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Hillary
In this beautiful and empowering picture-book biography of presidential nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York Times bestselling author Winter and award-winning illustrator Colón illuminate her distinguished life and career. This stunning project follows Clinton from her early years as an outspoken student at Wellesley College and Yale Law School to marrying Bill Clinton and raising daughter Chelsea, to becoming First Lady of the United States and then a U.S. Senator and Secretary of State. Here is the inspiring story of the woman who may soon change the world—into a place where a girl can dream of growing up to be president.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published January 5, 2016
3 people are currently reading
88 people want to read
About the author
Jonah Winter
66 books83 followersJonah Winter is the celebrated author of many picture book biographies, including Barack, which was a New York Times bestseller. His books include Here Comes the Garbage Barge, Sonia Sotomayor, Roberto Clemente, and more. A poet and a painter, Mr. Winter divides his time between Santa Fe and a small town in Pennsylvania.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
October 16, 2015
Adult readers will come to this book with their own ideas about Hillary Clinton, and it is to be expected that their opinions about her will inform their opinions about the book. So, in the effort of transparency, I should say that I am a bit ambivalent about Hillary Clinton. I will be happy enough to vote for her in the likely case that she is the Democratic nominee, but will certainly not do so without some reservations. So, I picked up the book thinking that it was a fine thing to have a picture book biography to introduce kids to a person who has accomplished so much, and will be an important part of so many conversations in the year ahead.
I am very disappointed in this book. Jonah Winter and Raul Colon have both done so much fantastic work in their careers, and this is clearly an important book for Random House in their upcoming spring season. But the text is listless and it reads like the author was forced to write a propaganda piece that went against his own principles. It starts with hagiography, really, positing an unbroken line of powerful women from Queen Elizabeth I to Joan of Arc (who predates Elizabeth, of course, but since it's tricky to compare Hillary to someone we would now treat for schizophrenia, it would be problematic to put her first) to Rosie the riveter. "And now there is Hillary." This is at best a dubious lineage, one of the examples being a teenaged martyr who heard the voice of God and was burned at the stake, and another being a fictional character created for the purpose of wartime propaganda (introducing the idea of the use of propaganda before the reader even gets to the title page). Still, this device sets Hillary up as almost mythic--a figure for the ages. But the first paragraph about Hillary, that starts by describing her childhood employs a parallel construction linking it back to the descriptions about her predecessors in a way that falls flat: Elizabeth "was the most powerful person in the world." Joan of Arc "was...kind of intense." (Sounds like a euphemism for "crazy" to me) Rosie the riveter "was strong." Hillary "was scrappy." It's an adjective that might fairly characterize Hillary as a child, but because of parallel constructions that preceded it, it becomes a defining characteristic of Hillary as a person. This is sloppy editing at best, and at worst an unworthy adjective for one of the most powerful leaders in the recent history of out country. Say she's a fighter if you will, but calling an adult scrappy sounds oddly condescending if you're talking about a man, and fairly sexist if you're talking about a woman. Jonah Winter has written so many great books where his humor and lightness of tone are perfectly matched to the subject, but on the whole he plays this one pretty straight. Against this background, the leplaces in the text where the language is less formal are jarring, bordering on snarky.
Ultimately, the place where this book is weakest is that it relies too heavily on the idea that what makes Hillary so remarkable is that she is a woman. I understand the desire to celebrate the accomplishments of Hillary Clinton precisely because she has faced so much opposition that is clearly linked to sexism. And she has done admirable work advocating for the rights of women and girls around the world. But the book comes dangerously close to saying (especially in the author's note, which is pretty remarkable in itself) that we should vote for Hillary because she is a woman. That is a profoundly anti feminist idea. Voting for a woman based solely on her gender trivializes her very real accomplishments. It amounts to tokenism, pure and simple. Our kids are smarter than that. I hope our electorate is smarter than that.
