Elizabeth Leads the Way by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon

Elizabeth Leads the Way: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Right to Vote
by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon

"What would you do
if someone told you
you can't be what you want to be
because you're a girl?

What would you do
if someone told you
your vote doesn't count,
your voice doesn't matter
because you're a girl?

Would you ask why?
Would you talk back?
Would you fight...
for your rights?

Elizabeth did. "

This is the intro to Tanya Lee Stone's thought-provoking biography for younger readers that highlights Elizabeth Cady Stanton's life story and focuses on her pivotal role in the Women's Suffrage Movement. What is most impressive about this biography is that Stone effectively conveys a clear picture of Cady Stanton's personality and spirit AND gives a great overview of the beginning of the movement using clear and concise language. Rebecca Gibbon's illustrations are rendered in gouache and colored-pencil on paper and compliment the story's vibrant and fast-paced tone.

Readers are not overwhelmed with facts and leave with this message: Cady Stanton was a courageous, determined, and well-respected person whose efforts and persistence inspired others to continue in her footsteps and ultimately win the right to vote for women. It's a very inspiring and engaging story.



Learning Opportunities:

• This would work well in both social studies' and language arts classrooms with lessons on biography, women's suffrage, famous women in history, equality, and more
  
• Pair the book with Jennifer Fosberry's My Name is Not Isabella to give children a glimpse of influential women in history
  
• Download a teacher's guide with a variety of questions and activities from Henry Holt's website
  

What Other Bloggers are Saying:

Picture Book of the Day: "This book begins with a series of questions and then shows how ONE person answered those questions. Use this pattern as a model as students write about what they think needs to change." (read more...)


Shelf-Employed: "It has minimal text that is easy to understand but captures the essence of Cady Stanton's role in the Women's Suffrage movement, along with the more mundane details of her daily life." (read more...)


More info:

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805079033
• ISBN-13: 978-0805079036
• Source: Library
  

Other books of interest:
The Hope Chest by Karen Schwabach
With Courage and Cloth: Winning the Fight for a Woman's Right to Vote by Ann Bausum
You Want Women to Vote, Lizzie Stanton? by Jean Fritz