Category Archives: Historical Figures

activism, Culture & Traditions, feminism, Global Community, Historical Figures, Independent Thought, Muslim Identity, Own Voices, religion, Sports, women in leadership, Women in Science, women in sports, Women in STEM

Muslim Girls Rise

April 1, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Saira Mir

Illustrated by: Aaliya Jaleel

For ages: 8-13 years

Language: English

Topics Covered: Muslim Women, Trailblazers, Historical Figures, Self-Empowerment, Feminism, Sports, Culture & Identity, Global Community, Own Voices.

Summary:

This book is a lovely book, almost anthology-like, of 18 Muslim girls (and women) that are changing the world and blazing trails. Some are well-known public figures like Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar, and champion fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad. Others, like Malcolm X’s daughter Ilyasah and comedian Negin Farsad might be less known. The beauty of this book is that the short single page profiles of these strong and intelligent women is that they span the globe and professional career market. Sports, fashion, legislation, and STEM. These women are fantastic role models for any job aspirations!

Muslim Girls Rise is a wonderful addition to any bookshelf, and having these women as inspiration to pursue one’s own interests and dreams. Unfortunately also, Islamophobia is so prevalent that this book can also serve as a line of defense. Collecting stories of strength and resilience helps a person develop their own, and have individuals to look up to in times of hardship or perhaps deciding on what career trajectory to take. Either way, these short stories will inspire any reader to change the world in their own way!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

SARIA MIR is a Muslim physician from Washington, DC, who has searched far and wide for books to help her daughter find feminist role models who share her heritage. Saira wrote Muslim Girls Rise for her, and hopes to share it with other children eager to learn more about these extraordinary, path-breaking women.

AALIYA JALEEL is a freelance illustrator, character designer, and visual development artist. She is currently majoring in animation at the University of Texas at Dallas with plans to work as a visual development artist after graduation.

Art/Artists, asian families, Asian-American Experience, Culture & Traditions, Family, Global Community, Historical Figures, Own Voices, Social-Emotional Learning

Piece by Piece

March 26, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Susan Tan

Illustrated by: Justine Wong

For ages: 5-12 years

Language: English, a few Chinese words.

Topics Covered: Family, Asian-American Experience, Chinese-American Identity, History, Historical Architecture, Museums, Social-Emotional Learning, Own Voices.

Summary:

This book is about Emmy, and the strong relationship she has with her grandmother Nainai who lives in China. Nainai comes to visit during the summer, and the special activity the two of them share is going to new museums every week. Before leaving, Nainai makes a blanket for Emmy out of fabrics that have memories for the both of them attached. Emmy loves the blanket very much, and takes it everywhere. Emmy’s dad takes them to a new museum and says there is something very special to show her there, but Emmy is skeptical because Nainai isn’t there with her.

Suddenly Emmy realizes her beloved blanket is missing, and is distraught. Assured by the museum staff that they’ll be on the lookout, Emmy realizes that they’re near an entire house like the one Nainai grew up in, inside the museum! The pair is at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts. There’s really a house brought from China inside! Emmy walks around the house, steeped in memories of Nainai.

This is a beautiful book about both big emotions and Chinese family history. Emmy has a lot of sadness and grief that Nainai is back in China, and grapples with these big emotions during her exploration of the house. We are lucky enough to live in the Boston area and have been to the PEM, getting into our own exploration of the house! In the back of the book is more historical information about the house, and how it got from China to the museum.

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Susan Tan “wanted to be a children’s author since eighth grade when I was named “most likely to be a children’s book writer” in the middle school yearbook. In high school, I worked in the Children’s Room of my local public library, and in college I sketched picturebook outlines in the margins of my school notes.

But I didn’t really start writing books of my own until after college, when I was earning my PhD at the University of Cambridge in Critical Approaches to Children’s Literature (sense a pattern?). I began writing funny stories from my childhood while I rode the bus in the mornings, and in bed before I fell asleep at night. These stories gradually came together into my first book, Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire.