I am very disappointed in this book. Jonah Winter and Raul Colon have both done so much fantastic work in their careers, and this is clearly an important book for Random House in their upcoming spring season. But the text is listless and it reads like the author was forced to write a propaganda piece that went against his own principles. It starts with hagiography, really, positing an unbroken line of powerful women from Queen Elizabeth I to Joan of Arc (who predates Elizabeth, of course, but since it's tricky to compare Hillary to someone we would now treat for schizophrenia, it would be problematic to put her first) to Rosie the riveter. "And now there is Hillary." This is at best a dubious lineage, one of the examples being a teenaged martyr who heard the voice of God and was burned at the stake, and another being a fictional character created for the purpose of wartime propaganda (introducing the idea of the use of propaganda before the reader even gets to the title page). Still, this device sets Hillary up as almost mythic--a figure for the ages. But the first paragraph about Hillary, that starts by describing her childhood employs a parallel construction linking it back to the descriptions about her predecessors in a way that falls flat: Elizabeth "was the most powerful person in the world." Joan of Arc "was...kind of intense." (Sounds like a euphemism for "crazy" to me) Rosie the riveter "was strong." Hillary "was scrappy." It's an adjective that might fairly characterize Hillary as a child, but because of parallel constructions that preceded it, it becomes a defining characteristic of Hillary as a person. This is sloppy editing at best, and at worst an unworthy adjective for one of the most powerful leaders in the recent history of out country. Say she's a fighter if you will, but calling an adult scrappy sounds oddly condescending if you're talking about a man, and fairly sexist if you're talking about a woman. Jonah Winter has written so many great books where his humor and lightness of tone are perfectly matched to the subject, but on the whole he plays this one pretty straight. Against this background, the leplaces in the text where the language is less formal are jarring, bordering on snarky.
Ultimately, the place where this book is weakest is that it relies too heavily on the idea that what makes Hillary so remarkable is that she is a woman. I understand the desire to celebrate the accomplishments of Hillary Clinton precisely because she has faced so much opposition that is clearly linked to sexism. And she has done admirable work advocating for the rights of women and girls around the world. But the book comes dangerously close to saying (especially in the author's note, which is pretty remarkable in itself) that we should vote for Hillary because she is a woman. That is a profoundly anti feminist idea. Voting for a woman based solely on her gender trivializes her very real accomplishments. It amounts to tokenism, pure and simple. Our kids are smarter than that. I hope our electorate is smarter than that.
February 18, 2016
Reads very much like a campaign brochure, and continues the narrative that Hillary's accomplishments are great *because she is a woman,* which is one I don't like all that much.
March 25, 2019
Given the turn of events that occurred on 9 November 2016, this book seems to be one that sadly did not meet its intended conclusion.
The book, published in 2016, still carries the hope and aspiration for Secretary Clinton to rise to her ultimate goal of becoming President of the United States.
Nevertheless, it is a well written picture-book biography. And the illustrations, created using watercolor, colored pencils, and lithograph crayons on watercolor paper capture the excitement of her campaign.
I like what Hillary Rodham Clinton stands for and I believe she would have done a good job as President of our nation, but unfortunately we'll likely never know.
I wavered a bit on my rating, but decided to go ahead and give the book four stars based on the inspiring message and the encouragement for young children to work hard for their dreams.
I appreciated the Author's Note at the end of the book that gives additional information about her life and achievements.
The book, published in 2016, still carries the hope and aspiration for Secretary Clinton to rise to her ultimate goal of becoming President of the United States.
Nevertheless, it is a well written picture-book biography. And the illustrations, created using watercolor, colored pencils, and lithograph crayons on watercolor paper capture the excitement of her campaign.
I like what Hillary Rodham Clinton stands for and I believe she would have done a good job as President of our nation, but unfortunately we'll likely never know.
I wavered a bit on my rating, but decided to go ahead and give the book four stars based on the inspiring message and the encouragement for young children to work hard for their dreams.
I appreciated the Author's Note at the end of the book that gives additional information about her life and achievements.
March 22, 2019
Great picture book biography of Hillary Clinton. Hillary's family supported her in getting a great education and becoming a lawyer. She marries a fellow student and has a child. He becomes governor of Arkansas and later president. She works as a lawyer and then as first lady. She runs for president and loses but becomes Secretary of State. A very good book about an important American woman.
