Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation
(Libby/OverDrive eAudiobook)

Brief vignettes focus on a diverse selection of lesser-known women significant to American history. An opening timeline places the women in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; each subsequent engaging micro-biography is aided by lively portraits with watercolor washes. Roberts and Goode's second collective biography for mid-elementary readers (Founding Mothers) once again effectively highlights the overlooked role of women in early American history. (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

As she did in Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies (2004), a picture-book adaption of an adult best-seller, celebrated political commentator Roberts now adapts her Ladies of Liberty (2008). She teams up again with illustrator Goode to offer condensed portraits of influential women active during the half-centuries flanking the American Revolution. The war, she observes, offered the solidarity of fighting a common enemy, "but once the original thirteen states were on their own . . . the arguments started." The biographical sketches, while not cohesive as a whole, offer brief, quirky glimpses of women trying in whatever ways they could to address the social issues of their day, among them the reflexive belittling of women's roles. Goode's depictions, lavished with sepia curlicues, lend a welcome levity and a certain grace to these stories of stubborn struggle, and the book as a whole is a worthwhile tool when it comes to introducing feminism to young minds. Copyright 2016 Booklist Reviews.

Roberts and Goode (Founding Mothers) again adapt one of Roberts's adult bestsellers into a picture book. Thorough research into letters, diaries, and other writings underpins brief biographies of 10 women who made positive impacts in the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries. Roberts mostly features lesser-known, reform-minded activists—such as Rebecca Gratz, who founded the first U.S. orphanage for Jewish children—but other spotlighted women include Lucy Terry Prince, who composed the first-known poem by an African-American; Native American guide Sacagawea; and First Ladies Louisa Catherine Adams and Elizabeth Kortright Monroe. Short write-ups about other notable women are found in interspersed spreads. While the anecdotes don't always segue seamlessly, Roberts's storytelling style is both relaxed and direct. Goode's softly-hued portraits and vignettes employ curvy, calligraphic lines in sepia that echo handwriting. This collection succeeds in emphasizing that many unsung women, "toiling to make America a more perfect place for all of its people," left their mark well before the suffrage movement. Ages 6–10. Author's agent: Robert Barnett, Williams & Connolly. Illustrator's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Dec.) Copyright 2016 Publisher Weekly.

Gr 2–5—Using a format similar to Roberts's previous title Founding Mothers, this overview highlights several little-known educators, writers, and reformers who made significant contributions to U.S. history. Some of the women were motivated by religious devotion, while others were influenced by powerful husbands or fathers; still others found themselves in extraordinary circumstances and rose to the occasion. With the exceptions of Sacagawea and Lucy Prince, all of the women featured are white. Goode's illustrations—rendered using quills, sepia-toned brown ink, and watercolors—reflect the historical time period with a fresh energy. Two-page portraits of individuals are interspersed with summary sections comprised of shorter entries. An author's introduction refers to the primary sources used, such as letters and diaries. Readers may pause at a poem that, though indicative of the time period, refers to Native Americans as "awful creatures" and the illustration of two-year-old Charles Adams (son of Louisa and John Quincy Adams) dressed as a "Native American chief" in a feathered headdress for a "fancy ball" when the family was living in Russia. VERDICT For libraries where Roberts's other books have been popular, this follow-up offers comparable fare.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA. Copyright 2016 School Library Journal.