#MCBD: Mightier Than the Sword: Rebels, Reformers & Revolutionaries Who Changed the World Through Writing by Rochelle Melander, illustrated by Melina Ontiveros

 

Mightier Than the Sword: Rebels, Reformers & Revolutionaries

Who Changed the World Through Writing

by Rochelle Melander, illustrated by Melina Ontiveros

Beaming Books, 2021, 200 pages

I was in junior high school when my social studies teacher wrote the adage "the pen is mightier than the sword" on the blackboard and asked us to write down our thoughts about what this saying means. It is a quote that has stuck with me ever since and one which I believe to be true. So when I received this book to review for Multicultural Children's Book Day, I was delighted. 

In this collection of 40 short biographies, Rochelle Melander explores the writings of diverse people from different periods of time throughout history and for different reasons. Each person was chosen for their unique contribution to the world through their writing in a wide variety of areas, from, for example, science, politics, women's rights, activism, and environmentalism.  And much to her credit, Melander includes not just white male writers, but a wide variety of women, writers of color, transgender writers, and writers who are just not usually included in anthologies. 

Some of the 40 writers included will be very familiar to readers, some names may be known but not what they did, and others will be completely new to the readers. Each entry, then,  begins with a short biography including what the writer is most known for and their reason/motivation for writing. At the end of each biography are writing prompts for the reader, making this a nicely interactive book. Beginning with Write to Know - where kids can explore their own creativity; Write Now - kids can relate the writing of each historical person to their world today; Write to Create - encourages kids to create their own work similar to the person's whose bio they have just read.

Each biography includes insets of other writers who impacted the world in much the same way, so ultimately, readers learn even more about courageous authors. Although, Mightier Than the Sword begins with Japanese novelist Murasaki Shikibyu, born in 978 and who, despite being a girl, learned to read and write, and is the author of The Tale of Genji, this book has an amazingly contemporary feel to it. Readers will also find biographies of some of todays favorite writers like cartoonish/graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang (1973-), rapper/activist Sonita Alizadeh (1996-), and Sophie Cruz (2010-)

This is a book that should be in every school library, classroom and home library. It is informative, concise, and very accessible. And at a time when it seems like many people want to resolve issues through physical confrontation, Mightier Than the Sword reminds us of the incredible power of the pen.

If you are truly looking to #ReadTourWorld, Mightier Than the Sword is the book for you. 

You can also download a very useful Activity Kit for Mightier Than the Sword HERE

Thank you to Rochelle Melander for providing me with a copy of this book.

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2022 (1/28/22) is in its 9^th year! This non-profit children’s literacy initiative was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen; two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those books into the hands of young readers and educators.

MCBD’s mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves. Read about our Mission & History HERE.

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Join us on Friday, Jan 29, 2021, at 9 pm EST for the 8th annual Multicultural Children's Book Day Twitter Party! Be sure and follow MCBD and Make A Way Media on Twitter!

This epically fun and fast-paced hour includes multicultural book discussions, addressing timely issues, diverse book recommendations, & reading ideas.

We will be giving away an 8-Book Bundle every 5 minutes plus Bonus Prizes as well! *** US and Global participants welcome. **

Follow the hashtag #ReadYourWorld to join the conversation, connect with like-minded parts, authors, publishers, educators, organizations, and librarians. See you all very soon on Twitter!

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Sea Girl: Feminist Folktales from Around the World, edited by Ethel Johnston Phelps, illustrated by Suki Boynton

In his introduction to Sea Girl, author Daniel José Older writes that we need a new mythology, a new mythology that catches all the myths, folktales, and other narratives of women’s empowerment that have fallen through the cracks of history or just weren’t “marketable” enough for Disney. Older should know what he’s talking about. After all, he’s given us Sierra Santiago, hero of Older’s books Shadowshaper and Shadowhouse Fall. And now, the Feminist Press has reissued its series of feminist folktales from around the world in four volumes.

Edited by the late Ethel Johnston Phelps, who held a master’s degree in Medieval literature, Sea Girl is volume III in the series and it includes 10 fairy and folktales based on stories that have been handed down for generations. 

For instance, there is a changeling tale from Ireland about a single mother whose healthy child is taken by the fairy folk and replaced with a sickly child of theirs. Determined to get her own child back, she cares for the sickly child and brings it back to health and on May Eve, she confronts the Queen of the fairy folk, who had taken her son. The single mother is resourceful and brave in this tale, and confronting the fairy Queen takes a certain kind of courage, even the Queen admits that. But now that her own son is a healthy, robust little boy, will the fairy Queen be willing to exchange babies, so each goes with its own mother, or will be decide to keep both?

I’m a medievalist at heart, so naturally I found the English tale about Sir Gawain and the Lady Ragnell very appealing. Older that even Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (published in1476). In this story, Sir Gawain is given one year to answer a question posed by Sir Gromer, who is looking to avenge the loss of his lands to Arthur. The question: What is it that women most desire, above all else? The answer and end of the tale will really surprise you. 

