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Pink: A Women's March Story
Celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Women's March with this delightful multigenerational picture book about female empowerment.
Lina notices her grandmother knitting with pink yarn and soon learns that she’s making special hats to wear at an important march to celebrate women and their rights. Even though she sometimes feels small, Lina learns how to knit her own pink hat, and her confidence begins to build. When Lina and her family join the Women’s March in Washington, DC, she is energized by the crowd and the sea of pink hats. It’s amazing to see so many people all knitted together! And as Lina marches, she feels much bigger than she ever has before. Celebrate the importance of the Women’s March with young children in Virginia Zimmerman’s and Mary Newell DePalma’s remarkable and empowering story about one girl’s journey from knitting a hat to making a difference.
Lina notices her grandmother knitting with pink yarn and soon learns that she’s making special hats to wear at an important march to celebrate women and their rights. Even though she sometimes feels small, Lina learns how to knit her own pink hat, and her confidence begins to build. When Lina and her family join the Women’s March in Washington, DC, she is energized by the crowd and the sea of pink hats. It’s amazing to see so many people all knitted together! And as Lina marches, she feels much bigger than she ever has before. Celebrate the importance of the Women’s March with young children in Virginia Zimmerman’s and Mary Newell DePalma’s remarkable and empowering story about one girl’s journey from knitting a hat to making a difference.
40 pages, Hardcover
Published January 4, 2022
37 people want to read
About the author
Virginia Zimmerman
4 books52 followersVirginia Zimmerman grew up in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., though she was named for a great aunt, not for her state. When she was young, she enjoyed writing and talking to friends about books, so she decided to grow up into a person who could do those things all the time. She was an English major at Carleton College, and she went to graduate school in English at the University of Virginia. All together, she enjoyed twenty years of formal education, much of it focused on reading.
When she finished school, she wasn’t done reading, writing and talking to friends about books, so she became an English professor at Bucknell University. This means—and she still pinches herself to make sure this is real—she gets to read and write and talk about books for a living. Most of the classes she teaches are about British literature from the nineteenth century or children’s fiction. She loves both.
Virginia also loves Catalunya, a beautiful region in the northeast corner of Spain. Her husband, Jordi, is part of a large and wonderful Catalan family, and, for twenty years, Virginia has been traveling with him to visit Barcelona and lots of picturesque villages in the mountains, the countryside and on the Mediterranean Sea. The family has become her own, and Catalunya has become her second home.
Virginia’s first home is a two-hundred-year-old house in a small town on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania, where she gets to read and write and talk about books with dear friends, inspiring students and beloved family. She lives with her husband, three children and little white dog.
When she finished school, she wasn’t done reading, writing and talking to friends about books, so she became an English professor at Bucknell University. This means—and she still pinches herself to make sure this is real—she gets to read and write and talk about books for a living. Most of the classes she teaches are about British literature from the nineteenth century or children’s fiction. She loves both.
Virginia also loves Catalunya, a beautiful region in the northeast corner of Spain. Her husband, Jordi, is part of a large and wonderful Catalan family, and, for twenty years, Virginia has been traveling with him to visit Barcelona and lots of picturesque villages in the mountains, the countryside and on the Mediterranean Sea. The family has become her own, and Catalunya has become her second home.
Virginia’s first home is a two-hundred-year-old house in a small town on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania, where she gets to read and write and talk about books with dear friends, inspiring students and beloved family. She lives with her husband, three children and little white dog.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 10, 2022
I really liked the illustrations in this book, and also the realistic way in which the current political climate was communicated in an accessible way to the main character. However, I took issue with the fact that the book centered around the issues of cishet women, which was also a common critique of the Women's March. I think this book would have been strengthened by shedding light on this shortcoming.
August 22, 2022
A few sweet introduction to activism. Which is amazing considering the utterly foul quote that galvanized the whole Pink Hat movement. The fact that this book manages to convey the importance of activism with the fun and challenge of knitting without getting into anything truly unpleasant is miraculous.
January 16, 2022
In a beautiful combination of pictures of yarn and illustrations, we are shown a moment in recent history revolving around a little girl named Lina, her curiosity, and her Grandma's knitting.
Lina's questions are full of childlike simplicity and a child's desire to learn. Her Grandma answers her questions in a way she can understand, and helps her keep trying when a her first knitting project is difficult.
*This book is from the view of a girl probably around age 7 or 8, and shows a white nuclear family (Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister) who participate in an event Grandma is passionate about.*
Lina's questions are full of childlike simplicity and a child's desire to learn. Her Grandma answers her questions in a way she can understand, and helps her keep trying when a her first knitting project is difficult.
*This book is from the view of a girl probably around age 7 or 8, and shows a white nuclear family (Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister) who participate in an event Grandma is passionate about.*
January 27, 2022
As an avid knitter who attended the Women's March on Washington, I am so excited to share this book with my 3-year-old daughter! While I didn't knit the hat I wore to the march (I already had a pink one with special meaning for me), I was just recently thinking about knitting matching ones for me and my daughter. This book will be such a wonderful way to teach her about the hats and what they mean! Thanks for this lovely and uplifting book.
January 30, 2022
Grandma is knitting pink hats for the entire family--even Dad and big brother are going to the Women's March of 2017! This age appropriate explanation of this historic event blends with a celebration of family and knitting that young readers will enjoy.
