From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–Bausum peels back the layers of the story of the women's suffrage movement, exposing grit, fiery determination, and radical tactics. After covering the importance of familiar names, she devotes the bulk of the book to the events of 1906 to 1920, when a new group of young women emerged who were willing to truly suffer for suffrage. The movement split into two camps–Carrie Chapman Catt's larger National American Woman Suffrage Association working conservatively to gain the vote state by state, and a smaller, more contentiously radical organization, the National Woman's Party led by Alice Paul, focusing on a federal amendment. Bausum highlights the tension between these factions in well-documented detail and casts it against the greater picture of controversy within and surrounding the national and state governments, as well as World War I. She portrays her suffragist heroines as iron-jawed women totally devoted to their cause. Cloth is a recurrent theme, as the author describes the suffragists' tricolored banners, sashes, pennants, and sewn signs. Vintage photographs, some never before published, depict key figures in the movement speaking, protesting, parading, picketing, and going to jail. Bausum's careful research is evident throughout, with sources thoroughly cited and a text studded with original source quotations. Judy Monroe's The Nineteenth Amendment
(Enslow, 1998) also includes lesser-known characters and vintage photos and anecdotal material, but lacks the vitality of Bausum's vivid presentation.–Joyce Adams Burner, Hillcrest Library, Prairie Village, KS
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Gr. 6-12. Though few readers will pick this up for browsing, students will be easily drawn by the details of the American women's suffrage movement. As a child, the author met Alice Paul, a famous suffragist, and was clearly inspired. This personal interest drives the detailed history, written in an objective but anecdotal fashion. The design is thoughtful and attractive: sepia-tone photographs are highlighted in purple and gold (purple, gold, and white were the signature colors of the movement), the dark purple text is clean, elegant and very readable, and the general layout is artfully done. Detailed notes, bibliography, thumbnail biographies, and a chronology make this an all-in-one text that provides a general background to a very specific time within the movement. The timely release of this title will make every woman more appreciative of the Nineteenth Amendment, as well as the tremendous sacrifices that made it happen. Debbie CartonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved