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  • “A Seat at the Table: The Nancy Pelosi Story” by...

    “A Seat at the Table: The Nancy Pelosi Story” by Elisa Boxer, illustrated by Laura Freeman, is fascinating and inspiring.

  • “A Life Electric: The Story of Nikola Tesla” by Azadeh...

    “A Life Electric: The Story of Nikola Tesla” by Azadeh Westtergaard, illustrated by Julia Sard?, will inspire readers on many levels.

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The Cambridge Dictionary defines inspire as “to make someone feel that they want to do something and can do it.” We all draw inspiration from a variety of sources, and one excellent avenue for children is to read books that are true stories of people who worked hard for what they believed in. That’s what you’ll find in the books reviewed today.

Inspire the children in your care: read to them.

Books to borrow

The following book is available at many public libraries.

“Forbidden Schoolhouse: The True and Dramatic Story of Prudence Crandall and Her Students” by Suzanne Jurmain, Houghton Mifflin, 126 pages

Read aloud: age 8 – 9 and older.

Read yourself: age 9 and older.

In 1833, the villagers and town authorities in Canterbury, Conn., considered Prudence Crandall a criminal. Her “crime” was opening and operating one of the first African American schools in America. Filled with tremendous hate for Miss Crandall and her students, people threw rotten eggs and rocks at the school windows, screamed insults, pounded on the doors with iron bars, threw manure in the school well, and tried to burn the schoolhouse down. Miss Crandall was hauled off to jail and put on trial for breaking the law. Throughout it all, Prudence Crandall persisted because she knew she was right.

An extraordinary true story of a bold and courageous woman and her equally courageous students, this important selection is rich on many levels.

Librarian’s choice

Library: Schuylkill Valley Community Library, 1310 Washington Road, Bern Township

Library director: Christie Himmelreich

Youth librarian: Kelly Jacoby

Choices this week: “How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow” by Wendell Minor; “Whose Nose Is This?” by Peg Hall; “F is for Firefighting” by Dori Butler

Books to buy

The following books are available at favorite bookstores.

“A Life Electric: The Story of Nikola Tesla” by Azadeh Westtergaard, illustrated by Julia Sard?, Viking, 2021, 40 pages, $17.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 6 – 9.

Read yourself: age 7 – 9.

Nikola Tesla was born at midnight on July 10, 1856, during a storm of thunder and lightning. His nurse said he would be a child of the storm, but his mother said he would be a child of light. Little did either know that Nikola would grow up to be one of the most important electrical inventors in the world.

As a child, Nikola had many friends and loved all animals, his favorite one being his pet cat. When he was three, Nikola stroked his cat and caused static electricity that he could see and hear. From that moment on, Nikola was fascinated with electricity. He was also constantly inventing things. By the time he was eight, Nikola fell in love with books, read everything he could get his hands on, and remembered it all.

Nikola eventually entered college and studied his passion – electrical engineering. For years he pondered how to develop a motor that would send electric current along a wire, forward and then backward over long distances. One day the solution came to him like a lightning bolt, and his invention became the very thing that would power the world – then and to this very day.

A fascinating story of a man who resolutely followed his dreams and never waivered in his love for animals, “A Life Electric: The Story of Nikola Tesla” is beautifully written and illustrated and strongly lends itself to inspiring readers on many levels.

“A Seat at the Table: The Nancy Pelosi Story” by Elisa Boxer, illustrated by Laura Freeman, Crown, 2021, 36 pages, $17.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 7 – 10.

Read yourself: age 7 – 10.

Growing up, Nancy Pelosi was the daughter of the mayor of Baltimore. Every week, her father invited strangers to join him, have a seat at their dining room table to listen to their problems. Nancy’s mother listened as well and was even more active and helpful in this pursuit by assisting people with their needs and always showing them their value.

Nancy was greatly influenced by all of this and without knowing it, she was becoming a politician in the making. Nancy married and while raising five children, was very active helping candidates win elections. When her friend asked her to run for Congress, Nancy was stunned, but her friend knew Nancy was the perfect choice because she knew Nancy would work to help immigrants and other families that needed help.

In 1987, Nancy Pelosi was sworn in as a U.S. congresswoman, and she immediately began to fight for all the things she knew the people and her country needed. Twenty years later, Nancy wanted more. She didn’t just want a seat at the table, she wanted a seat at the head of the table, and in 2007, was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, the highest-ranking female in the history of U.S. federal government.

On sale Tuesday, “A Seat at the Table: The Nancy Pelosi Story” is thoroughly fascinating and inspiring in every way.

Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children’s literature. She can be reached at kendal.rautzhan27@gmail.com

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