In the Norwegian tale, “East of the Sun, West of the Moon,” a large white bear falls in love with a woodcutter’s daughter. Though the woodcutter refuses to let his daughter go live with the bear in his castle, the daughter isn’t afraid and agrees to go with him. She notices that night after night, someone comes into her room and lays down next to her. Curious, she discovers a handsome young man, who it turns out has been cursed by trolls. By day, he is a large bear, by night, a handsome man. The man and castle immediately disappear, and the lass finds herself sitting in the forest. Determined to break the enchantment, she decides to travel to the Land of the Trolls and find the young man. But first she must get to the castle that lay East of the Sun and West of the Moon with the help of the North Wind. But will she arrive in time to save him from his fate in the Land of the Trolls?

There are also tales from China (“Wild Goose Lake” - a wonderful tale about the titular Sea Girl), Finland (“The Maid of the North”), and a Punjabi tale (“he Tiger and the Jackal”), as well as an ancient Swahili fairy tale (“The Monkey’s Heart”), and one from Germany (“The Twelve Huntsmen”).  And though the tales vary greatly, they have one thing in common - here are women who, through their own wits and common sense, determine their own fate, one way or the other.

The beauty of folktales is that they root us not just in our own culture, but in the world at large, providing examples of women's courage and resourcefulness in the face of great odds. And they can be enjoyed again and again.

If Sea Girl sounds like a book you would like to read, you might want to check out the other three companion volumes of Feminist Folktales from Around the World:

Tatterhood - introduced by Gayle Forman

Kamala - introduced by Kate Schatz

The Hunter Maiden - introduced by Renée Watson

This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was sent to me by the publisher, Feminist Press of the City University of New York

Dreaming in Indian: Comtemporary Native American Voices, edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale

Dreaming in Indian is a unique anthology of work by young Native Americans from Canada and the United States intended to "give people a fresh perspective on what it means to be Native in North America."  Native youths were invited to submit their work for a chance to tell the world their stories their way.  The results, the editors write, was a brilliant collection of artwork in various media by some incredibly talented people.

The job of putting this book together must have been daunting, given the high quality works of art that are included in Dreaming in Indian.  But what does all this tell us about being a young Native American?  What does it tell us about how Native youth go forward in the world, while maintaining their connection to their past?  Or how do Native youth deal with things like stereotyping, bullying, and issues of self-esteem?  The answers to these questions and more can be found throughout the book.

Dreaming in Indian is divided into four sections.  In the first section, Roots, ideas about connectedness to the past are addressed, beginning with two poems by Nicola Campbell in which she recalls memories of her grandmother and her aunt.  Others explore ideas about what home means to them, about confronting bullies and even living in residential schools, all creatively done using different media - poetry, photographs, collage.

Battles, the next section, looks at racism and stereotyping, as well as sexual abuse, poverty, gender identity, and addiction among Native youth.  Poetry, prose, even comic book art and stand up comedy are used for addressing these gritty, hardcore issues.  I was particularly taken with Reappropriation by Ashley Callingbull and Anthony "Thosh" Collins in which they reclaim the fashion of wearing "Native" and return it to its true cultural nature, using artifacts that were handed down to Ashley by her ancestors.

The third section, called Medicines, shows the different, productive ways Indigenous youth restore themselves not through addiction or medications, but by finding healing in music, art, sports, and traditions like dancing and hunting.  Finding the strength to give up her addiction and find spirituality in the Sun Dance changed the life of Chayla Delorme Maracle.  Louie Gong uses pop culture objects to express his mixed-race heritage, resulting in bold, colorful designs on things like sneakers, shoes, even phone cases.

Lastly, in Dreamcatcher, we see the many different ways Native youth are turning their dreams into reality.  Artists, educators, activists, even an Indigenous chef are opening the future up for Native youth so that their dreams can come true.

Writing a review of Dreaming in Indian is difficult because there are so many diverse aspects to the book and descriptions pale in comparison to what you will find throughout.  The editors said what they received was mind blowing, and indeed it is, in the best possible way.  And thankfully, Annick Press had the good sense to publish the book using high quality, high density photographs giving it a wonderful vibrancy.

In a world that is finally recognizing that We Need Diverse Books, Dreaming in Indian one of the most welcomed additions.  There are so few good nonfiction books about Native Indians, and especially Native youth, that this is a breath of fresh air, not only because it fills that gap but because the incredibly talented Indigenous youth who contributed to the book show us what amazing talent there is out there that is so often overlooked or ignored.

Be sure to watch the trailer to get a really good idea of what Dreaming in Indian is all about:

This book is recommended for readers age 12+

This book was an E-ARC from NetGalley and then I went out and bought my own personal copy (it is that good)