Women’s History Month: 5 Kids’ Books that Celebrate Women & Empower Girls
Posted by Bianca Schulze on March 1, 2010 · 6 Comments
By Bianca Schulze, The Children’s Book Review
Published: March 1, 2010
March is National Women’s History Month. The National Women’s History Project, an organization whose mission is to “recognize and celebrate the diverse and historic accomplishments of women by providing information and educational materials and programs,” has announced that the theme for 2010 is Writing Women Back into History. This is what they had to say:
“The history of women often seems to be written with invisible ink. Even when recognized in their own times, women are often not included in the history books.”
With so few books highlighting the brilliant women from our history, I felt that it was important to kick-off this important month of recognition with 5 books that not only acknowledge women’s achievements but celebrate them and empower young girls (our women of the future).
Elizabeth Leads the Way: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Right to Vote, by Tanya Lee Stone (Ages 6-10)
Who Was Amelia Earhart?, by Kate Boehm Jerome (Ages 9-12)
Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream, by Tanya Lee Stone (Ages 10 and up)
The Invisible Thread: An Autobiography, by Yoshiko Uchida (Ages 12 and up)
Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women, by Catherine Thimmesh (Ages 12 and up)
This is only a sprinkling of the sprinkling of the available women’s history books. Please share a thought or book suggestion about your favorite women from your family, community, or history, in the comment field below.
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice, by Phillip Hoose might be a good addition to your list of books highlighting women in history. Hoose’s book was, of course, a recent Newbery Honor book. The story is about the role of young girl in the U.S. civil rights movement.
Absolutely! You can also see this book in our Black History Month selections: http://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/weblog/2010/02/black-history-month-2010-kids-books.html
Thanks for the great book suggestions!
There’s a web site, 300 Women Who Changed the World, that would go along nicely with these books. You can read about it in School Library Journal here:
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6720403.html?nid=2413&source=title&rid=17302226
And the first book that came to mind to add to this list is Ruby’s Wish, by Shirin Yim. It pulls in Chinese culture, and revolves around a little girl who has big dreams. It’s most appropriate for ages 4 through 10, but it will prompt a lively discussion among older readers as well.
Thanks again!
Thanks for sharing the link—it’s a great resource—and your fab book suggetsion.
Thanks for highlighting these books. They will become classics! I’ve linked this post to my latest blog post to celebrate National Women’s History Month. It’s great to see so much good literature out there now.
You’re welcome. Thanks for the “link love.”