Good Girls Don't Make History

by Elizabeth Kiehner, Kara Coyle, Keith Olwell (Created by), Micaela Dawn (Illustrator)

Overview

History has rarely been told from a woman’s point of view. 

Good Girls Don’t Make History  is an important graphic novel that amplifies the voices of female legends from 1840 to the present day. 
 
Reliving moments from the lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, and Susan B. Anthony, these inspiring stories are boldly told from one of the most formative eras in women’s history—the fight for the vote in the United States.

The tale begins at a modern-day polling station in California with a mother and daughter voting together, then flashes back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention where the women's movement got its legendary start.
 
The twists and turns take readers across the country and through time, illuminating parallels between epic battles for liberty in the past and similar struggles for justice today. 
 
A powerful and important examination of some key figures in the ongoing fight for equality, Good Girls Don’t Make History’s accounts of bravery, perseverance and courage are truly inspiring for readers of any age.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780711271647
Publisher:	Wide Eyed Editions
Publication date:	08/31/2021
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	1,058,276
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Elizabeth Kiehner is the co-author of Good Girls Don't Make History. A Future of Work leader by day, graphic novel creator by night, she received her bachelor of arts in visual media and literature from American University. She is a 20-year New York City resident, and a lover of music, beaches, and the empowerment of women and girls. Kiehner sits on the board of Upward, SheSays and Women in Tech. She believes that investing in women and underrepresented communities will change the world, and she aspires to reshape conversations inside and outside of the boardroom to drive true equality. You can chat with Liz on Twitter or Instagram at @kiehner

Kara Coyle is an award-winning creative director and writer. Working in the advertising industry, she has been named by Cannes Lions as one of the top future female creative leaders worldwide.

Micaela is an award-winning freelance illustrator. Her work has been featured in magazines, on book covers, and in several international galleries.  She also has a passion for developing art that comments on the continued need for diversity while helping empower women and minorities. Good Girls Don't Make History speaks to her desire for equality and the promotion of women’s rights. 

Editorial Reviews

12/03/2021

Gr 6–9—Opening at a modern-day polling place, a brown-skinned mother and daughter wait in a long line to cast their vote. The mother reminds her daughter that while waiting in line is frustrating, voting is doing and that nearly 100 years ago, women had just been granted their voting rights. Told in flashbacks between present and historical vignettes, the book details the evolution of the women's rights movement and the fight for the right to vote. Historical figures such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, and Emmeline Pankhurst are brought to life, and Kiehner follows the trajectory of history, from the Seneca Falls Convention through the ratification of the 19th Amendment that banned sex-based voter discrimination in the 20th century. The narrative focuses mainly on white woman suffragettes, touching only briefly on the work of Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, and the influence of Native American Iroquois women on the mainstream movement. Where the graphic novel succeeds is in Dawn's artwork; each frame is at once dreamy and dynamic. The soft illustrations complement the historical narrative, adding depth and dimension to the facial expressions of each figure, heightening the emotion. While this graphic novel may not be as hard-hitting as it could be in calling out the racial disparity of the women's rights movement, readers will benefit from the lengthy historical time line included in a single graphic novel. VERDICT Middle schoolers seeking to get their feet wet with historical nonfiction will appreciate this work.—Elise Martinez

School Library Journal

08/30/2021

In one fictional vignette of this nonfiction graphic novel, a modern-day girl’s complaint about the length of a voting line results in her mother replying, “It took nearly 100 years to get this right.” Flashing back to the past, the narrative centers Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organizing the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, the founding meeting of the women’s rights movement in the U.S. Kiehner, Olwell, and Coyle highlight oft-told dramatic moments in the history of women’s suffrage activism, from the 1840s through the 1920 ratification of the 19th Amendment, prohibiting sex-based voting discrimination. The narrative focuses largely on well-known white women such as Susan B. Anthony, Victoria Woodhull, Inez Milholland, and Alice Paul, as well as several portraits of Black women’s suffrage activists, such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Sojourner Truth, and Ida B. Wells. Luscious illustrations by Dawn present a rich range of expressions and dynamic angles. Unfortunately, the book upholds a tired narrative of white women’s suffrage activism, failing to point out the large degree of racism and white supremacy present within the movement, and eliding the many significant contributions of Black women, such as Ida B. Wells’s founding of the Alpha Suffrage Club. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 12–up. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

Middle schoolers seeking to get their feet wet with historical nonfiction will appreciate this work.”—School Library Journal

‘An intersectional graphic novel covering the history of women’s suffrage in the US, beginning at a modern-day polling station before flashing back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention.’—The Bookseller

From the Publisher