Cilla is based on my own family and deals with the questions, challenges, and many joys that navigating different racial and cultural identities can bring. A second book in the Cilla series, Cilla Lee-Jenkins: This Book is A Classic will be released this March, with a third Cilla book coming in 2019.

More about me: I was the 2015 Gish Jen Emerging Writers Fellow at the Writers’ Room of Boston, and when I’m not writing, crocheting, or reading, you can find me teaching at the University of Massachusetts, Boston.”

Justine Wong is a food, book, and lifestyle illustrator based in Toronto. She is the creator behind the project ’21 Days in Japan: An Illustrative Study on Japanese Cuisine’, consisting of paintings for 100 meals discovered while she traveled Japan. She has since lived in Tokyo for a year and have the pleasure of illustrating in editorial publications, story books, and advertising campaigns in Canada and internationally. Most recently, Justine illustrated her first children’s book ‘Piece by Piece’ for Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA.

When she is not illustrating, you can find her beach-combing along a coastline, tending to her backyard garden, or having soft conversations with her two cats Kumo and Opi. 🙂

She is also a dedicated member of Toronto creative collectives Lunchroom and Makeshift Collective, where they practice and rebuild the ways we collaborate and grow together.

The roots of the Peabody Essex Museum date to the 1799 founding of the East India Marine Society, an organization of Salem captains and supercargoes who had sailed beyond either the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn. The society’s charter included a provision for the establishment of a “cabinet of natural and artificial curiosities,” which is what we today would call a museum. Society members brought to Salem a diverse collection of objects from the northwest coast of America, Asia, Africa, Oceania, India and elsewhere. By 1825, the society moved into its own building, East India Marine Hall, which today contains the original display cases and some of the very first objects collected.

activism, Community Involvement, Family, feminism, friendship, Girls Outdoors, Global Community, Historical Figures

Enough! 20 Protestors Who Changed America

March 25, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Emily Easton

Illustrated by: Ziyue Chen

For ages: 4 years and up

Language: English

Topics Covered: American History, Activism, Historical Figures, Courage, Segregation, Enslavement, Sports, Environmentalism.

Summary:

This book opens with an Author’s Note talking about her inspiration to write the book. Emily’s young cousins had been in a school shooting a few weeks before the devastating event in Parkland, Florida. Her family was physically fine, and they were empowered to do more. One of them, Ryan (not the Parkland survivor Ryan, who wrote the Forward), helped to organize the March For Our Lives and their older brother took some time from college to help organize further events and demonstrations. Emily Easton decided to write a book that described the actions of 20 Americans and their protests to create ripples of change. In the back, there is also more historical information and dates related to each of the protestors.

The book itself is very easy to read, each page having a single line devoted to the protestor. They are fairly well-known historical figures like Samuel Adams and Susan B. Anthony that children will eventually learn about in school, but probably won’t learn about their activist side. I can describe the book as very entry-level, with the first half of it featuring well-known heavy hitters like Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, and Ruby Bridges. Rachel Carson is mentioned, which I loved, I don’t think she gets enough attention. I was also pleased to see Gilbert Baker, creator of the first Pride flag, and Colin Kaepernick as well.

We personally would have left off Samuel Adams (dressing up like Mohawk people before throwing out crates of tea is not so much a protest in our eyes, and more like a scapegoating) but seeing as how children in the majority of public schools will be learning about these figures, they should learn about this activist history at the same time. However, I do like that this story can be an easy access point into learning whole histories about these American figures and how they fought back against injustice. Social movements and activism is an important aspect of American history, and students should feel empowered to stand up for marginalized populations and learn about how they can become involved in social justice causes that they care about. This is a valuable book, because it is a perfect entry point for someone just beginning their journey into the world of social justice and activism.

This book was sent to us by our friends at Random House Children’s Books, but all opinions are our own.

