Cline-Ransome then describes the array of roles Tubman played throughout her life, including suffragist, abolitionist, Union spy, and conductor on the Underground Railroad. “But before wrinkles formed / and her eyes failed,” Tubman could walk tirelessly under a starlit sky. In free verse, Cline-Ransome narrates the life of Harriet Tubman, starting and ending with a train ride Tubman takes as an old woman. All characters depicted are white.Ī loving and informative tribute worthy of celebrating Cleary’s 103rd year of life.Ī memorable, lyrical reverse-chronological walk through the life of an American icon. Hohn captures her lively spirit through illustrations, reminiscent of those by Alan Tiegreen for Cleary’s own books, that will keep young readers entertained.

Cleary was determined to pursue the profession she had dreamed of since childhood, as explained in the backmatter and timeline. This informative and visually appealing account of Beverly Cleary’s path to children’s librarian and then author includes humorous details from her childhood that found their ways into the tales of her beloved characters. But a wonderful second-grade teacher helped her learn to read and to enjoy school, which changed everything. She fell further behind when she got smallpox and finished first grade barely able to read. She started school at Fernwood Grammar School, but as a struggling reader and a left-handed writer, Beverly found first grade challenging and unpleasant.

The family moved to Portland when Beverly was 6, and there she finally had playmates. Beverly’s hunger for new stories prompted her mother to start a children’s library in town. As she grew, books became her close companions, and the few she had, her mother read to her repeatedly. A picture-book biography that illustrates how Beverly Cleary created art from her life.īeverly grew up on a farm near Yamhill, Oregon, feeding the chickens-her friends in lieu of nearby playmates.

Just Like Beverly by Vicki Conrad