She Persisted: Bethany Hamilton

She Persisted

by Maryann Cocca-Leffler, Chelsea Clinton, Alexandra Boiger (Illustrations)

Inspired by the #1 New York Times bestseller She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton and Alexandra Boiger, a chapter book series about women who spoke up and rose up against the odds--including Bethany Hamilton!

Bethany Hamilton learned to surf when she was three years old, and she joined—and won—many surfing competitions as a child. When she was thirteen, while she was surfing one morning, a shark suddenly attacked her and bit off her left arm. Through hard work, courage, and faith, Bethany persisted and went on to reach her dream of becoming a professional surfer. Along the way, she used her experience to provide inspiration and comfort to surfers and non-surfers alike.

In this chapter book biography by award-winning author Maryann Cocca-Leffler, readers learn about the amazing life of Bethany Hamilton--and how she persisted . 

Complete with an introduction from Chelsea Clinton, black-and-white illustrations throughout, and a list of ways that readers can follow in Bethany Hamilton's footsteps and make a difference! A perfect choice for kids who love learning and teachers who want to bring inspiring women into their curriculum.

And don’t miss out on the rest of the books in the She Persisted series, featuring so many more women who persisted, including Harriet Tubman, Marian Anderson, Oprah Winfrey, Ruby Bridges, and more!

Genres: Nonfiction, Childrens

96 pages, Paperback

Published July 4, 2023

About the author

Maryann Cocca-Leffler of NH, is the Author and Illustrator of over
60 books for children. Maryann’s book, Janine (2015) and its new sequel, Janine and the Field Day Finish (2016), were inspired by her daughter, Janine. Together they have developed a corresponding website, www.janinesparty.com with a mission to help change public perception of children with disabilities. Other books include, A Homemade Together Christmas, Bus Route to Boston and Bravery Soup.
Now a playwright, Maryann wrote a play based on her Princess KIM books. Princess K.I.M. The Musical won a National New Play Festival in 2012 and has had sold out performances on the East and West coasts. Princess K.I.M. The Musical is now represented by Stagerights.com, a licensing agency in LA to bring the play National.

Maryann grew up in the Boston area (read Bus Route To Boston!) and attended Massachusetts College of Art and Design where she received a BFA in Illustration. Her very first book, Thanksgiving at the Tappletons’ written by Eileen Spinelli, was published in 1982 and has been re-released in 2015 as a classic. When not in her studio, Maryann is traveling, visiting schools and attending her play.

If you are interested in a school visit, please check out the VISITS link on my website:
www.MaryannCoccaLeffler.com
www.JaninesParty.com
www.PrincessKimTheMusical.com

Reviews

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

This chapter book biography of Bethany Hamilton shares her inspiring story with young readers. The illustrations are cute and appealing, and the book writes about the shark attack and Bethany's medical recovery in an accurate way without making this too intense for the intended age group. I also appreciated the representation of Bethany's Christian faith throughout the book. Since this book is part of a secular series, I expected the author to gloss over the faith element, but it gets an appropriate level of emphasis.

[Ellon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars (I liked it)

I was interesting to learn more about Bethany Hamilton, especially since maybe of the women featured in the She Persisted series are not contemporary. There was an uncomfortable (for me at least) amount of text devoted to Bethany's faith in this book. I can understand that it's important to her but the way Cocca-Leffler wrote it seemed more like she was promoting Christianity.

[Doug · Rating 5 out of 5]

A young hero. Wonderful true life story. She persisted is a great series.

[Kelly Philpott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book to my kids. We finished it in two sittings because they were so engaged in Bethany's story. 5 Stars. I Love her. She is so inspiring.

[Cadee · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I learned a lot of things about how Bethany was strong enough in her faith to know that god can do anything." -Cadee, age 11

[Rene Del Bosque Moncayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ella una gran surisfta luego de ser atscada por un tiburón y perder un brazo logra levantarse y seguir compitiendo con solo un brazo

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

True story of a talented, brave girl, who grew up to be a talented and brave woman. A Cristian at a young age. So proud of her accomplishments.

She lost an arm at 13 when surfing, and made a comeback. Amazing story. She is living a full life with a husband and children, and with Christ. CathyR

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story about Bethany Hamilton was another great addition to the She Persisted chapter series. To be honest, I knew nothing about her, so all the information was new to me. I think the medical information and the resulted trauma was presented in an appropriate way for the target audience. It wasn't too graphic and the author shed a positive light on it. I did find the focus on her religion to be a bit much and I don't think it was necessary. It is a very inspiring story about a female surfer who loses her arm from a shark attack and overcomes the obstacles that she faces due to her devastating injury.

[Emmy Billmann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book and I gave it three stars because I think overall it is really cool how they tell what they had to do and how she got by the shark but I think that I just don’t want to kiss history best for me, but it was just my opinion, but I think it was really well written and I think it is cool to learn about how that happened to her