Fight Like a Girl

May 16, 2016
Taking an expansive view of feminism, Barcella offers chronologically organized capsule biographies of 50 influential women, bookended by Mary Wollstonecraft and Malala Yousafzai. Other featured figures include Judy Blume, Sally Ride, Ani DiFranco, Sandra Cisneros, and Beyoncé, the blend of musicians, writers, politicians, scientists, and activists creating a vast tapestry of accomplishment. In concise but eloquent writing, Barcella divides each woman’s story into three sections (“Her Legacy,” “Her Life Story,” “Her Cool Credentials”); of author Roxane Gay, she remarks, “Gay’s willingness to embrace all her contradictions has helped make it okay for other women to do the same.” Pierre’s black-and-white portraits are a subtle accompaniment in this wide-ranging tribute to trailblazing women. Ages 14–up.

April 1, 2016

Gr 8 Up-This title achieves a snappy portrayal of feminist history by focusing on 50 world-changing feminists. Barcella uses each minibiography as a place to define and explore the many ways people practice feminism. The list includes trans, black, Middle Eastern, Native American, and other women from across history (though it's light on Latina and Asian women), covering the arts, politics, sports, science, and other disciplines. Barcella examines both "big-name" feminists and lesser-known women. Similar in format to a zine, this work has a conversational tone that doesn't shy away from swear words or movement vocabulary. For each woman, there is a claim to fame listed that is in relation to her career and country of origin, followed by a couple of paragraphs on her life and legacy, ending with "Cool Credentials" (bullet points with some highlights from her life) and "Quotables" (a few quotes by the person profiled). The art and graphics are irregular; most of the women profiled get their own line-drawn portrait, a few receive only a drawing representing some aspect of their life, and some get nothing at all. The bibliography is immense but serves as the only back matter to this volume. The book could have benefitted from a glossary in the front, as it explains terms (such as intersectional feminism and Marxism) as they come up, but a framework for the terms used often (oppression) could have been valuable. This is a good selection for teens who like MTV's Decoded or BuzzFeed lists or who, like the author, are inspired by rallies and social justice heroes. VERDICT A worthy introduction for the feminist teen and an excellent choice for Women's History Month and other targeted collections.-Lisa Nowlain, Darien Library, CT

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2016
Grades 8-11 From Mary Wollstonecraft and Sojourner Truth to Tavi Gevinson and Malala Yousafzai, this chronological group biography spans cultures and individual endeavors of the women who have been marked by and helped to shape a more feminist world. Each entry of three-to-four pages includes a brief introduction to the individual's accolades, followed by a short biography, a list of her cool credentials, and quotations from her writing, speaking, and public interviews. Each profile is also accompanied by a small black-and-white portrait. An extensive bibliography supports the descriptions and quotations. The inclusion of trans women, celebrity performers, and women who assert a lack of comfort with feminism add to the book's inclusivity and make it even more likely to spur stimulating discussions. An ideal companion to Rachel Swaby's adult title, Headstrong (2015), and Kate Schatz and Miriam Klein Stahl's Rad American Women AZ (2015), this will also open doors to the work of some of the women profiled.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)