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Emily Easton was the Publishing Director of the Walker Books for Young Readers imprint at Bloomsbury Publishing, until the imprint closed. Now, she is the Vice President of Crown Books for Young Readers! Emily has diverse editorial taste, editing everything from board books to teen books, from fiction to nonfiction. She has published numerous bestsellers and award winners, including the Caldecott Honor Book Gone Wild by David McLimans, the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans in World War II by Martin W. Sandler, the Pura Belpre Illustration Award-winner Grandma’s Gift by Eric Velasquez, and the New York Times bestselling “Perfect Chemistry” trilogy by Simone Elkeles.

From illustrator Ziyue Chen’s website: “Hi! My name is Ziyue, pronounced as Zzz yuair or you can call me Angeline. I’m a Singapore based Illustrator and graduate of Ringling College of Art and Design in US. I love drawing and visualizing stories through illustrations. I work on mostly Children’s Books, mural painting and print media from concept development to print.

My life goal has been to have an emotional connection with those who view my work. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, sketching, swimming and spending time with my loved ones. Mixed nuts, goji berries and avocado milkshake are my favourite snack. Yum.”

Black Culture and Identity, Historical Figures, Own Voices, poc-centric narratives, stem

The Vast Wonder of the World (Biologist Ernest Everett Just)

March 24, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Mélina Mangal

Illustrated by: Luisa Uribe

For ages: 5 years and up

Language: English

Topics Covered: STEM, Black Culture & Identity, Scientists, Historical Figure, Outdoors, Natural World, Trailblazers, Curiosity, Education, Racism.

Summary:

In 1911, Ernest was a scientist in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Woods Hole is on Cape Cod, and still a massive town for oceanic research today! Ernest was gifted at caring for the creatures he took from the ocean, when others weren’t so careful, and Ernest was gifted at seeing the whole picture instead of just the tiny piece he was currently researching. Ernest was especially gifted at studying how life begins from an egg, and became the entire world’s leading authority!

Ernest loved reading, but as a child had to relearn to read all over again after he contracted typhoid fever. He observed everything around him, especially the natural world. Ernest left the segregated South for boarding school, but when his mother died he didn’t know how to cope, so he just studied harder. When he took a biology class in college, his entire world opened up and his lifelong fascination with cells began. Ernest became a professor and taught his students to care for both the organisms they studied and their scientific instruments, to be kind and to observe as much as possible. When he showed that the egg was just as important as the sperm in creating new life, he became world-famous and often worked in Europe where he was treated better. He eventually moved with his family to France and became an independent researcher.

This book’s storyline is gorgeous, and the illustrations stunning. The story addresses both science and the systemic racism and oppression that Ernest faced because he was Black, despite being one of the most talented and intelligent biologists in the country. In the back there is a lengthy Author’s note with a photo of Ernest, and timeline of his life, detailed information about his scientific work, and some quotes by Ernest himself. This is a beautiful book and we are glad we found this to learn about someone new in the scientific world that worked for so many years nearby where we live!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Mélina Mangal loves being outdoors! From her website: “My earliest memories begin near the shores of Lake Superior, climbing trees, collecting rocks, and listening to birds. I love writing about nature and its place in young people’s lives. Stories from faraway times and places have always captured my imagination as well. I like to imagine what life was like as I walk along the river, or visit an historical site. I work as an elementary school librarian, introducing students to great books, the exciting research process, and new technology.”

Luisa Uribe is an illustrator “living in Bogotá, Colombia. I love children’s books but venture into other fields from time to time. My favorite activities in no particular order are drawing, reading and chasing the cat around the house.”

activism, Environmental Activism, Girls Outdoors, Global Community, Historical Fiction, Historical Figures, stem

Journey Under the Arctic

March 17, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: James O. Fraoili

Illustrated by: Joe St. Pierre

For ages: 8-12 years

Language: English, gives a small Inuit phrase guide as well.

Topics Covered: Historical Figure, Environmental Activism, Nature, Adventure, Global Warming, Graphic Novel, STEM.

Summary:

This comic book adventure is the second in the Fabien Cousteau Expeditions series, designed for upper elementary readers. The story follows an arctic exploration crew of Fabien (grandson of Jacques Cousteau!), Gloria Perez marine biologist, and exploration supervisor Matt Chan along with two junior expeditions named Rocco and Olivia. Unfortunately, we haven’t read the first book in the series yet, so we’re not sure if this is the same crew as the first book!