Reviewer 12
Reviewer 12
January 12, 2022
This book is (obviously) about the 2017 Women's March, a feminism-themed anti-Trump protest in Washington which was a part of the #metoo phenomenon. Despite its size and favorable coverage in the media, it did not have much impact in the popular consciousness and is mostly remembered outside of progressive circles for the distinctive "p-ssy hats" that participants wore.
In the story, an ethnically ambiguous child and her family make these hats and then go to the Orange One's inauguration to protest; there, she learns that, despite opposition from bad men, girls can work together to make the world better. Despite its content, the book has some pedagogical value. There are many illustrations of knitting, and this may be a good resource for parents who would like to introduce their children to the hobby. It also shows and names some of the many shades of pink, which is not so useful for artistically-inclined six year olds, but I suppose it doesn't hurt. The illustrator has combined photography and illustration very skillfully, and it was pleasant to look at. However, I will not be giving this to my 4 year old niece, who is not being raised with "girl-coded" toys, and the abundance of pink here positively screams "this is for girls!"
But my assessment of this as a children's book doesn't matter. Despite the format and writing, the highly politicized, yet dated story suggests that this is not a children's book at all, but something meant for progressive millennials who read children's literature for pleasure and as a way to display their virtue (recall the rejection of Harry Potter novels after J.K. Rowling's fall from grace). There are other examples of this - She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton, the Heartstopper series, and so on. Adults reading children's literature recreationally is, in my opinion, a growing problem. The people I have met who do this have poor reading skills and don't seem to be able to engage with complex ideas or writing very well. It also seems to be comorbid with social media addiction, and I suspect that they feed into each other. In other words, while it may be harmless to young children, Pink: A Women's March and books like it are toxic for adults.
In the story, an ethnically ambiguous child and her family make these hats and then go to the Orange One's inauguration to protest; there, she learns that, despite opposition from bad men, girls can work together to make the world better. Despite its content, the book has some pedagogical value. There are many illustrations of knitting, and this may be a good resource for parents who would like to introduce their children to the hobby. It also shows and names some of the many shades of pink, which is not so useful for artistically-inclined six year olds, but I suppose it doesn't hurt. The illustrator has combined photography and illustration very skillfully, and it was pleasant to look at. However, I will not be giving this to my 4 year old niece, who is not being raised with "girl-coded" toys, and the abundance of pink here positively screams "this is for girls!"
But my assessment of this as a children's book doesn't matter. Despite the format and writing, the highly politicized, yet dated story suggests that this is not a children's book at all, but something meant for progressive millennials who read children's literature for pleasure and as a way to display their virtue (recall the rejection of Harry Potter novels after J.K. Rowling's fall from grace). There are other examples of this - She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton, the Heartstopper series, and so on. Adults reading children's literature recreationally is, in my opinion, a growing problem. The people I have met who do this have poor reading skills and don't seem to be able to engage with complex ideas or writing very well. It also seems to be comorbid with social media addiction, and I suspect that they feed into each other. In other words, while it may be harmless to young children, Pink: A Women's March and books like it are toxic for adults.
June 16, 2022
Pros first: I like that this is a multigenerational family and that all of them go to the women's march together. The big sister angle was cute.
Cons: this was...clunky. It's already dated, which is expected, but it didn't tie this event to anything going forward, only to the past, which means it is only going to get more dated. It is told in a combination of speech bubbles and text that feels like it overexplains, making it a pretty clunky read aloud. And I'm not sure the mixed media illustrations worked for me.
I don't think I love the use of the full term pussyhat in a book for young children, but I think that's my issue so I won't fault the book for that.
Cons: this was...clunky. It's already dated, which is expected, but it didn't tie this event to anything going forward, only to the past, which means it is only going to get more dated. It is told in a combination of speech bubbles and text that feels like it overexplains, making it a pretty clunky read aloud. And I'm not sure the mixed media illustrations worked for me.
I don't think I love the use of the full term pussyhat in a book for young children, but I think that's my issue so I won't fault the book for that.
September 21, 2023
Even though the content might be a little more complex it is a good book to show and read in history. I even have an idea how to make an activity with it. By taking poloraids of my students. Blow them up and put them on cardstock. Then each kid will be gluing pink string on top of their heads.
This book is an amazing history book to have for Kindergarten all the way up the 2nd or more.
This book is an amazing history book to have for Kindergarten all the way up the 2nd or more.
February 21, 2022
The story of the January 2017 Women's March in DC.
Shows a young girl learning to knit to make her own hat and her family (including dad and brother) marching with them.
The illustrations include knitted hats, yarn, and textiles as well as painted pictures.
Shows a young girl learning to knit to make her own hat and her family (including dad and brother) marching with them.
The illustrations include knitted hats, yarn, and textiles as well as painted pictures.
March 4, 2022
Good story for Women's month - March
May 3, 2022
This book sure showed up at an opportune time. It'll be on display in my school library.
Read
May 15, 2022Mostly glosses over the meaning of the Women’s March with the majority of the background characters skewing white.
September 1, 2022
Love the collage illustrations with actual knitting capturing an important piece of history
November 3, 2022
A family prepares for and then attends the women's march in Washington DC. Elementary and up
January 6, 2026
I loved this book, especially for Women's History Month. It combines illustrations with real photos of knitting. Enjoy!
June 28, 2025
Loved this book! It was very empowering.
February 28, 2022
Lovely illustrations
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews