Women's History Month Begins: DIshwashing Machines and Calculators!

 

Yes, I'll admit it. I often insist that theme months often cut both ways, calling much-needed attention to underrepresented individuals but also tempting classrooms and libraries to "feature" the theme for only one month of the year. When the other eleven months return to tried and true dominate-culture titles or other topics, it's a fierce endorsement of "othering" anyone who is NOT of the dominant culture and identity. I've made no secret of those concerns, HERE, HERE, HERE, and more. Yet here I am, celebrating a series of nonfiction titles that deserve that year-round attention. No better time to start than NOW!

Calkins Creek, 2023
Imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers

What's not to like about washing dishes... if a safe and reliable machine can do it for you? Back in 1891, no such machines were available for sale... yet. But when Josephine Garis Cochrane invented, refined, patented, and manufactured just such a machine for home use, one local paper shouted her praises. She was praised for setting women free from\

 "...the most slavish and disgusting task of housekeeping!"

To learn more, read JOSEPHINE and Her DISHWASHING MACHINE: Josephine Cochrane's Bright Invention Makes a Big Splash, written by Kate Hannigan and illustrated by Sarah Green.

Josephine lived with enough means to have domestic help, yet the process of washing dishes, especially after a crowd, left her precious dishware dinged and chipped. Not one to complain without taking action, she plunged in to wash them herself, only to discover how much precious TIME was wasted in this process. As a modern woman (in post-Civil War 1800's) she was aware of many new inventions, some even created by women inventors. With a family heritage of inventors, Josephine was driven to create a machine that could safely and thoroughly wash and rinse her dishes without damaging them. 

She not only imagined, sketched, and revised, she got to work with tools and her own two hands to bring her ideas into the world. This book credits the man, George Butters, who worked on these attempts with her (something rarely done by male inventors when assistants were women). It also indicates the near-disastrous impact of her husband's early death and ensuing debts.But Josephine was as determined as she was modern, which this book depicts with colorful and appealing illustrations that reveal much about the time, circumstances, and processes that led her to eventual successes. Efficient and compelling text throughout make Josephine's personality and accomplishments shine as brightly has her newly washed dishes. The expanded content in back matter provide excellent additional resources.

Calkins Creek, 2023 
Imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers

THE BRILLIANT CALCULATOR: How Mathematician EDITH CLARKE Helped Electrify America. Written by Jan Lower and illustrated by Susan Reagan.

Josephine and Edith had much in common, particularly their vision for what was needed and how they might provide answers. There were differences, too. Working on a decidedly non-domestic problem, Edith Clarke (also with an /e/ to end her surname), excelled at academic tasks, puzzle-solving, and dreaming of building railroads, bridges, and dams. She was sent to boarding school to learn manners and grace, but dismissed that frustratingly unchallenging curriculum during the same era as Josephine was inventing- the turn of the twentieth century. Potential career paths in engineering of any kind led Edith to closed and locked doors, but she used her inheritance to hire private tutors in languages, math, science, and to study the emerging wave of technology. Employed to manage mundane tasks within the burgeoning telephone industry, Edith became aware of operational weaknesses and evaluated ways to address those. That involved complex analytical computations; ones she was able to complete but few others could. Instead, she devised and carefully constructed a simple rotating, two-armed cardboard tool that would allow others to determine precise and necessary answers to a myriad of equations. A calculator!

In the field of electrical engineering, Edith Clarke is a less familiar name than most, but she stands as equal to Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and Morgan in the measure of the contributions she made through her work. Back matter includes a detailed timeline and some archival photos, as well as brief notes about other notable women in math and engineering.

So, as March begins, I share these two notable women I celebrate their accomplishments and the creators who provided us with accounts of their lives in these outstanding books. Please share them widely and often- long after the calendar page turns to a new month!

I received copies of these books form the publisher with no promise of a review of any kind.

Sharing JULIA CHILD'S Story- So Much Kid-Appeal!

CALKINS CREEK, January, 2022

Plenty of adults know and love JULIA CHILD, but what could a kid possibly find to like about a big, old, loud woman with a cooking show on PBS? Here's a picture book that answers the question with full-throated joy.

BORN HUNGRY: Julia Child Becomes “the French Chef” is written by Alex Prud’homme and illustrated by Sarah Green. If you weren’t already of fan of Julia Child, this book will make you one, at any age. The character and personality traits that won over fans for her recipes, cookbooks, television appearances, and overall public persona shines through in this colorful and creative picture book. The opening lines capture her kid-appeal in a few, perfect words. 

“Julia McWIlliams wore size twelve sneakers, stood six feet, two inches tall, played basketball, laughed loudly, and was curious about everything. All this activity made her crave food- lots of food.”

The opening spread on which these words appear features GLORIOUSLY large, colorful, rich foods while the facing page presents Julia in her confident and take-it-or-leave-it young-girl glory, her clothes mirroring the vibrant food colors and her self-assured stance foreshadowing the familiar postures she assumed on her programs, whether in conversation or behind a pot or pan or bowl. Julia was a substantially non-typical girl who was absolutely fine with who she was and what she chose to do in life. And she adored food!  What's not to love?

 

Born into a wealthy family, she was always hungry but never considered cooking. Her family employed a very competent cook- why would Julia even consider cooking for herself? Her quest for a life of action and adventure led her far from home to work for an American “spy” service. To her surprise, she was assigned are a desk with a rather boring job. She was lonely and not very eager to continue.

 

Until a new co-worker moved into the next office. He was everything she was not- older, very quiet, but also a world traveler with far wider experiences in foods and culture. And he was as intrigued with Julia as she was with him, Paul. They spent many hours together, enjoying new things like food, books, and travel. He encouraged Julia, the girl who grew up inhaling food, to slow down and taste each bite, to fully experience food and the atmosphere in which it was served, the culture it represented. After the war ended (WWII), Julia and Paul married and  moved to France. Julie decided that a married woman should learn to cook. What better place to do that than in France at a leading culinary academy?

 

This book offers young readers a celebration of a spirited young girl who loved food, then applied that sense of adventure and curiosity to preparing amazingly delicious meals and desserts.  Was she always successful? Far from it. In fact, it was her attitude about mistakes and failures that entertained adults and will capture the love of young readers, too. The illustrations using bright colors and style to open this profile with vitality continue to turn Julia’s adult life into a kid-friendly world on the page. 

 

Back matter provides photos and details about her impressive career as a writer, entertainer, teacher, chef, food ambassador, and inspiration for all ages. The final spread shares her very FRENCH recipe for scrambled eggs, and seems as delicious as it is simple. It includes a caution that children should have adult assistance to make them because a hot pan is involved. I found myself eager to try it, since my approach does NOT produce the kind of eggs her recipe will.

Author Prud'homme is the grandson of Paul's twin brother, knew her well, and worked with Julia until her death on her adult memoir about the post-war years in France. The text is effectively sprinkled with quotations from Julia Child’s notebooks, programs, interviews, and cookbooks, with the last one appearing to capture her life story perfectly: 

“Find something you’re passionate about and stay tremendously interested in it!”

 

 I'm passionate about this new picture book, and I am certain kids of many ages will be, too.