Our Middle Grade book spotlight this week is celebrating some serious girl power as March is Women’s History Month!!! We have a collection of fiction and nonfiction books that highlight some strong females that made a difference in their world, or still are, either real or imagined. Every reader can take encouragement from these amazing individuals as they experience some of the same situations and setbacks that everyone does at some point. These books and more can be found by searching the catalog using the search tag #youthgirlpower as well as on Libby and Hoopla. Check back next week for a new Middle Grade book spotlight and if you have any book suggestions, please let us know!!
Women In Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World by Rachel Ignotofsky-- Highlights the contributions of fifty notable women to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from the ancient to the modern world.
Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan--In a quiet Milwaukee suburb lives the musically gifted Pakistani American Muslim girl Amina. Her best friend is Soojin, a South Korean girl who will soon become a citizen. Amina is confused when Soojin starts hanging out with Emily, one of the popular mean girls, and talks about changing her name to “something more American.” What does that mean for Amina? Should she change her name, too? Then Amina's strict Muslim uncle visits and tells her that her piano playing is forbidden in Islam, and Amina is truly at a loss when her beloved Islamic Center is vandalized. What is happening to Amina's world?
Proud by Ibtihaj Muhammad--Memoir of Ibtihaj Muhammad, a professional fencer and the first female Muslim American to compete in the Olympic Games wearing the hijab.
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan--Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.
Girls Think of Everything by Catherine Thimmesh--Tells the story of how women throughout the ages have responded to situations confronting them in daily life by inventing such items as correction fluid, space helmets, and disposable diapers.
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly--This touching story takes place in 1899 and focuses on what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century. Eleven-year-old Calpurnia Virginia Tate should be cooking, sewing and attracting boys, but instead she finds enjoyment in examining insects and reading Darwin’s “The Origin of the Species.” While exploring the natural world surrounding her, Calpurnia develops a close relationship with her “avid naturalist” grandfather and finally figures out how to live as the only girl among six brothers.