Although Lavinia became famous as a “human oddity,” Raum keeps the tale focused on her lively attitude and determination to...
Born in 1841 to white parents of relatively tall stature, Mercy Lavinia Bump—later known as Lavinia Warren—was, at the age of 10, just 2 feet tall and weighed only 20 pounds.
Although Lavinia initially taught school when she reached the age of 16, a river showboat operator persuaded her to join his troupe as a “living curiosity.” The onset of the Civil War soon put an end to that kind of entertainment. Later, P.T. Barnum convinced her to join his New York City museum, where she attracted large admiring audiences. While working for Barnum, she met another little person, Charley Stratton, who toured as “Tom Thumb.” Charley and Lavinia married just months later and toured through most of the rest of their lives, enjoying the unique experiences that their travels offered. Numerous period illustrations accompany the interesting story. Although the interleaved inclusion of some historical (occasionally oversimplified) information helps keep Lavinia’s life grounded in the context of the period, a text box introducing Massachusetts governor John Albion Andrew and his commissioning of the black 54th Massachusetts Regiment seems to have no connection to the story, serving as an instructive but unnecessary interruption. Excellent backmatter rounds out this engaging tale of an unusual and spirited woman.
Although Lavinia became famous as a “human oddity,” Raum keeps the tale focused on her lively attitude and determination to use her exceptional size to achieve a stimulating life. (Biography. 10-14)Pub Date: Sept. 4, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-912777-50-4
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
This lively look at escapades of daring men—and a surprising number of women—who risked their lives flying in balloons will appeal to adventure, history and science buffs—and perhaps steampunk fans as well. Each of the nine chapters, which are chronologically arranged, focuses on an exciting story, starting with the first confirmed human balloon flight in 1783, which landed safely, and ending with Dolly Shepherd, a young British woman in the early 1900s who parachuted out of balloons, hanging onto a trapeze. It recounts longest flights and highest ones, flights across water and to far-off points, some of which ended in death. An accidental balloon flight in 1858 of an eight-year-old girl and her younger brother, both of whom survived the 13-hour journey, will especially intrigue readers and lends itself well to booktalking. The conversational narrative, which often refers to the adventurers’ childhoods, incorporates ample quotes and anecdotes as well as explanations of such topics as buoyancy, hydrogen and altitude sickness. Useful captions accompany the many full-color illustrations of artwork and photographs. (notes, bibliography) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: Sept. 28, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-374-37014-5
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2010
Born in 1880 in a tiny backwater in Alabama, Helen Keller lived a life familiar to many from the play and movie The Miracle Worker, as well as countless biographies. There’s no denying the drama in the story of the deaf and blind child for whom the world of language became possible through a dedicated and fanatically stubborn teacher, Annie Sullivan. But Helen’s life after that is even more remarkable: she went to high school and then to Radcliffe; she was a radical political thinker and a member of the Wobblies; she supported herself by lecture tours and vaudeville excursions as well as through the kindness of many. Dash (The Longitude Prize, p. 1483) does a clear-sighted and absorbing job of examining Annie’s prickly personality and the tender family that she, Helen, and Annie’s husband John Macy formed. She touches on the family pressures that conspired to keep Helen from her own pursuit of love and marriage; she makes vivid not only Helen’s brilliant and vibrant intelligence and personality, but the support of many people who loved her, cared for her, and served her. She also does not shrink from the describing the social and class divisions that kept some from crediting Annie Sullivan and others intent on making Helen into a puppet and no more. Riveting reading for students in need of inspiration, or who’re overcoming disability or studying changing expectations for women. (Biography. 10-14)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-590-90715-8
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2000
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