We will say, the book is very good. Although in one scene of the comic, the group goes to visit a group of Inuit people, and the reader is informed that they may also know the Inuit as Esk*mos (which is considered a slur by some, find more information here). This would have been a fabulous point of the book to slip in a line about this, but we are provided with a few Inuit phrases. This would be the only suggestion we have, overall we enjoyed it very much and there’s tons of interesting facts about the Arctic and global warming as well.

Did you know that ice worms liquefy in temperatures greater than 41F? We didn’t until we read this awesome comic! When reading, we also learn a lot of interesting facts about how much carbon can be offset by taking simple steps like raising a home thermostat 2 degrees in the summer. We follow the crew from walking over the frozen tundra to diving 1000 feet below the surface to escape a thrashing bow whale, learning about the creatures that live and thrive at each level of the ocean while searching for the elusive dumbo octopus. If you like aquatic adventures and learning about how to live more environmentally friendly, this is the book for you! It’s being released…today!

This book was generously sent to us by Simon & Schuster, but all opinions are our own.

About the Authors & the Illustrator:

James O. Fraioli is an award-winning food author and photographer. His work has appeared on the Food Network and in Forbes Traveler and the New York Times. He is the creator and producer of the documentary television series: NTSB: ALASKA for Smithsonian Channel (airs March 2016), INSIDE DEATH ROW for National Geographic Channel, which received a coveted award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, ALASKA WINGMEN also for National Geographic, HAWAII AIR RESCUE for Weather Channel, and SHARK WEEK episodes for Discovery Channel, among others. Prior to documentary television, Fraioli spent 17 years working in various feature film capacities for Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, and Warner Bros.

Joe St.Pierre began his comic book career at Valiant Comics, as penciler of RAI, and co-creator of SECRET WEAPONS. He has sold over 2 million comic books, as a writer and artist for Marvel, DC (Aquaman, Green Lantern), Image (Megahurtz), IDW (Transformers), Boom (Power Rangers) and Dynamite.

Joe has the distinction of penciling the most #1 issues featuring SPIDER-MAN and/or the Spider-Man family.

Joe also works in the fields of commercial illustration, intellectual property design and storyboards for Animation and Video Games. Clients have included MTV, Capstone, Discovery Channel, Nickelodeon, Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Sony, PBS, The Amazing Kreskin and Activision. He is the co-creator and illustrator of the FABIEN COUSTEAU EXPEDITIONS, a new graphic novel series published by Simon & Schuster.

Joe’s publishing company, Astronaut Ink, highlights his own creator-owned properties BOLD BLOOD, MEGAHURTZ® and most recently NEW ZODIAX. The NEW ZODIAX Graphic Novel first printing sold out, and thanks to two successful Kickstarter campaigns, the second printing is now available thru comic shops and the Astronaut Ink website.

As the first grandson of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Fabien spent his early years aboard his famous grandfather’s ships, Calypso and Alcyone; and learning how to scuba dive on his fourth birthday.

He is well known for his study of sharks and from 2000-2002, Fabien was an Explorer At-Large for National Geographic and collaborated on a TV special that aimed to change public conceptions about sharks called, “Attack of the Mystery Shark”.

In 2003-2006, he produced the documentary, “Mind of a Demon,” that aired on CBS. With the help of a large crew, Fabien created a 14-foot, 1,200-pound, lifelike shark submarine called “Troy” that enabled him to immerse himself inside the shark world, providing viewers with a rare view of the mysterious and often misunderstood creatures.

For the next four years (2006-2010), Fabien was part of a multi-hour series for PBS called, “Ocean Adventures” with his father, Jean-Michel Cousteau, and sister, Céline. Inspired by his grandfather’s famous 1978 PBS series, “The Cousteau Odyssey”. In the following years, and as a member of multiple cause-driven and charitable boards Fabien has been working with local communities and children worldwide to help restore local water ecosystems.