June 9, 2016
This is a collaboration between two of the most gifted authors and illustrators out there, so to see them together is absolutely breathtaking to me. I love the vibrancy Colon imbues in his illustrations, giving Clinton pink and blue streaks in her hair against the dawn backdrop, how the strokes in his art remind me of a freshly raked golf course sand trap. If you want to check out more of his amazing art, my other favorite (in addition to this one!) is "Leontyne Price: Voice of a Century."
This book gives the perfect amount of balanced & fair information for middle grade readers. It sticks to the facts of Clinton's life. It tells of the boundaries Clinton has broken for women in politics, how she changed the entire culture surrounding what a First Lady does in the White House, and how much the world has changed since Hillary was born to a mother who was alive when women didn't even have the right to vote in the United States of America. What a time to be alive! This book also discusses some of the votes she's made as a Senator, and work she completed and speeches she made as Secretary of State.
Of course, this can't be changed, but the book doesn't talk about her 2016 campaign, and as of the time I'm writing this, we don't even know if she'll be the Democratic candidate for the 2016 election, so suffice to say that Clinton's story is far from over, but regardless, this book is perfect for a child wanting more information about her without political bias.
This book gives the perfect amount of balanced & fair information for middle grade readers. It sticks to the facts of Clinton's life. It tells of the boundaries Clinton has broken for women in politics, how she changed the entire culture surrounding what a First Lady does in the White House, and how much the world has changed since Hillary was born to a mother who was alive when women didn't even have the right to vote in the United States of America. What a time to be alive! This book also discusses some of the votes she's made as a Senator, and work she completed and speeches she made as Secretary of State.
Of course, this can't be changed, but the book doesn't talk about her 2016 campaign, and as of the time I'm writing this, we don't even know if she'll be the Democratic candidate for the 2016 election, so suffice to say that Clinton's story is far from over, but regardless, this book is perfect for a child wanting more information about her without political bias.
January 16, 2016
The illustrations in this picture book, created with watercolor, colored pencils, and lithograph crayons, are more memorable than the text, which celebrates the accomplishments of Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Parts of the book were appealing, for instance, discussion of her early years and the fact that she visited 112 different countries as Secretary of State, but others sort of made me shake my head in dismay at the comparisons to individuals such as Queen Elizabeth I and Joan of Arc. While, as a feminist, I do think the fact that a woman can run and possibly be elected to the Presidency of the United States is a very big deal, I wonder if perhaps the book would have worked better after the upcoming election. As it is, it feels too much like a PR piece. I never really got a sense for who this incredible woman is, and the author doesn't cover some of the struggles she has faced, especially most recently. Ultimately, the book left me disappointed because I wanted so much more from it. It will be interesting to see what the reactions of young readers will be.
December 4, 2018
Summary:
This book is about Hillary Clinton. This book starts off describing powerful women in history and then talks about Hillary as a young girl and talks about her family. This book discusses her successes. The book says Hillary was a force to be reckoned with. This story go to talk about her husband and child. This book talk all about Hillary Clinton’s life and shows up how powerful women really can be.
Like or not:
I really like this book. It is honestly so empowering to hear about such a powerful important women. I think that Jonah Winter and Raul Colon did a absolutely great job with this book. I love it and I can’t believe I never heard of it.
Classroom:
I want to have this book in my classroom. I think this would be a wonderful book to talk about and read with students. When you go into history lessons about presidents and people who ran for presidents this should be a book you read in the classroom. This shows girls that they can be powerful important people in society today too. Students need this in the classroom!
This book is about Hillary Clinton. This book starts off describing powerful women in history and then talks about Hillary as a young girl and talks about her family. This book discusses her successes. The book says Hillary was a force to be reckoned with. This story go to talk about her husband and child. This book talk all about Hillary Clinton’s life and shows up how powerful women really can be.
Like or not:
I really like this book. It is honestly so empowering to hear about such a powerful important women. I think that Jonah Winter and Raul Colon did a absolutely great job with this book. I love it and I can’t believe I never heard of it.
Classroom:
I want to have this book in my classroom. I think this would be a wonderful book to talk about and read with students. When you go into history lessons about presidents and people who ran for presidents this should be a book you read in the classroom. This shows girls that they can be powerful important people in society today too. Students need this in the classroom!
January 4, 2017
It's propaganda, but I'm crying all the same.
