawaii when women were not encouraged to surf, and surfing equipment for girls was not even available. The text is mostly very immediate and focused on Gerhardt's feelings and experiences, but it does take several digressions to give information on wave formation and size. Diao's expansive, breathtaking art is the showstopper here, with several spreads and one spectacular gatefold giving readers an idea of the size of the waves Gerhardt is surfing. The ocean in the illustrations shifts from glass green and inviting to stormy and intimidating, making the waves almost their own personified character. The timeline of women in surfing history is the only back matter; readers may find themselves left with unanswered questions and looking for more information about Gerhardt's feats.

Reviewer: Laura Koenig | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon. Marjory Stoneman Douglas, journalist and fierce champion of Florida's natural environment, spent her long life (1890–1998) advocating for the protection of the Everglades. ­Wallace's account begins with Douglas's brief childhood visit to sunny Florida with her father and her early life of books and nature in New England with her mother and aunt. In her own adulthood, divorced, Douglas arrives in Miami and takes a journalist position at the Miami Herald, the paper her father had started. Wallace's narrative incorporates relevant quotes from Douglas: "I wanted my own life in my own way." After service in the navy in WWI, Douglas returns to Florida and begins, with Ernest Coe, a campaign to designate the Everglades as a national park. Successes and obstacles ensue--"The Everglades is a test. If we pass it, we get to keep the planet"--set against Gibbon's illustrations of lush Florida landscapes filled with multitudes of birds, marsh grasses, people, and marine life, and contrasting images of ever-encroaching development. Douglas is unbowed, writing The Everglades: River of Grass and organizing the Friends of the Everglades. Though the biographical detail is selective, the back matter is useful for filling in blanks. Endnotes provides a timeline and background on Douglas, her conservation efforts, a field guide to Florida wildlife, and additional resources.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(1) K-3 Illustrated by April Harrison. Williams (Genesis Begins Again, rev. 1/19; Jump at the Sun, rev. 3/21) and Harrison (What Is Given from the Heart, rev. 1/19; Nana Akua Goes to School, rev. 5/20) present a lively and appealing picture-book biography of our first Black Congresswoman, Shirley Chisholm (1924–2005). The story focuses on her childhood propensity to ask questions, which evolved into a successful political career anchored by advocacy for the rights of poor and underrepresented people. The daughter of West Indian immigrant parents, Chisholm spent her youth in Brooklyn with her parents and in Barbados with her grandmother and cousins. Her schooling was important to her father, who inquired daily about what she had learned and told her to "study and make something of yourself." After college, where she joined a political science society, she worked in early childhood education. In her community, she attended meetings and asked questions related to the welfare of citizens, pushing for money for better schools, regular sanitation service, and better police protection. Dissatisfied with politicians' unkept promises, she formed a Democratic women's club that worked to address community issues and organize voter registration drives. After winning a seat in the New York Assembly, she introduced bills to help college students and domestic workers and to fund daycare centers. Three years later, Chisholm was elected to Congress, where she served for fifteen years. Harrison's expressive and engaging folk art–style illustrations, rendered in acrylic and mixed-media collage, are a worthy complement to Williams's admiring tone and spirited narrative, which makes the subject both relatable and inspiring for readers. An author's note offers additional information about Chisholm's life, including her 1972 presidential run. Pair with Chambers's Shirley Chisholm Is a Verb! and Russell-Brown and Velasquez's She Was the First! (rev. 11/20).

Reviewer: Pauletta Brown Bracy | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Corita Kent's "Rainbow Swash" is a long-familiar sight to Boston commuters, splashed across an enormous natural gas tank alongside Interstate 93, but her bold, bright, and devout serigraphs were everywhere in the 1960s and 1970s. Corita is an apt choice for Winter's ­hagiographic leanings and iconographic style; see, for example, her previous picture-book biographies of Georgia O'Keeffe (rev. 9/98), Hildegard of Bingen (rev. 9/07), and Zaha Hadid (rev. 9/17). As ever, Winter's focus is on the art and the inspiration it both requires and bestows. As a teaching nun in Los Angeles, Corita taught her students to look closely everywhere, to find the sacred in the mundane, as in her famous that they may have life, which pairs a close-up view of a Wonder Bread label with a quote from Gandhi about the presence of God in bread. Winter's own modest, miniaturist style contrasts well with her depictions of Corita's ­exuberant splashes and swashes and scrawls, and the joyful creativity of both artists is palpable. Appended are Corita's (terrific) ten rules for her students, a bit about her conflicts with the Church, and a brief ­bibliography.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Rachel Wada. "Father, is all of the world a refugee camp?" In sensitive and empowering words, Yang speaks about historical truths and shares her own childhood story with readers. Born to Hmong refugees in Thailand, little Kalia has never seen the world beyond the gate of the Ban Vinai Refugee Camp. To answer her question, Kalia's father climbs with her to the top of the tallest tree--from where she can see the view beyond the camp's gate and "the place where the sky meets the earth." Kalia now knows that the world is bigger than anything one can imagine, and that no gates or fences should hold her back from experiencing it. Wada's mixed-media and digital illustrations employ a muted palette of yellows, browns, and military greens that perfectly complements the narrative. Details are clearly depicted to reflect camp life from little Kalia's point of view--watching a "bald rooster," riding a large dog, "crouch[ing] low" to look for fruit. The author's note, which includes a real-life photo of ­four-year-old Yang and her father high in the tree, shares a good amount of autobiographical detail plus some historical background. A list of Hmong words and a map of Thailand are also appended.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022