In June 2014, Fabien and his team of aquanauts embarked on Mission 31, the longest science expedition to take place at Aquarius, the world’s only underwater marine laboratory located in Florida. Fabien’s Mission 31 broke new ground in ocean exploration and honored the 50th anniversary of his grandfather’s original underwater living experiment (Conshelf Two) by going deeper, longer and further, while broadcasting each moment live on multiple channels exposing the world to the adventure, drama and mystique of what lies beneath. After 31 days of underwater research, Fabien managed to break his grandfather’s Red Sea record and collect 3 years’ worth of data in his short time underwater. The expedition reached over 100,000 children on all six continents; and more than 30 billion media impressions. Coming off this great success, Fabien created the OLC with the hope to continue Mission 31’s goal of preserving our ocean.

Recently Fabien has spent time on various oceanic projects, and been featured on numerous television specials. In 2018, Fabien and the Aquatica Submarine team submeberged into the great Belize Blue Hole and mapped the entirety of the sink hole; discovering areas that were once above water, underwater wildlife, and human debris. The entire special was broadcasted live on The Discovery Channel!

activism, Community Involvement, feminism, Girls Outdoors, Historical Figures, Independent Thought, Self Expression, women in leadership

Imogene’s Last Stand

March 16, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Candace Fleming

Illustrated by: Nancy Carpenter

For ages: 4-8 years

Language: English

Topics Covered: History, Politics, Women in Leadership, Preservation, Activism, Peaceful Action, Feminism.

Summary: I checked out this book from the library with cautious optimism. I was hoping that the book would have solid representation in historical figures and not be another ode to the founding fathers of the United States. Imogene, our main character, is a spitfire that is far from embracing stereotypes.

Imogene Tripp has a fiery passion for history, and uses her free time to educate people on the past while quoting MLK Jr. and giving lectures on Sojourner Truth during Show & Tell in school. When she refurbishes her town’s historical society, no one shows up. In fact, the town plans to tear it down and build a shoelace factory. Indignant, Imogene commences various demonstrations around town, urging her community to care about the past they’re determined to erase. Alone in her quest, she is undeterred and continues to demonstrate perseverance to the reader. Imogene quotes historical figures throughout the book to express her feelings, and seeks solace in her father when people keep telling her that a shoelace factory is what will put their town on the map. Imogene decides to put herself in the stocks on the porch of the historical society in a one-girl protest movement, quoting Vietnam War protestors. Slowly, she begins to draw attention to herself (and her dad, who decides to also lock himself in the stocks in solidarity!) and townspeople begin to gather on the historical society lawn amongst the bulldozers.

We’ll spoil the ending on this one, because it’s so important to the story. In the end, a letter that Imogene hastily fires off to a professor works and the professor arrives in the knick of time with the President! In an act of feminism, both of these WOMEN help Imogene save her precious historical society. The President is a woman of color! We love the fact that Imogene uses direct quotes of historical figures throughout the book. The majority of the figures quoted are white men, but Imogene does speak of protests and marginalized groups to get her most dynamic points across. It’s really great to see a strong, intelligent, girl as a main character of a book that is history-based. The book would be great to introduce social justice movements, activism, and historical figures. Imogene’s Last Stand is a fantastic addition to any book shelf!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Candace Fleming awarded herself the Newbery Medal in fifth grade after scraping the gold sticker off the class copy of The Witch of Blackbird Pond and pasting it onto her first novel—a ten-page, ten-chapter mystery called Who Done It? She’s been collecting awards (her own, not Elizabeth George Speare’s) ever since.

Today, Candace is the versatile and acclaimed author of more than forty books for children and young adults, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize honored The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of the Russian Empire; Boston Globe/Horn Book Award-winning biography, The Lincolns; the bestselling picture book, Muncha! Muncha! Muncha!; the Sibert-Award-winning Giant Squid; and the beloved Boxes for Katje. She contributed the chapter on Katharine of Aragon to Fatal Throne.

