Gender Equality Archives

I spotted someone talking about this book over on Instagram a few weeks ago and liked the look of it so much that I just had a to buy a copy. Thank you to The HSP Bookshelf for bringing it to our attention!

Little girls are constantly told that they are beautiful and of course this is true, but this comes with a lot of pressure for girls to conform to society’s idea of beauty. This empowering book takes the concept of beauty and turns it on its head.

The words give a very old-fashioned view of what it means to be beautiful – you should be well dressed, good with make up, well behaved, smiling and sweet smelling. However the wonderful illustrations tell a different story and give you a thoroughly modern and healthy take on beauty.

The star of this story is a little girl called Florence who shows promise at all things sporty from a very young age. Spotting her potential, her father nurtures her abilities and together they have lots of fun practising running and throwing.

However when Florence starts school she is immediately faced with prejudice. A little boy called Frank tells her that girls are rubbish at sport and that boys are better and stronger. He tells everyone that it must be true because this is what his dad says.

Enraged, Florence challenges Frank to a race after school. Can Florence prove that boys and girls are equal or will Frank’s outdated opinions win the day?

This is an empowering book about gender equality with something for both girls and boys to enjoy. The intelligent rhyme is coupled with gorgeous illustrations (by Jacquie Hughes)and the message is one that I wish we saw more of in children’s literature today. Girls are strong enough and smart enough to look after themselves!

Tag

Gender Equality

Beautiful By Stacy McAnulty & Joanne Lew Vriethoff

She’s Not Good For A Girl, She’s Just Good! By Suzanne Hemming & Jacquie Hughes