Amelia to Zora: Twenty-Six Women Who Changed the World

A really great biography book done in the format of an alphabet book. It gives a brief description of the life and works of 26 important women. They are not thorough biographies, but are meant to spark interest and encourage more research. Many of the women were familiar to me, but there were also

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many I was unfamiliar with. It was nice to learn something from a children's book.

This would be great for curriculum about women's history or a starting point for a child looking for a person to do biographic research on.

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Chin-Lee, C. (2005). Amelia to Zora: Twenty-Six Women Who Changed the World (Addy, S. & Halsey, M. Illus.). New York: Charlesbridge Publishing.

This is a really great alphabet book/short biography book. For every letter of the alphabet, the author presents an amazing woman from history. Each woman

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is given her own page, a short biography (usually 2-3 paragraphs), an illustration of the woman, and a personal quote. The book presents a wide range of women from around the world: Amelia Earhart, Jane Goodall, Oprah Winfrey, Hellen Keller, and Frida Kahlo. Some of the women were new to me, and it was nice to learn about a few new amazing women.

The illustrations in the book are awesome! It's almost like looking at a scrapbook, because the illustrators used mixed media. Also included at the back of the book is a bibliography and author's note.

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This is a terrific book I recommend getting for every young girl on your library or gift list.

Twenty-six women are highlighted from a variety of cultures, races, ethnicities and fields of accomplishment: one for each letter in the alphabet (e.g., Amelia Earhart, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Cecelia

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Payne-Gaposchkin, Dolores Huerta, Eleanor Roosevelt, etc.) Each page features a brief biography and a famous quote. The extremely creative illustrations by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy are collages that are made from drawings, photographs, flowers, maps, cloth, and landscapes in an entertaining representation of the essence of the woman being profiled.

Highly recommended!

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I picked up this book because I liked the cover and the artwork inside.
There are a few successful aspects of this book. First, the layout. The background designs draw you in, and also enrich the text. There are many excellent quotes which are also effective.
Also, there is a wide range of women

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featured- from all over the world, some more famous than others and of varying professions. This makes the book appeal to a child of any background.
However, there were also a few things I didn't like. I thought the text was very brief, and often left out key information about some of the women. In particular, I am frustrated when authors omit Helen Keller's passion for socialism. The narrowness of the text only allows you a glimpse into the world many of these women came from, and how hard they had to fight for what they wanted to accomplish.
I do not like how each bio starts with some story about something each woman did in their childhood that led to their fame. I have some issues with this because I think that they are trying hard to sell kids that they can be a hero if they pursue something that they loved at a young age. I think many leaders did not have such a storybook rise to fame. Some of these stories seem genuine and add to the description of the character (such as Amelia Earharts roller coaster invention) but some of them seem contrived and unnecessary.

I think we have to be careful of oversimplification like this when we make our A-Z book for Louisiana. I don't think we need dense text, but we should be intentional about including useful information rather than just fluff.

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This book is appropriate for the grades second through fifth. The book may be lengthy for younger students but the book is filled with interesting facts and pictures that they would enjoy. Each letter of the alphabet is paired up with a historical figure that is a woman. For example B is for Babe

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Ruth and F is for Frida Kahlo. Each historical figure gets a page with a biography and some interesting facts. Also there is a inspiring quote along with a picture collage of each women.
Uses in the classroom:
- I would use this book for women's history month in march. I would read aloud one or two of the pages each day. By the end of the month I would have students pick one historical figure to do more research on. They would have to present the new information in any creative way.
- Great book to have in the library for students to explore on their own.
- I would have children write about some women in their life that they believe is important.
- I would have students make a collage about themselves.

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Use with Kindergarten through second grade to reinforce the letters of the alphabet while teaching about women who changed the world. From A to Z, the book highlights the lives of 26 different women who made remarkable changes to the world during their lives. Each page features one woman, including

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a brief description of her achievements, a quote from that woman, and a mixed media illustration of her. Addresses learning letters, historical figures, women, changing the world, accomplishments, etc. In the classroom, use for ELA and social studies lessons. This book could also be used as a starting point for a unit on people who changed the world. After reading the book, children could choose/ be assigned to research a person who changed the world. They could write a paragraph or 2 about the person, choose a quote by him/her, and either design a mixed media illustration of that person or dress up as him/her and present to the class. Also a good opportunity to make a class book about people who changed the world.

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This book presents the biographies of 26 women who have made a difference in some way in the world. Each letter of the alphabet introduces one of these women and a brief biography of their accomplishments is given. The famous women range from artists, to figure skaters, to pilots, inventors, to

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modern day television hosts.
Genre: Biography
Critique: This book is a good example of biography because it presents factual information on the lives of many famous women. The author includes a bibliography in the book to justify her research and allow students to find more information.
Media: Mixed

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This was one of my favorite biography books. It can be used as an introduction to biographies as each one is short. It can spark a child's interest in one of the women. It is organized alphabetically and includes biographies of Amelia Earhart, Kristi Yamaguchi, Mother Theresa and twenty-three other

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who have done their part to change the world not only for women, but for everyone.

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This alphabet book covers notable women in history from A to Z, who worked hard to achieve their goals and dreams despite hardships and adverse reactions along the way. It covers the gamut of cultural backgrounds and women with various interests and would make any young woman feel proud to come

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after a line of such diligent, hard working women with a vision.

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