December 16, 2020
Really enjoyed this biography of Hillary Clinton. I never knew much about her childhood and how those experiences shaped her. Winter shared many firsts accomplished by Hillary and leave the reader feeling optimistic about the future possibility of a woman as president. He included interesting anecdotes like her staff making a 112 football-style jersey for her after an injury -- the number representing how many countries she visited as secretary of state. Well done and beautifully illustrated.
December 13, 2017
Nice picture book biography, follows Hillary's career; emphasizes that "you've got to be tough" to do the things she did, and talks about her life coming full circle from growing up in a time when her mom wasn't expected to work or to vote or to make any important family decisions, to Hillary reaching the heights she did in her career. No sources given. Typical gorgeous Colon illustrations, wow!
October 22, 2024
Lovely illustrations. Helpful history for older children. This will make a wonderful gift for my 4th grade niece to know she can do anything, be anything as long as she is kind in all she does. So grateful to have heard Hillary Rodham Clinton speak last night in Portland. Bought and read this book for my niece. Just started her newest title "Something Lost, Something Gained".
September 28, 2017
A good role model story for any one.
October 4, 2017
This is a good biography but it's like all biographies written about people who are still alive. This biography was written before she ran for the presidency the second time.
November 25, 2017
Beautiful illustrations, but the writing still doesn't do this woman justice. Focuses too much on the idea that she is great because she's a woman, rather than she is a woman who does great things.
April 12, 2018
Great pictorial biography of the person who should have been the 45th POTUS.
October 20, 2016
Epic
I thought for a book I needed to read as homework quickly it was pretty good so yeah that's my review
I thought for a book I needed to read as homework quickly it was pretty good so yeah that's my review
February 23, 2016
First reviewed on Literaritea
What It Is: A picture book biography about Hillary Rodham Clinton
What It’s About: Hillary Clinton! Although Winter begins with Hillary’s childhood, the majority of the book is about her life as an adult. Winter emphasizes Hillary’s accomplishments, particularly the ones in which she is the first to do something (either as a woman or the First Lady in particular) or rises to overcome significant obstacles.
What Works: Winter’s text is dispassionate in a good way. I’ve seen accusations of propaganda and that it’s not exciting enough (ironic that those have both come up). However, when you are writing a book about a major Presidential candidate during the campaign season, a more dispassionate tone will bring more bipartisan readership. Additionally, Winter humanizes Hillary a bit more than similar books, showing her real life obstacles (fatigue, balancing work/family, etc.). Colon’s art is a bit static–the snapshot effect in a sense that captures an event frozen in time. It’s a good accompaniment to the tone of Winter’s text.
What Doesn’t Work: The opening sequence lauding Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc, Rosie the Riveter and then… Hillary… feels a bit disjointed and smacks of hagiography (although Hillary isn’t presented as a saint, per se). Additionally, given that this book has just been published and some of Hillary’s less saintly actions have been in the public eye for some time (ahem, the issue of her email comes to mind), a bit more nuance in the text would have been helpful. Additionally, there is scant end matter: no bibliography, no documentation. (There is an author’s note.)
What I Think: Of the three Hillary picture book bios I’ve read, I like this one the best for its dispassionate tone. It’s a good starting point to learn more about this remarkable woman, whether or not you agree with her politics.
What I Recommend: Use this book with older elementary students to discuss presidential candidates and history, the growth in women’s rights, and to learn more about this particular presidential candidate in particular. Challenge your students to find out information about Hillary that is not in this biography that might offer a bit more balance to the picture.
What It Is: A picture book biography about Hillary Rodham Clinton
What It’s About: Hillary Clinton! Although Winter begins with Hillary’s childhood, the majority of the book is about her life as an adult. Winter emphasizes Hillary’s accomplishments, particularly the ones in which she is the first to do something (either as a woman or the First Lady in particular) or rises to overcome significant obstacles.
What Works: Winter’s text is dispassionate in a good way. I’ve seen accusations of propaganda and that it’s not exciting enough (ironic that those have both come up). However, when you are writing a book about a major Presidential candidate during the campaign season, a more dispassionate tone will bring more bipartisan readership. Additionally, Winter humanizes Hillary a bit more than similar books, showing her real life obstacles (fatigue, balancing work/family, etc.). Colon’s art is a bit static–the snapshot effect in a sense that captures an event frozen in time. It’s a good accompaniment to the tone of Winter’s text.
What Doesn’t Work: The opening sequence lauding Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc, Rosie the Riveter and then… Hillary… feels a bit disjointed and smacks of hagiography (although Hillary isn’t presented as a saint, per se). Additionally, given that this book has just been published and some of Hillary’s less saintly actions have been in the public eye for some time (ahem, the issue of her email comes to mind), a bit more nuance in the text would have been helpful. Additionally, there is scant end matter: no bibliography, no documentation. (There is an author’s note.)
What I Think: Of the three Hillary picture book bios I’ve read, I like this one the best for its dispassionate tone. It’s a good starting point to learn more about this remarkable woman, whether or not you agree with her politics.
What I Recommend: Use this book with older elementary students to discuss presidential candidates and history, the growth in women’s rights, and to learn more about this particular presidential candidate in particular. Challenge your students to find out information about Hillary that is not in this biography that might offer a bit more balance to the picture.
April 11, 2016
This book talk about a woman named Hillary Rodham. At first, she is a very good student in school, when she graduated she become the first student ever to speech at the ceremony. Then she and Bill Clinton get married, she become a mother. At the same time, Hillary did not give up her career, she as the first female lawyer at her law firm. When her husband was elected president of the United States and she become First Lady. She learning everything she could about health care and presented thous facts to Congtrss. She also went others countries to do a lot of speeches and she have so many people support she. She said "women's right are human right". Hillary get a job and she was the hardest of workers and meeting with some foreign leaders. She think woman and men are equal, she strive a lot of rights for woman.
From this book, I can feel the woman's strong and powerful. She very hard work when she was a student, and when her life become very glorious, she did not forget what is she want. This trait is very precious. I also can feel others traits from Hillary, the book is very good because we can learn a lot of things from it. It suitable for children as well. Everyone should have hope and dream, we need hard work and do our best to realized it.
From this book, I can feel the woman's strong and powerful. She very hard work when she was a student, and when her life become very glorious, she did not forget what is she want. This trait is very precious. I also can feel others traits from Hillary, the book is very good because we can learn a lot of things from it. It suitable for children as well. Everyone should have hope and dream, we need hard work and do our best to realized it.
August 6, 2016
Jonah Winter begins Hillary by comparing her to three historically powerful women, Queen Elizabeth the I, Joan of Arc, and fictitious Rosie the Riveter. Told in picture book format with Raul Colon's realistic and handsome watercolor and colored pencil illustrations, this is clearly a celebration of the life of a leader who as a child, " did well in school, played sports with the boys, and liked to be in charge." This brief biography goes through Hillary's marriage to Bill Clinton, the joy of becoming a mother to Chelsea, and her many professional achievements. Readers will come away with an understanding of the fighter Hillary has been all of her life, from when she challenged her bossy father, to her fight for human rights particularly for women. The author's note at the end gives a brief but comprehensive description of her achievements to this point. It is the only place mentioning her advocacy for children. Her focus on rights for children with disabilities, one of the important ways Hilary has improved people's lives, should have been included in the picture book format, not in the Author's Note page. However, this is a gorgeous book which belongs in all elementary libraries.
January 11, 2016
There's a whole slew of picture books focusing on presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton that have just come out. It is incredible to read about all her accomplishments- and what else she has yet to accomplish.
Michelle Markel's Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls Are Born to Lead seems to be the most kid-friendly (with LeUyen Pham's signature illustrations) with an invitation for girls to pave their own way despite obstacles. I appreciate all the details Pham includes and the explanations of who the people are who she drew.
Skewing to a slightly older audience- and maybe adults will pick this up more- is Jonah Winter's Hillary. Of the three picture books, this one feels more like an agenda book even though it does the same of sharing her story and just what her future might hold and what that might mean.
A balance of the two picture books I already mentioned is Kathleen Krull's Hillary Rodham Clinton: Dreams Taking Flight. Alongside the facts are inspiring quotations. What I appreciated about his one was the detailed notes at the end of the book, which I actually enjoyed more than the story text!
