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During Women’s History Month, we celebrate the contributions women have made to our country. These fascinating books about women who dared to dream big—and to act on those dreams—are sure to prompt young readers to follow in their footsteps.

Standing on Her Shoulders

From activists to athletes to ancestors through the ages, it’s important to honor those who came before us, writes Monica Clark-Robinson in Standing on Her Shoulders: A Celebration of Women: “When we remember them and speak their names, / We respect the struggles they overcame.” Her lyrical text makes a strong case for not just learning about historical figures but also thinking about how their accomplishments have impacted our lives today.

In the book’s vibrantly colored pages, illustrated by Laura Freeman, a multigenerational family discusses “women who were little once / just like you” and imagines the day when the children in the book—as well as the kids reading it—might offer their own proverbial shoulders to support future generations. The book highlights a diverse group of groundbreaking women from a range of places and eras, from gymnast Simone Biles and snowboarder Chloe Kim, to artists Frida Kahlo and Faith Ringgold, and politicians Deb Haaland and Hillary Clinton. There are activists (Harriet Tubman), explorers (Sacajawea) and scientists (Harriet Chalmers Adams), too. In the back matter, readers will discover beautiful portraits and brief biographies of the women they’ve met throughout the book.

Standing on Her Shoulders is an excellent resource, sure to serve as a starting point for further research and to help excited readers start planning for their own futures.

Kate's Light

Life as a lighthouse keeper can be grueling and lonely, filled with hard, unending physical labor and isolation. This is particularly true of open-water lighthouses like the one in Kate’s Light: Kate Walker at Robbins Reef Lighthouse by Elizabeth Spires, illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Emily Arnold McCully (Mirette on the High Wire). But it can also be invigorating and rewarding, as it was for Kate Walker. 

Walker emigrated from Germany to the U.S. in 1882 with her son, Jacob, and soon met and married lighthouse keeper John Walker. In 1885, when her husband was posted to Robbins Reef Lighthouse, located on a small island in the middle of the very busy and dangerous New York Harbor, Walker was skeptical. Where would her son play? Wouldn’t the family miss their friends, not to mention being able to walk to other places?

Walker grew to appreciate her unique situation and even became the assistant keeper of the lighthouse. For five years, she and her husband built a lovely, if unconventional, life together. But then John died of pneumonia, leaving Kate and their children worried for their future. Ever resourceful, Walker convinced the lighthouse board to hire her as a permanent keeper. For 33 years, she presided over the lighthouse. She became known for her heroism, carrying out more than 50 rescues, and for her dedication to keeping sailors and ships safe.

Spires, a poet, professor and author of several children’s books, creates a memorable tribute to an indomitable woman and her remarkable life. Walker’s willingness to step into the unknown is thrilling, and McCully’s illustrations add drama and impact to the swashbuckling story. Heavily applied watercolors create a massive thunderstorm on the page, and carefully rendered details will help readers imagine what it’s like to call an island lighthouse home. Kate’s Light is an unusual true story compellingly told.

Legacy

In her new tour de force of a poetry collection, Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance, bestselling author and Coretta Scott King Award winner Nikki Grimes stakes a claim for women in the pantheon of Harlem Renaissance poets.

As Grimes informs readers in her preface, Black women not only created poetry during the Harlem Renaissance but also headed up the publications that featured the male writers we know by name. In pursuit of making these women’s names and contributions known, Grimes has crafted a memorable and compelling volume of poems that pays tribute to the inspiration she has drawn from these women. 

Legacy’s poems follow a complex poetic form called the Golden Shovel, created by the poet Terrance Hayes. In this form, the poet begins by choosing a short poem or an excerpt from a longer poem. The words of this poem become the new poem’s “striking line,” and each word of the first poem becomes the last word in each line of the new poem. It’s an ambitious and fitting form that enables Grimes’ poems to be shaped by the words of the women honored in Legacy. 