Nancy Carpenter is the celebrated illustrator of more than forty books for children. Her unique multimedia approach to illustration has garnered numerous honors, including two Christopher Awards and the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award. Ms. Carpenter lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her family and dog.

Art/Artists, feminism, Global Community, graphic novel, Historical Figures, Independent Thought, Own Voices, Self Expression, sound off saturday, women in leadership, young adult

Women Make Movies Vol I & II and and interview with creator Alex Kittle!

March 14, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written & Illustrated by: Alex Kittle

For ages: YA middle and upper grades

Language: English

Topics Covered: Zine, Women in Film, Trailblazers, Historical Figures.

Summary: Today marks our first Zine review on The Tiny Activist! Truth be told, Corrie bought these ages ago when she went to a talk by the artist Alex Kittle, but life happened and didn’t get a chance to review the first volume until now (sorry Alex 😦 truly nothing personal, you’re a badass!). This is the perfect month to feature her, during Women’s History Month! Both of us really enjoy zines, but don’t have any that we absolutely have to collect every single volume. These however, are fulfilling that category!

This first volume contains 15 women filmmaker bios, featuring both past and present directors! We love the bulleted list of information about each woman, it doesn’t feel overwhelming and is perfect to memorize for the defeat of that cinephile mansplainer in your life (everyone has one…do they have an obnoxious mustache? Probably.) We also love the digital image and quote by the director on the opposite page, and the monochromatic art. Some featured filmmakers are: Ava DuVernay, Clara Law, Julie Dash, and Lois Weber.

In Volume II we learn about Maya Deren, Mira Nair, Dee Rees, and so many more! I love the quickness at which these zines can be read, but am always left wanting more.

The Tiny Activist: Introduce yourself/your organization!

Alex Kittle: Hello! I’m Alex and my brand name is Pan + Scan Illustration. I am an illustrator based in Somerville, MA making digital artwork and zines inspired by pop culture, especially film.

TTA: What are you passionate about?

AK: Many things! I went to school for art history and that remains one of my greatest passions, especially various modern and contemporary art movements. I also love 80s music, fantasy novels, and Italian food. My most obvious passion though is film and it’s the main inspiration for my own work. I watch a ridiculous amount of movies across all genres, with some faves being horror, sci-fi, classic musicals, and romantic comedies. I’m also very passionate about watching and promoting films written and/or directed by women.

TTA: Tell us about a project you’re currently working on!

AK: I’ve turned to zinemaking recently and my major project is a long-term portrait and zine series about women filmmakers, where I illustrate and research directors like Agnès Varda, Dee Rees, Maya Deren, Ava DuVernay, and Deepa Mehta. I want to bring more visibility to all the amazing women directors who inspire me, sharing their stories, works, and struggles in an accessible way. I know the conversation about women in film and tv has become much more mainstream recently which is great, but there are also so many directors who are still under the radar – historical, international, queer, experimental, women of color, etc – and I really want to spread the word!

TTA: How can people support you on your journey?

AK: I sell my work online on etsy and have an art insta (@panandscan). I also do various markets and artist events around the Somerville/Cambridge/Boston area; upcoming events include Pindemonium at Bow Market (10/13), the Halloween Buzz Market at ONCE Somerville (10/26), and the Boston Art Book Fair at the Boston Center for the Arts (11/8-10).

TTA: What book was your favorite in 2019?

AK: I love fantasy and one of my favorite authors Sharon Shinn released a whole new trilogy this year called Uncommon Echoes that’s full of intrigue, romance, and wonderful heroines. I’ve only read the first book so far but I’m excited to dive into the other two!

TTA: What are you looking forward to in the coming year?

AK: I plan to start a new zine series about some of my favorite lesser-known artists in history, including Romaine Brooks, Claude Cahun, Lois Mailou Jones, and Ruth Asawa. I want to create illustrated biographies to talk about their lives and artworks in an accessible, visually interesting way – I’m always hoping to make art history less intimidating in general and I thought zines would be a fun way to do that!

Stay Connected with Alex:

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