Michelle Markel's Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls Are Born to Lead seems to be the most kid-friendly (with LeUyen Pham's signature illustrations) with an invitation for girls to pave their own way despite obstacles. I appreciate all the details Pham includes and the explanations of who the people are who she drew.
Skewing to a slightly older audience- and maybe adults will pick this up more- is Jonah Winter's Hillary. Of the three picture books, this one feels more like an agenda book even though it does the same of sharing her story and just what her future might hold and what that might mean.
A balance of the two picture books I already mentioned is Kathleen Krull's Hillary Rodham Clinton: Dreams Taking Flight. Alongside the facts are inspiring quotations. What I appreciated about his one was the detailed notes at the end of the book, which I actually enjoyed more than the story text!
December 27, 2016
I think another reviewer stated it best, that this book "continues the narrative that Hillary's accomplishments are great because she is a woman." I disliked that when comparing Hillary to great woman in the past the author only chose a fictional American woman. This books seems to ignore or erase other great American women to highlight Hillary's accomplishments as the "first" woman to do great things. In truth, Hillary was able to build off of the hard work of the woman who came before her but that doesn't seem to fit into this narrative. I also noticed that the illustrations were not consistent. A lot of the images of Hillary looked nothing like her, even when they were side by side they looked different from each other. If you are going to write a propaganda picture book at least make it a cute looking one like Michelle Markel's 'Hillary Rodham Clinton:Some Girls Are Born to Lead'. LeUyen Pham's illustrations were wondrous in that book.
August 26, 2016
While very much a proponent for Hillary Rodham Clinton for president (with enough propaganda to fill an adult brochure), looking past the propaganda, it's a very good book on encouraging people to never give up. Winter compares Hillary to Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc, and Rosie the Riveter (which adult readers will have their own, very strong opinions about that), but in so doing talks about strong women in history. And while talking about all of her accomplishments, it also tells how she had hiccups - not getting things passed, not getting voted, collapsing, etc. It is an extremely flattering biography, with, as I keep saying, a lot of propaganda to vote for her and even some overt Republican hating; however, the message to fight for what you believe in even when things aren't working and people don't like you is a good message and there is some interesting facts included. Very good illustrations. Definitely not appropriate for kids 4-8 unless you want them being Hillary bots.
January 5, 2016
I was not impressed; weird word choices and structure at the beginning was off putting.
The beginning of the book was odd - comparing Hillary to Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc and Rosie the Riveter seemed alittle grandiose.
The sentences about her father - " father who bossed them all around", "Made all the money and important family decisions" - why were these sentences needed. They imply a rigidity that was common for the era but maybe not necessary for the story or the intended audience. It almost felt as though there was implied abuse.
And my favorite of all her feelings on Bill - "....fellow student named Bill Clinton, who fell in love with her. Hillary was pretty fond of Bill too." Why couldn't she love Bill; why was the word fond used.
Once I got past these oddities then I enjoyed it.
The beginning of the book was odd - comparing Hillary to Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc and Rosie the Riveter seemed alittle grandiose.
The sentences about her father - " father who bossed them all around", "Made all the money and important family decisions" - why were these sentences needed. They imply a rigidity that was common for the era but maybe not necessary for the story or the intended audience. It almost felt as though there was implied abuse.
And my favorite of all her feelings on Bill - "....fellow student named Bill Clinton, who fell in love with her. Hillary was pretty fond of Bill too." Why couldn't she love Bill; why was the word fond used.
Once I got past these oddities then I enjoyed it.
November 28, 2016
Winter, Jonah Hillary 20 pgs. Schwartz & Wade (Random House), 2016. $17.99 PICTURE BOOK/NON-FICTION
This book is a biography of Hillary Clintons life featuring her traditional 1950s childhood, her famous speech in college, and her continued work on the women’s “liberation” movement. It exemplifies her hard work and her accomplishments. The artwork is very stylized and muted.
This a very concise biography without being too overwhelming for a read-a-loud, but its fairly subdued as compared to the Michelle Markel version. It is strongly pro-Hillary, and is far from a unbiased detached biography. Just give me a balanced biography for kids. Enough details, like political terminology and historical events, that it would probably work best for 3 grade and up. I preferred the Michelle Markel version to this one.
