This latest entry in the Historical American Biographies series is a one-dimensional treatment of the wife of the fourth president of the United States. Pflueger (Stonewall Jackson, 1997) begins by describing how Dolley Madison courageously refused to leave Washington, D.C., in August 1814 when British troops were approaching, intent on saving her husband’s presidential papers and a valuable portrait of George Washington. That vignette is the last evidence—and discussion—of her courage. Dolley was raised as a Quaker and sent to a Quaker school, which was unusual for girls at that time. At her father’s bidding, she married a lawyer, John Todd, but Todd and one of two sons died during a yellow fever epidemic. She was 26 when she married James Madison (he was 43) and became “the sixth member of her family to be disowned by the Society of Friends” for marrying outside her faith. Dolley began wearing stylish clothes to please her husband and also entertained often; Pflueger sums up Dolley Madison’s importance as “our nation’s greatest hostess. She defined the role of First Lady for future presidents’ wives and inspired them with her gracious manners and patriotism.” But what about her father’s bankruptcy and outcast status, or that Dolley’s son was in debtor’s prison, an alcoholic who forged a will in an attempt to contest Dolley’s? These details are glossed over and will leave readers wondering about the superficial treatment of an obviously complex person. (b&w reproductions, maps, chronology, notes, glossary, further reading, index) (Biography. 11-13)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7660-1092-9
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Enslow
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brief discussion of the development and persistence of gender roles acts as an introduction to this excellent overview of what it has meant to be a girl in this country, from pre-colonial times to the present. Colman (Rosie the Riveter, 1995, etc.) never resorts to a generic ideal or tells the story as if she is speaking of an “everygirl”; instead, she allows a narrative to emerge from the histories and words of real people, from every social, ethnic, and economic level in the US. Some of the subjects and speakers are well-known, others are not (although they probably ought to be), but all are interesting and inspiring. Alice Greenough, daughter of “Packsaddle Ben” Greenough, grew up in the turn-of-the- century Montana wilderness where she did all the things her brothers did; Mary Elizabeth Bowser, a young black woman, worked with Elizabeth Van Lew, a middle-aged white woman, as spies for the Union army; Lilac Chen, a former prostitute in 19th- century San Francisco, tells how her own father sold her into slavery in China when she was only 6; and Yvonne “Eve” Blue, an obviously anorexic 14-year-old, maintained her gaunt frame by limiting herself to 140 calories a day—in 1926. These and dozens of other fascinating people offer more insight into gender roles better than any history text or sociological treatise, in lively writing that is greatly enhanced by page after page of black-and-white photographs, an extensive list of further reading, and a good index. A must-have for most collections. (Nonfiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: March 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-590-37129-0
Page Count: 192
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
After years of normal living, a teenager learns he has epilepsy and has to cope not just with the disease, but with the side effects, including the hostility of his peers. High schooler Lefty has an epileptic seizure while hanging out with his best friend, Reuben, and must subsequently learn to live with the disease, deal with medication, make lifestyle changes, overcome his own fear, as well as that of family and friends, and face his peers. What little action there is in this marathon talkfest concerns Lefty and his friends (including his 12-year-old brother) smoking and drinking. In his tough, working-class neighborhood this is considered perfectly normal, and the author never counters that. Most of readers’ efforts may be spent trying to keep track of the many characters: Lefty’s friends and brothers, his mother’s tough-as-nails girlfriends, neighbors, classmates, medical personnel, etc. When Lefty, a budding writer, pens an imaginary dialogue between two elderly neighbors and a would-be mugger, the story picks up; otherwise this is a flat and emotionally distant bull session that, though extended, leads nowhere. (Fiction. 11-13)
Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2000
ISBN: 1-55143-166-1
Page Count: 215
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
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