Each of Grimes’ poems is preceded by the poem from which its striking line originates. Poems by Mae V. Cowdery, Esther Popel, Gwendolyn Bennett and more speak of beauty, dreams and determination, while Grimes’ work offers sketches of life, celebrates the natural world and declares self-confidence and pride. The book’s artwork, a feast of color that displays a range of techniques and styles, was contributed by 19 female artists including Cozbi A. Cabrera, Nina Crews, Laura Freeman and Jan Spivey Gilchrist.

Grimes lays claim to an amazing artistic legacy on every page, her poetic rejoinders building a stirring call and response. Legacy amplifies the words of these extraordinary poets and offers a road map for carrying them into the future.

The Fearless Flights of Hazel Ying Lee

From the moment she took her first flight in 1932, Hazel Ying Lee knew she was destined to become a pilot. “When the plane landed back on the runway like a skipping rock, Hazel stepped out with only the horizon in her eyes,” writes Julie Leung in her appealing picture book biography The Fearless Flights of Hazel Ying Lee. Lee was determined to make her dream a reality, no matter the obstacles—which included an era rife with racism, the exclusion of women from many professions and a mother who was firmly against the idea of Lee becoming a pilot.

Lee delighted in competition and applied the same vigor to her quest to become a pilot that she showed while racing and swimming with her brothers as a child. She worked as an elevator operator to save up for flying lessons, and when World War II began, she was ready. Male pilots were sent overseas, and the U.S. military created the Women Airforce Service Pilot (WASP) program, where Lee became a valued and accomplished member.

Julie Kwon’s illustrations superbly capture Lee’s experiences on the ground and on the wing. In a shadowy elevator, the light around Lee is a warm glow, illuminating her dreamy I’d-rather-be-flying expression. In the air, fluffy clouds contrast with the sharp edges of the WASPs’ airplanes. Lee’s spirit shines throughout; she never stopped learning and trying new things, even as she worked under dangerous conditions to protect her country.

The author’s note offers further details about Hazel and her fellow WASPs and elaborates on the racist treatment Chinese American families like Lee’s often endured. The Fearless Flights of Hazel Ying Lee is an edifying, exciting real-life adventure that will inspire readers to let their own dreams take flight.

Climb a tree, splash in a creek, dig in the dirt, bask in the sun—and take these wonder-filled books along as you discover all the marvels of nature and explore our responsibility to preserve and protect this beautiful planet.

Once Upon Another Time

To introduce a child to Earth’s natural splendor, start with Once Upon Another Time. This poetic ode, written by Charles Ghigna and Matt Forrest Esenwine, is short on text but packs an understated, powerful punch about stewardship. Without an ounce of sanctimony, it vitally conveys how humans have transformed Earth’s landscape.

Opening with idyllic scenes of snowy mountain peaks, rivers running through golden canyons and wild animals grazing in a lush valley, the book pivots to show how humans have filled these vistas with highways, skyscrapers, smog and machinery. Andrés F. Landazábal’s luminous illustrations span the long sweep of history, depicting everything from the cosmos, when “Earth and moon / and stars awakened,” to a modern cityscape observed by a child through their apartment window.

Once Upon Another Time concludes with a stirring call to action, urging readers to “take a step outdoors. / Breathe in air that once was shared / by monstrous dinosaurs!” Scenes of kids playing in a city park, exploring a meadow and camping under the stars will appeal to readers’ senses, urging them to hold an oak leaf, taste the rain, smell the clover and listen to the bees. This stellar book is sure to send kids outdoors equipped with new ways of observing and appreciating their surroundings.

Hello, Earth!

For readers ready to dig a little deeper, Hello, Earth! Poems to Our Planet is the perfect next step. In a collection of appealing and accessible poems, Newbery Honor author Joyce Sidman examines geology, the solar system, natural history and geography. Several pages of back matter, including short scientific explanations of each poem and website links and suggestions for further reading, complete the package. 

Sidman’s verses zoom through our planet’s long history, with stops in a jungle teeming with wildlife, a seemingly barren desert and more. In “Big and Small,” Sidman writes, “We need to figure out / the way / we fit together.” Many of the poems gently speak to the need for respect: “Earth, / you are our ship / through light / and darkness. / We will honor you.”

Miren Asiain Lora’s art depicts vast spaces in which humans are small figures amid wide-angle landscapes, a subtle but effective reminder of our place in this big world. Her spreads are bathed in slate blues and earth tones, so splashes of warmth from erupting volcanoes or the beams of a lighthouse really pop. Hello, Earth! is an excellent handbook for the youngest of Earth’s caretakers.

★ Wonder Walkers

Yearning to transform an ordinary day into an extraordinary adventure? Micha Archer’s Wonder Walkers is an exceptional, radiant tribute to the power of curiosity.

On a bright, sunny day, a girl and a boy lounge inside on the couch and pose a magical question: “Wonder walk?” This is their code for a special journey they’ve obviously taken many times before. Once outside, they ask—but don’t answer—a series of “wonder” questions that are guaranteed to perplex and delight: “Is the sun the world’s light bulb?” “Are trees the sky’s legs?” “Is the wind the world breathing?”

Archer’s exceptional collage illustrations are full of vibrant colors and textures, from striations in underground rocks and roots to swirling clouds at sunset. This book is about not only observing and pondering but also actively exploring, and on page after page, the young explorers peer into a cave, climb a massive tree, run through a valley and sink their toes into a sandy beach. Wonder Walkers is chock-full of joy, beauty and creative thinking, certain to encourage young readers to head straight outside and dream up their own imaginative questions.

★ Fatima’s Great Outdoors

For the ultimate outdoor adventure, nothing beats a camping trip. In Fatima’s Great Outdoors, Fatima Khazi is looking forward to her first such expedition after a difficult week at school dealing with microaggressions from her classmates and culminating in a bad grade on her math quiz. On the drive to the campground, excitement builds as Fatima, her parents and her older sister snack on homemade samosas and belt out Bollywood tunes.

Once the family arrives at the state park, things don’t exactly go smoothly. Fatima’s father puzzles over tent setup until Fatima suggests they read the instructions, and then she has a hard time falling asleep after spotting the frightening shadow of a spider. Despite the setbacks she encounters, Fatima’s time spent in nature, which includes wilderness chores like gathering kindling, makes her feel like a “superhero” and reminds her of “how she used to feel in India: She had fun, she didn’t feel sad or scared, and she loved how adventure was around every corner.”

Ambreen Tariq’s writing is buoyant and full of wonderfully specific details, such as Papa’s “bear claw” hand on Fatima’s shoulder and Mama’s fearlessness in the face of creepy-crawlies. Stevie Lewis’ illustrations make each page sing, and her background in film animation especially shines when depicting the Khazis’ emotive faces. Lewis’ use of light is also splendid, from the golden glow of late afternoon sun through the trees’ canopy to the tiny sparkles of fireflies under the gleaming moonlight. 

A closing spread shows the Khazis posing for a photo on a beach near a group of people holding a banner that reads, “Brown People Camping,” a real organization founded by Tariq to promote diversity in the outdoors. Fatima’s Great Outdoors seamlessly combines a celebration of adventures in nature with the story of an Indian American family navigating their new life in the United States.

Treaty Words

Treaty Words: For as Long as the Rivers Flow is an unusual book. At 60 pages, it’s longer than most picture books, and with minimal text, it takes its time in a quiet, purposeful way, just like the flowing river at the heart of its story about an Indigenous girl and her Mishomis (grandfather) who spend a day together by the river in front of his home.

The granddaughter is a city girl, but her Mishomis’ small parcel of land is “the closest thing to home for her.” Not only is her Mishomis an outdoorsman, backpacking for six weeks each spring, but he’s also actively involved in a host of environmental projects, including sturgeon restocking and territorial mapping. On this spring day, as they listen to the sounds of trees rustling, geese honking overhead and ice breaking on the river, the girl recognizes the “privilege to be there in that moment, witnessing this intense transition.” 

Author Aimée Craft’s language is exquisitely lyrical. An Anishinaabe/Métis lawyer in Manitoba, Canada, a professor at the University of Ottawa and a leading researcher on Indigenous law, Craft writes beautifully about our responsibilities as Earth’s caretakers and the importance of treaties, which Mishomis calls “the basis of all relationships.”

Anishinaabe illustrator Luke Swinson uses seemingly simple shapes filled with gentle gradients of color; there’s a stillness to them that perfectly complements Craft’s text. This contemplative book is reminiscent of a great sermon, providing a springboard for deep thought. As Craft writes, “Every person was born with a set of spiritual instructions or understandings, my girl. It’s what we do with it that defines us as human beings.”

The Outdoor Scientist

Imagine having a chance to roam around with Temple Grandin, a Colorado State University professor renowned for her pioneering research on animal behavior and her work as an autism spokesperson. That’s exactly the treat in store for readers of The Outdoor Scientist: The Wonder of Observing the Natural World. This unique book is memoir, science guide and activity book all rolled into one. Perfect for independent readers, it’s Grandin’s personal invitation for children to become citizen scientists while exploring nature. The many projects she suggests (seashell wind chimes, pine cone animals and so on) are straightforward, with no fancy equipment required. 

“I’ve always been curious about pretty much everything in nature, especially when some sleuthing is required,” Grandin writes. As a kid, the outdoors were her sanctuary, “away from everyone trying to make me catch up in reading and writing.” Grandin’s childhood stories are fun as well as fascinating, as she describes hours spent unsupervised, playing and exploring with her siblings—and family photos are included.

Discussions in each of the book’s six chapters (rocks, the beach, the woods, birds, the night skies and animal behavior) are wonderfully far-reaching, spanning everything from the pet rock craze of the 1970s to whether marbles are made of marble. Each subject transitions effortlessly to the next. Short sidebar biographies touch on other relevant scientists as well, emphasizing their childhoods and including kid-friendly facts. Did you know, for instance, that Charles Darwin was seasick nearly every day during the five years he spent aboard the Beagle? 

Grandin’s enthusiasm for citizen science is contagious, and readers of all ages will adore spending time with The Outdoor Scientist. After all, as Grandin reminds us, “You don’t have to be a professor or a professional” to make a difference—“just someone who cares about the environment.”

Tips for Teachers is a monthly column in which experienced teacher and children’s librarian Emmie Stuart shares book recommendations and a corresponding teaching guide for fellow elementary school teachers.

Every year, I read Peter Spier’s People with my second graders. I have a class set of this classic picture book, which means each child can hold their own copy as I read aloud. They follow along with me and study each detailed page. Spier organized his book so that the similarities and differences between countries and cultures are highlighted. He touches on topics including clothing and hairstyles, holidays and celebrations, and diets and delicacies, revealing what makes every person unique and special.

Each time we come to the spread about world religions, I’m reminded how ahead of his time Spier was in how he presentated faith and spirituality to children. “We practice nine main religions—and there are thousands of others as well,” he writes. “Many people believe in one God . . . and millions of others believe in many gods. And millions more do not believe in anything at all.” It’s an informative, inclusive perspective without a trace of didacticism.

I believe it’s important to discuss religion and spirituality with children. Students need a space where they can share their families' beliefs, traditions and celebrations with each other. As they share, they’ll begin to understand the beautiful variety of religious and spiritual beliefs that many people hold.

I wish the four picture books in this column had existed when I was in elementary school. They all convey important information in the context of beautifully illustrated stories. As spring unfolds and we make our way through all the religious observances and holidays it brings, these are wonderful books to share with students to equip them with knowledge they’ll carry far beyond your classroom walls.

In My Mosque
By M.O. Yuksel
Illustrated by Hatem Aly

A little boy welcomes readers to his mosque. “In my mosque, we are a rainbow of colors and speak in different accents. As-salaamu alaykum—I greet my friends and newcomers too. Everyone is welcome here,” he explains. In straightforward prose, author M.O. Yuksel conveys how the mosque serves as a place for prayer, worship, study and play. It’s also a center for community, where people gather to hear “stories of living in harmony together as one,” snack on “naan, samsa, and sweet melon slices after prayers” and “learn to help others whenever we can.”

Hatem Aly’s cheerful jewel-toned illustrations incorporate intricate calligraphic patterns as they depict an ordinary day at a mosque. The book’s extensive back matter contains information about well-know and historically significant mosques around the world and a glossary for the Arabic words that are included throughout the text. Informative and joyful, In My Mosque is a strong introductory source that will provide vital context for further exploration of Islamic traditions and holidays.

• Mosques around the world

Aly’s illustrations depict a variety of geographically and architecturally diverse mosques. Use Google Earth to create a tour of locations or Google Images to create a slideshow of photographs of the historic mosques that are listed in the book’s back matter. As a class, compare the photos with the book’s illustrations to identify which mosques Aly depicts.

With older students, photocopy the pages in the back matter and hand them out to each student. Again using Google Earth or a photographic slideshow, show students one mosque at a time and see if they can identify it using the descriptions from the back matter.

• Same, same, but different

Explore the similarities and differences between the little boy’s mosque experiences and your students’ experiences in their mosques, churches, synagogues, cathedrals or other community gathering places. My second graders filled up a large sheet of chart paper with similarities and then recognized just as many differences. It’s rewarding for students to realize how different faith traditions can be and yet how many common features they can also share.

Saint Spotting
By Chris Raschka

Author-illustrator Chris Raschka draws on his childhood memories to create a picture book that pays tribute to the “light, not scary, and even kind of floaty” way he and his mother liked to visit new churches. By visiting and identifying each saint in the church, then telling their story, Raschka’s mother transformed a weighty, unknown place into a space of familiar faces and stories. As the pair begins in the back of a cathedral and works their way forward, they encounter a host of saints, from kind Saint Anthony to generous Saint Nicholas. When they reach the altar, they pause to gaze at Jesus, “the reason for churches being around at all.”

Raschka uses warm, bright colors in his watercolor illustrations to evoke the transcendent ways saints are usually depicted, but his pictures have a simplicity that brings his divine subjects a little closer to earth. Sincere, warmhearted and accessible, this story of stories is an excellent introduction to the concept of saints.

• Sharing saint stories

Begin with a simple explanation of the concept of saints, then read a few stories aloud. In my class we read Tomie dePaola’s Patrick: Patron Saint of Ireland, then we read a few stories from Carey Wallace and Nick Thornborrow’s excellent Stories of the Saints. We read about Saint Francis in Katherine Paterson and Pamela Dalton’s Brother Sun, Sister Moon and about Saint Nicholas in Demi’s The Legend of Saint Nicholas, and we ended by taking a few class periods to relish Margaret Hodges and Trina Schart Hyman’s Caldecott Medal-winning Saint George and the Dragon.

• Personal symbol portraits

Raschka’s mother teaches him to use the saints’ icons and symbols to identify them. A saint’s icon often represents an aspect of their life. Encourage children to choose a symbol or an object that reflects their personal interests or life. Use artistic depictions of saints as inspiration and invite students to draw, paint or collage a self-portrait that incorporates their chosen symbol and uses colors and other design elements intentionally to reflect their personality and identity.

• Reading buildings

Once Raschka learned to “read” churches, they became less intimidating to him. Use his experience as a springboard to learn about other buildings. If possible, invite an architect from your community to come and speak to your class. Read sections from Speck Lee Tailfeather’s Architecture According to Pigeons and David Macaulay’s Built to Last, then show students photographs that illustrate some of the concepts they encountered in those books.

To Carnival!
By Baptiste Paul
Illustrated by Jana Glatt

On the island of Saint Lucia, Melba is excited for Carnival, a multiday celebration that takes place before Lent, the 40 days of sacrifice and penance leading up to Easter Sunday. On her journey into town, Melba meets Misyé Francois the steel pan drummer and a host of friends who are all headed joyfully down the mountain to join the Carnival festivities.

Illustrator Jana Glatt’s bold primary colors convey the celebratory atmosphere, and the book’s Caribbean setting is full of tropical foliage and island animals, including two bright green jacquots, the national bird of Saint Lucia. The book’s back matter includes personal notes from the author and illustrator, a glossary of Saint Lucien Creole words used in the story and further information about Saint Lucia and Carnival celebrations around the world. To Carnival! captures the spirit and cheer of an exciting holiday.

• Travel itinerary

Download and print copies of this Saint Lucia travel brochure created by the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority. In pairs or small groups, students can use the brochure to plan a hypothetical three- or four-day trip to the island. Instruct students to include details such as where they will stay, what they will eat and how they will explore the island.

• Creative kites

Melba’s friend Kenwin flies a colorful kite on his way to Carnival, and Melba helps him untangle it from a tree branch. The book’s back matter explains that a kite-flying festival is held in Saint Lucia every year on Easter Monday.

Cut large, kite-shaped diamonds out of pieces of 11-inch by 17-inch poster board. Provide colorful construction paper and tissue paper shapes so that students can design their own kites. Use rolls of crepe paper for the tails. Hang the kites from your classroom ceiling or along a classroom clothesline.

The Passover Guest
By Susan Kusel
Illustrated by Sean Rubin

Muriel, who lives in Washington, D.C., during the Great Depression, loves springtime, when she can “feel Passover in the air.” But Passover will be different this year because Muriel’s father, “like so many others,” is unemployed, and there isn't enough money to buy food for their Passover seder. During her walk home on the first night of Passover, a man juggling in front of the Lincoln Memorial catches Muriel’s eye. After she puts her only penny in his hat, the man encourages Muriel to hurry home because Passover is about to start. “You don’t want to miss your seder,” he says.

Confused, Muriel rushes home to find her parents sitting sadly at an empty table. As they get up to go find another home where they can celebrate, the mysterious stranger appears at their door. Suddenly their home is transformed, filled with candles and mountains of food, enough to provide a feast for their entire neighborhood. The rabbi declares the abundant meal a true Passover miracle. When Muriel realizes they forgot to leave the door open for the prophet Elijah, she discovers that his cup of wine is completely empty.

Inspired by Uri Shulevitz’s 1973 picture book, The Magician (which itself is an adaptation of Polish writer Isaac Leib Peretz’s 1904 Yiddish short story of the same name), this atmospheric and hopeful retelling is filled with warmth and rooted in the specificity of Washington, D.C.’s historic Jewish community.

• Passover perspectives

I read my students a few informational books about Passover history, customs and traditions before we read The Passover Guest together. Click here for a selection of the titles we explored. We also looked at historical Passover objects and photographs from the Jewish Museum’s online collection and watched a short video. We recorded Passover vocabulary and traditions on two pieces of chart paper so we could refer to them while we read The Passover Guest. Building a solid foundation of information enabled students to grasp the story with deeper meaning and insight.

• Tell it again

The Passover Guest was adapted from a short story that has inspired several picture books. Listen to Renée Brachfeld’s retelling of the short story and show students illustrations created by Uri Shulevitz and Marc Chagall. Compare Brachfeld’s recording to The Passover Guest. Ask students to articulate how they can identify the place and time of its setting. List similarities and differences between the two versions of the tale.

Next, guide your students through writing a new retelling of the original story. Older students can do this exercise individually or in pairs. My students chose 1960s Nashville for the setting of our retelling and enjoyed deciding which familiar landmark our magician would be spotted at. Our cowboy boot-clad magician was playing a guitar on the steps of the Parthenon in Nashville’s Centennial Park when the protagonist noticed him.