EL -NO Reviewer: Stephanie Elementary School Librarian & Author.
This book is a biography of Hillary Clintons life featuring her traditional 1950s childhood, her famous speech in college, and her continued work on the women’s “liberation” movement. It exemplifies her hard work and her accomplishments. The artwork is very stylized and muted.
This a very concise biography without being too overwhelming for a read-a-loud, but its fairly subdued as compared to the Michelle Markel version. It is strongly pro-Hillary, and is far from a unbiased detached biography. Just give me a balanced biography for kids. Enough details, like political terminology and historical events, that it would probably work best for 3 grade and up. I preferred the Michelle Markel version to this one.
EL -NO Reviewer: Stephanie Elementary School Librarian & Author.
May 9, 2016
I thought that this book was more a persuasive text than a true biography. Nothing ever negative was said - no problems throughout life, etc. The tone was strictly "happy, happy, happy" and she was perfect for every job she ever had.
I think that biographies should be more factual, rather than based on the author's opinion of a person.
I chose this book from the review room because we did not have a book about her and she is in the news, but I will purchase a more factual book to add to the library. This one strikes me as propaganda.
It could be used in any social studies class from 5th grade -high school to spark debate about the author's purpose for writing and whether or not the students feel it is a true picture of the person.
I think that biographies should be more factual, rather than based on the author's opinion of a person.
I chose this book from the review room because we did not have a book about her and she is in the news, but I will purchase a more factual book to add to the library. This one strikes me as propaganda.
It could be used in any social studies class from 5th grade -high school to spark debate about the author's purpose for writing and whether or not the students feel it is a true picture of the person.
March 5, 2016
I found the narrative to be dry, poorly edited, and kids may find it boring. There is clearly so much to share that it felt the author was packing too much in to a short space. I missed feeling the emotion from this biography, which is essential to engage kids and get them to care. More importantly, the writing felt forced, dare I say propaganda-ish? The beginning attempts to connect Hillary to a lineage of powerful women, curiously choosing Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc, and a FICTITIOUS character Rosie the Riveter. Really? There weren't any other real, live women in history to be part of that timeline?
April 12, 2024
This book was strange. While I appreciated that some background information about Hillary Clinton was provided, I did not think it substantial enough; it appeared too blasé. Additionally, I did not understand why Queen Elizabeth, Joan of Arc and Rosie the Riveter were in the book; or why Hillary was essentially being compared to them, even though that may not have been the intention. Ultimately, I felt as though the book chose to focus on the fact that Hillary was a woman, and what she has done as a woman, throughout her life, and not great many other things. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, there could have been a better focus of the book; on Hillary.
March 27, 2016
A picture book bio that celebrates all of Hillary Clinton's many achievements and helps readers understand how she was raised and what has motivated her to make history with her accomplishments.
Watercolor, colored pencils, and lithograph crayons were used to render the illustrations.
I really loved the way the text incorporated quotes from people around the world who have been touched by Hillary's work, and the pages leading up to the title page give this biography an epic build up.
An author's note is included. Recommended for grades 2-4+.
Watercolor, colored pencils, and lithograph crayons were used to render the illustrations.
I really loved the way the text incorporated quotes from people around the world who have been touched by Hillary's work, and the pages leading up to the title page give this biography an epic build up.
An author's note is included. Recommended for grades 2-4+.
September 7, 2016
An inspiring account of Hillary's contributions to politics and the world, especially in regard to women's rights.
October 9, 2016
It was OK. Felt more like propaganda than a biography. The three woman figures at the beginning of the text seemed like odd choices (Queen Elizabeth I, Joan of Arc, and the fictional Rosie the Riveter...not even listed in chronological order ...). Furthermore, there's no bibliography--only an author's note. I will say that I LOVED the illustrations.
Bottom line--it was only OK. This book could be used with upper elementary students to start good discussions, but I'm sure there are better biographies of Clinton out there.
Bottom line--it was only OK. This book could be used with upper elementary students to start good discussions, but I'm sure there are better biographies of Clinton out there.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews