I was going through my e-mail messages this morning and came across this from the LM_NET postings (an e-mail group for librarians) which caught my attention. The e-mail was written by a book reviewer and included thought provoking comments.
What I like about this e-mail was the “strong women” message and that many men are intimidated by those strong women. I think the reference about the name of Hillary Clinton being used as a derogative was most interesting to me since I have heard my own strong willed daughter called a Hillary Clinton once by an adult leader of a youth organization. The usage was not meant to be taken kindly.
Here is the message in its entirety from LM_NET. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts and opinions, but please let’s keep name calling and derogatives where they belong, which is in your own mind.
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Richie’s Picks: THE BRAVEST WOMAN IN AMERICA by Marissa Moss and Andrea
U’Ren, ill., Tricycle Press, July 2011, 32p., ISBN: 978-1-58246-369-8
“Whoever wrote the book of 1 Timothy claimed to be Paul. But he was lying
about that — he was someone else living after Paul had died. In his book,
the author of 1 Timothy used Paul’s name and authority to address a problem
that he saw in the church. Women were speaking out, exercising authority
and teaching men. That had to stop. The author told women to be silent and
submissive, and reminded his readers about what happened the first time a
woman was allowed to exercise authority over a man, in that little incident in
the garden of Eden. No, the author argued, if women wanted to be saved,
they were to have babies (1 Tim. 2:11-15).
“Largely on the basis of this passage, the apostle Paul has been branded,
by more liberation minded people of recent generations, as one of history’s
great misogynists. The problem, of course, is that Paul never said any
such thing. And why does it matter? Because the passage is still used by church
leaders today to oppress and silence women. Why are there no women priests
in the Catholic Church? Why are women not allowed to preach in
conservative evangelical churches? Why are there churches today that do not allow
women even to speak? In no small measure it is because Paul allegedly taught
that women had to be silent, submissive and pregnant. Except that the person
who taught this was not Paul, but someone lying about his identity so that
his readers would think he was Paul.
– from the 3/25/11 article “Who Wrote The Bible and Why It Matters” by
Bart D. Ehrman
Strong women.
Geraldine Ferraro died this weekend. I can recall my excitement,
twenty-seven years ago, when I got to shake her hand after hearing her speak at a
local high school during the 1984 Presidential campaign.
Strong women.
Back in my bookstore days, I once got to sit beside Michael Moore at a
publisher’s breakfast. As we conversed, Michael railed about all of the men
he was encountering who feared Hillary Rodham Clinton because of her
strength and outspokenness. “Why are men afraid of strong women?” he kept asking
me rhetorically.
Strong women.
THE BRAVEST WOMAN IN AMERICA is the true story of a strong woman. It is a
picturebook biography for little kids as well as not-so-little kids. This
is the story of Ida Lewis, the first woman to receive the American Cross
of Honor; a woman who had previously been recognized for her heroism with
the Congressional Life Saving Medal. This is a girl with guts.
The daughter of a lighthouse keeper, Ida learned from her father how to
row, how to maintain the light and the lighthouse, and how to rescue those
needing rescuing. She practiced rowing until she could row like nobody’s
business. Then, one winter evening when she was sixteen and her father was
ill, she saw a sailboat with four boys capsize and she rowed out into the
turbulent water and successfully rescued all four. Thereafter, and for many
decades to come, Ida Lewis operated the lighthouse at Lime Rock (in Newport
Harbor) and saved many lives.
It is great to discover that the local yacht club there is named in her
honor. But it is far better to know that we now have this beautiful
picturebook biography that portrays yet another nineteenth century woman who wasn’t
conforming to the stereotype that children still get from far too many
American history texts.
I also really like Andrea U’Ren’s illustrations here. The gulls flying,
the waves crashing, and the storm clouds rolling in impart a great flavor of
the northeast coast throughout the story. And be sure not to miss the
cute-as-the-dickens seal on the back of the dust jacket.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie’s Picks _http://richiespicks.com_ (http://richiespicks.com/)
FTC NOTICE: Richie receives free books from lots of publishers who hope he
will Pick their books. You can figure that any review was written after
reading and dog-earring a free copy received. Richie retains these review
copies for his rereading pleasure and for use in his booktalks at schools
and libraries.
