50 Unbelievable Women and Their Fascinating (and True!) Stories

by Saundra Mitchell

Overview

From Tina Fey to Vera Wang, and Oprah Winfrey to Maria TallChief, 50 incredible ladies who shaped our history!

"The arrangement of contemporary figures alongside those from the distant past should help give readers the sense that history is unfolding all around them."—Publishers Weekly

A compilation of biographies profiling some of the most intrepid women in history and today. From athletes, comediennes, and TV personalities, to world leaders, political figures, and activists, these women paved the way for future generations and have proven that hard work and passion will help you achieve just about anything. Chock full of interesting facts and bursts of trivia, plus a glossary and a fun quiz are sure to entertain and inform!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780147518125
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	03/29/2016
Series:	They Did What? Series
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	728,226
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.70(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

About the Author

Saundra Mitchell is absolutely, completely, totally crazy about history. If you come to her hometown of Indianapolis, she'll show you the streets named after 19th century trolley stops, where Civil War prisoners were kept, and where the first European cemetery in town used to be. (That's right, they moved it! How creepy is that?) When she's not geeking out about history, she's writing novels for young adults, flipping out about pop culture with her best friend, and seriously embarrassing her kids. Find out more about her at www.saundramitchell.com and follow her on Twitter @SaundraMitchell.l

Editorial Reviews

11/30/2015
Striking a witty and celebratory tone, Mitchell (Mistwalker) shares 50 brief stories about influential women past and present, including Joan Baez, Marie Curie, Frida Kahlo, Billie Jean King, Oprah Winfrey, and Minnie Spotted Wolf—the first Native American woman in the Marine Corps. Roughly three pages each, the entries are just rough sketches, but they still include intriguing details that might inspire readers to further research (Vera Wang turned to fashion after failing to become a professional ice-skater, and her future designs would include skating costumes). The arrangement of contemporary figures alongside those from the distant past should help give readers the sense that history is unfolding all around them. Available simultaneously: 50 Impressive Kids and Their Amazing (and True!) Stories. Ages 10–up. Author’s agent: Jim McCarthy, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for They Did What? 50 Unbelievable Women and Their Fascinating (and True!) Stories

"Striking a witty and celebratory tone, Mitchell shares 50 brief stories about influential women past and present . . . The arrangement of contemporary figures alongside those from the distant past should help give readers the sense that history is unfolding all around them."—Publishers Weekly


"Spanning every field from politics to fashion design, this book offers a lengthy list of fearless and remarkable females. Women, contemporary and historical, from all corners of the globe are included . . . The narratives are brief, limited to two or three pages, designed to whet the curiosity of readers . . .  Fast paced and high interest, this collective biography utilizes stories of compassion, cunning, and bravery to explore what it means to be not just an accomplished woman but an accomplished human being."—Booklist 

"Saundra Mitchell has created 50 fascinating biographical vignettes from across history to entertain, amaze, and ignite the reader’s curiosity to learn more . . .  [readers] will love it because of the anecdotal nature of the stories."—School Library Connection


"Chock-full of trivial tidbits . . . Young people . . . will likely enjoy browsing the book."—VOYA

From the Publisher

2015-11-03
A collection of biographies of 50 famous and not-so-famous females, both living and very long dead, who share a common thread of being strong—although not always admirable—women. Those (not all meritorious) sharing the limelight are a disparate group. They range from about 15 women from long ago, such as the Trung sisters, leaders in first-century Vietnam, and Countess Erzsébet Báthory, a prolific mass murderer in 17th-century Hungary, to contemporary women, including performers Ellen DeGeneres, Joan Baez, and Tina Fey. Business leaders (Anna Maria Chávez, Sheryl Sandberg, Suze Orman, and Estée Lauder), such scientists as Marie Curie and Ellen Ochoa, political activists, artists, and world leaders round out the group. A majority of the subjects are women of color—a very nice touch. Although the factual information seems accurate, these highly condensed biographies (some just one to two pages long) lack room for the nuances that characterize lives. Suppositions, especially regarding women who lived centuries ago, are presented as facts. Unnecessary sentence fragments and abundant exclamation points create an unfortunate flavor of Ripley's Believe It or Not-style ephemera. The exclamation points sometimes seem to diminish accomplishments: "Now, [Ellen] DeGeneres has the life she always wanted. She's famous, she's special—and people like her!" Only four attractive, caricaturelike illustrations were available for review. Primarily entertaining rather than informative, these slick, superficial biographies are more fluff than substance. (bibliography, personality-type quiz, vocabulary guide) (Collective biography. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews

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