10 Picture Books About History For Women's History Month

March is Women's History Month and I thought that it would be interesting to spotlight a different set of picture books each week. The fourth group of books are not only biographies about women, but also spotlights different times in history. The following then books focus on aviation, creating a national flag, starting a business, becoming and detective, inventing, creating celebrations. The following previous weeks centered on STEM, Sports, and History. Next week, the final installment of this series is about Politics.

1. Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride by Pam Munoz Ryan, Illustrated by Brian Selznick

Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt were birds of a feather. Not only were they two of the most admired and respected women of all time, they were also good friends. Illuminated here for the first time in picture book form is the true story of a thrilling night when they made history together!On a brisk and cloudless evening in April 1933, Amelia and Eleanor did the unprecedented: They stole away from a White House dinner, commandeered an Eastern Air Transport jet, and took off on a glorious adventure--while still dressed in their glamorous evening gowns!This picture book tour de force celebrates the pioneering spirit of two friends whose passion for life gave them the courage to defy convention in the name of fulfillment, conviction, and fun. Soaring text, inspired by the known facts of this event, and breathtaking drawings ask readers to dream dreams as big as Amelia and Eleanor's.

2. Amelia to Zora: Twenty-Six Women Who Changed the World by Cynthia Chin-Lee, Illustrated by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy

Twenty-six amazing women; twenty-six amazing stories. From writers to scientists, sports figures to politicians, this diverse collection highlights women who changed the world. Celebrating twenty-six unique voices, visions, and victories, Amelia to Zora, introduces children to the scope of both the struggles and the achievements of women historically and globally. Beautiful and intricate collages bring these women’s stories and message to life in this collection that will bring young readers inspiration in each turn of the page.

3. Betsy Ross by Alexandra Wallner

An introduction to the life of the Philadelphia seamstress credited with sewing the first American flag.

 

4. Fly High!: The Story of Bessie Coleman by Louise Bordon & Mary Kay Kroeger, Illustrated by Teresa Flavin

When Bessie Coleman was a child, she wanted to be in school -- not in the cotton fields of Texas, helping her family earn money. She wanted to be somebody significant in the world. So Bessie did everything she could to learn under the most challenging of circumstances. At the end of every day in the fields she checked the foreman's numbers -- made sure his math was correct. And this was just the beginning of a life of hard work and dedication that really paid off: Bessie became the first African-American to earn a pilot's license. She was somebody.

 

5. Here Come the Girl Scouts!: The Amazing All-True Story of Juliette Daisy Gordon Low and Her Great Adventure by Shana Corey, Illustrated by Hadley Hooper

The amazing, all-true story of the first Girl Scouts and their visionary founder.

Juliette Gordon Low--Daisy to her friends and family--was not like most girls of the Victorian era. Prim and proper? BOSH! Dainty and delicate? HOW BORING! She loved the outdoors, and she yearned for adventure! Born into a family of pathfinders and pioneers, she too wanted to make a difference in the world--and nothing would stop her. Combining her ancestors’ passion for service with her own adventurous spirit and her belief that girls could do anything, she founded the Girl Scouts. One hundred years later, they continue to have adventures, do good deeds, and make a difference!

 

6. How Kate Warne Saved President Lincoln by Elizabeth Van Steenwyk, Illustrated by Valentina Belloni

In 1856, when Kate Warne went to see Allan Pinkerton, only men were detectives. But Kate convinced Allan to hire her for his detective agency. She explained that she could worm out secrets where men could not go―in disguise as a society lady! Join Kate on her most important mission―to thwart a plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln on the way to his inauguration.

 

7. Queen Victoria's Bathing Machine by Gloria Whelan, Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter

Poor Queen Victoria! She loves to swim, but can’t quite figure out how to get to the water without her devoted subjects glimpsing her swimming suit. (Because, of course, such a sight would compromise her regal dignity.) Fortunately for the water-loving monarch, it’s Prince Albert to the rescue with an invention fit for a queen!

This quirky tale about the longest reigning monarch in British history is as fun as it is authentic, and the book includes a picture of the actual bathing machine Prince Albert created.

 

8. She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World by Chelsea Clinton, Illustrated by Alexandra Boiger

Chelsea Clinton introduces tiny feminists, mini activists and little kids who are ready to take on the world to thirteen inspirational women who never took no for an answer, and who always, inevitably and without fail, persisted.
 
Throughout United States history, there have always been women who have spoken out for what's right, even when they have to fight to be heard. In this book, Chelsea Clinton celebrates thirteen American women who helped shape our country through their tenacity, sometimes through speaking out, sometimes by staying seated, sometimes by captivating an audience. They all certainly persisted.
 
She Persisted is for everyone who has ever wanted to speak up but has been told to quiet down, for everyone who has ever tried to reach for the stars but was told to sit down, and for everyone who has ever been made to feel unworthy or unimportant or small.
 
With vivid, compelling art by Alexandra Boiger, this book shows readers that no matter what obstacles may be in their paths, they shouldn't give up on their dreams. Persistence is power.
 
This book features: Harriet Tubman, Helen Keller, Clara Lemlich, Nellie Bly, Virginia Apgar, Maria Tallchief, Claudette Colvin, Ruby Bridges, Margaret Chase Smith, Sally Ride, Florence Griffith Joyner, Oprah Winfrey, Sonia Sotomayor—and one special cameo.

 

 9. Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Halse Anderson, Illustrated by Matt Faulkner

Thanksgiving might have started with a jubilant feast on Plymouth's shore. But by the 1800s America's observance was waning. None of the presidents nor Congress sought to revive the holiday. And so one invincible "lady editor" name Sarah Hale took it upon herself to rewrite the recipe for Thanksgiving as we know it today. This is an inspirational, historical, all-out boisterous tale about perseverance and belief: In 1863 Hale's thirty-five years of petitioning and orations got Abraham Lincoln thinking. He signed the Thanksgiving Proclamation that very year, declaring it a national holiday. This story is a tribute to Hale, her fellow campaigners, and to the amendable government that affords citizens the power to make the world a better place!

My read aloud of this book: 

 

10. Think Big, Little One by Vashti Harrison

Featuring eighteen women creators, ranging from writers to inventors, artists to scientists, this board book adaptation of Little Dreamers: Visionary Women Around the World introduces trailblazing women like Mary Blair, an American modernist painter who had a major influence on how color was used in early animated films, environmental activist Wangari Maathai, and architect Zaha Hadid.

The irresistible full-color illustrations show the Dreamers as both accessible and aspirational so reader knows they, too, can grow up to do something amazing.