Girls Who Rocked the World

September 1, 2012
Grades 4-7 When she was a teenager, in the 1960s, Temple Grandin designed a device to help control her anxiety attacks, inspired by machinery she observed on her aunt's cattle ranch. Temple was autistic and would go on to create breakthrough technology for humane livestock care as well as to bring better understanding to autism. High-schooler Ashley Rhodes-Courter entered a magazine writing contest, telling about the day she was adopted. Her prizewinning article grew into a best-selling book about painful years in foster care, and she became a spokesperson for improving the foster-care system. These two stories are among the handful of new additions to the 46 sketches in this update to a 1998 edition. The authors strive to promote an empowering attitude in girls by interspersing everyday teens' own aspirations in sidebars. The diverse subjects range over centuries, and although the cartoon portraits are somewhat jarring, the informative stories will appeal to teens interested in women's history and biography. Additionally, teachers may find inspiring material to use with students.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)