A is for Abigail: An Almanac of Amazing American Women

The follow-up to this team's America: A Patriotic Primer outshines their debut as it spotlights American "women achievers" in many areas. The Second Lady devotes a handful of pages to individuals ("A is for Abigail Adams, who knew that women should be heard"; Emily Dickinson gets a full-page dedication for "D"). More often, however, she uses a single name as a springboard to a thematic spread introducing others with similar accomplishments ("K is for Mary Kies and other inventors and entrepreneurs") or designates a letter for a particular vocation ("E is for the Educators, the women who taught us well"). In addition to politicians and writers, the book also acknowledges scientists, artists, athletes and mathematicians. Several vague entries slightly weaken the book's thrust (e.g., "S is for the Sixties and Seventies and the Second Wave" refers to the "second wave" of the struggle for equal rights for women, yet offers no specifics; "V is for Variety" is followed merely by the question, "Who can count all the things girls can grow up to be?"). Concluding notes flesh out the information provided on most of the pages, and a plethora of strong quotes add women's voices to this light-hearted history lesson. Rendered in black ink, watercolor washes and colored pencil, Glasser's creative illustrations brim with imaginative and playful details, and her likenesses of the many famous personalities are often uncanny. The letter "P" inspires the visual piece de resistance: a double fold-out enables readers to open an elegant theater curtain on a broad cast of performers-from Gloria Swanson (in her prime) to Judith Jamison to Maria Tallchief. Indeed, many of these pages deserve hearty applause and will likely whet readers' appetite for more information on these impressive women. All ages. (Sept.) Copyright 2003 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.

Gr 2-4-Similar in design and concept to America (S & S, 2002), this alphabet book is attractive and fun to read. Through it, Cheney hopes to educate children about a number of strong individuals who contributed to American society, and, in many cases, helped women to gain their civil rights. With rare exceptions, the profiled women were born before 1950. For each letter, a page features a person or a concept. The "E" page, for example, discusses six educators. The letter "J" is associated with Anna Jarvis, advocate of the Mother's Day holiday. Information about each figure is given in a phrase or one-sentence reference to her major achievement. The colorful, cartoonlike illustrations make this book particularly engaging, and the detail and varied design of the pages are additional enhancements. Some of the pages have borders containing the names of the women who fit the letter category, such as the authors listed in the borders on the "W" page, which cameos Edith Wharton and lauds women as writers. All of the people are shown in active postures. A double gatefold producing the effect of an opening theater curtain reveals an array of performers ranging from Mary Martin as a flying Peter Pan to Mahalia Jackson singing. While the information is limited, the overall effect creates an awareness of the totality of American women's achievements.-Lynda Ritterman, Atco Elementary School, Waterford, NJ Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.