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Summary
Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? is a picture book biography of the first woman doctor in the United States, Elizabeth Blackwell, that will appeal to children 6 and older. With limited text by Tanya Lee Stone and colorful illustrations by Marjorie Priceman, the book provides a brief overview of Blackwell's childhood, her decision to become a doctor, her perseverance in the face of rejection, and her ultimate success.
The Author's Note, with a photo of Dr Blackwell, provides two pages of additional detail about her life and accomplishments. While younger children will enjoy the book as a read aloud, independent readers in grades 2-4 will also enjoy both the story and the added biographical information.
The Story and Illustrations
Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell begins by telling the reader that, despite the many female doctors today, "there once was a time when girls weren't allowed to become doctors." In the 1830s, girls were expected to grow up to be wives and mothers. Some might become teachers or seamstresses but never a doctor. How did that get changed? The answer is not "how" so much as "who."
Elizabeth Blackwell, that's who. While Elizabeth was a girl who loved challenges, she didn't grow up wanting to be a doctor. In fact, the sight of blood made her feel sick. However, when Elizabeth was 24, her friend, Mary Donaldson, who was quite ill, told Elizabeth that she wished she had a woman doctor to examine her rather than a man.
Mary encouraged Elizabeth to become a doctor. Elizabeth thought and thought about it and asked doctors and friends what they thought about her studying to be a doctor.
Their responses to Elizabeth's questions are highlighted with big painted words in the colorful illustrations. For example, one illustration shows Elizabeth reading a book while a man stands by, with his words, in red, "Women aren't smart enough." floating over her head. Some thought it a bad idea, others thought it impossible to accomplish, but some did think it would be a good idea.
Elizabeth accepted the challenge, with her family's support, but what happened when she applied to colleges of medicine? On a double-page spread, we see Elizabeth on a couch surrounded by letters of rejection. There's even one in her little dog's mouth. Above and below Elizabeth, against a white background, is the word "No," repeated more than two dozen times in strong blue and black. In all, Elizabeth received 28 "no" letters, but she never gave up. Finally, she received a "yes" letter. She'd been accepted by Geneva Medical School in northern New York. Elizabeth was ecstatic.
However, the students, who'd only voted to accept a woman as a joke, and the townspeople were not very welcoming. Elizabeth persevered and ultimately impressed the other students with her academic achievements, graduating on January 23, 1849 with the highest grades in her class. Again, the public response was mixed. Some people were proud of Elizabeth, others hated the idea of woman doctors. One doctor even wrote that he hoped "for the honor of humanity, that [she] will be the last." However, the story ends by pointing out that she was certainly not the last woman doctor.
The two page Author's Note provides a more detailed biography of Elizabeth Blackwell, emphasizing her accomplishments as a doctor in both the United States and in England. It also points out that while it was unusual in the early 1800s for females to be as well educated as males, Elizabeth's father insisted that his daughters receive as good an education as his sons. The final page of the book is a bibliography of the sources used by the author.
Awards and Recognition
Parents Magazine Best Nonfiction Picture Book of 2013NPR Best Books of 2013
Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) Choices 2014
National Science Teacher's Association & Children's Book Council: 2014 Outstanding Science Trade Book for K-12
Vermont Red Clover Book
NCTE Orbis Pictus Recommended Title
Amelia Bloomer Project Award Book
(Source: Tanya Lee Stone's website)
Author Tanya Lee Stone
Tanya Lee Stone has won numerous awards for her nonfiction children's books. Her picture books include Sandy's Circus, the story of artist Alexander Calder, and Elizabeth Leads the Way, the story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton who started the suffrage movement. Her award-winning nonfiction for older children and teens includes Courage Has No Color, about the first black paratroopers in WWII, Almost Astronauts, for which she won the 2010 Robert F. Sibert Medal, and Laura Ingalls Wilder, the biography of the author of the Little House books.
(Sources: Tanya Lee Stone's website and Macmillan)
Illustrator Marjorie Priceman
Marjorie Priceman is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. In addition to illustrating books for other authors, she has also written and illustrated a number of children's books, including Emeline at the Circus and How to Make a Cherry Pie and See the U.S.A. Among the other books she's illustrated are For Laughing Out Loud by Jack Prelutsky, One of Each by Mary Ann Hoberman and Cold Snap by Eileen Spinelli. Two of her books have been awarded Caldecott honors: Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss and Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride, which Priceman both wrote and illustrated.
(Sources: Random House, Scholastic and Simon and Schuster)
My Recommendation
The bright and colorful illustrations that incorporate words and phrases and the story's emphasis on Elizabeth's determination and perseverance in the face of obstacles make Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? an engaging book. The Author's Note provides valuable additional information, but I do wish that information about Elizabeth's education as a child had been included in the body of the story rather than in the Author's Note.
I recommend Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? for sharing at home with children 6 and older and in grade 1-4 classrooms. Since the story tends to generate a lot of "What happened next?" questions, it's a good idea to read the Afterword before you share the book so you'll be prepared with answers. (Christy Ottaviano Books, Henry Holt and Company, 2013. ISBN: 9780805090482)
For another picture book biography that appeals to children 6 and older, I recommend The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos.