All my life I’ve been pushing against limits. Being the oldest of five children born to a farm couple who became mill workers, I was frequently reminded by family that “people like us” did not need much education, didn’t get the good jobs, and shouldn’t “rise above themselves.” Being a girl, I had additional limits. Naturally, when I learned to read, I was drawn to books in which characters broke through unfair restraints to have adventures and accomplish great deeds. I wanted to be one of those people. By the time I came of age, I knew I had a shot at becoming the heroine of my own story!
By Faye Gibbons
Halley is a fourteen-year-old girl in Depression-era Georgia. Her father has died and she, along with her mother and brother, must move in with her domineering preacher grandfather. Pa Franklin has no sympathy for Halley’s desire to get an education. The only future he sees for her is marriage and children. Until then he considers any money she earns as rightfully his. In fact, he is ready for her to drop out of school and go to work at a local mill. Waiting for the Rapture, when Jesus will return, may satisfy others, but Halley wants more. She yearns for some control over her own life. An education, she hopes, might allow that.
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By Katherine Paterson
This book is for any girl, like me, who grew up with a sister she envied. I loved seeing Louise come to terms with her own worth and her own beauty. I felt that I was fighting her battles with her. In the end we both made peace with our sisters and gained confidence in our own merits.
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By Cynthia Voigt
Izzy is a nice girl. She’s pretty, popular, and smart. But one ride with a drunk driver changes her entire life. With one leg amputated, she must embrace a new life and find new friends who see her as more than a girl with a handicap. I liked Izzy so much, and it was thrilling to see her believably move on with her life. I see disabled young people with different eyes since reading Izzy’s story.
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By Jacqueline Kelly
Calpurnia Tate lives in a small dusty Texas town. Her father is a farmer but her mother sees herself as a lady, and wants her only daughter to be one too. Unfortunately, that means wearing frilly dresses and learning to cook, clean, and sew. What Calpurnia wants is to study animals and plants like her naturalist grandfather, which means getting dirty. My sympathies were all with Calpurnia. I remember what it was like to play in the creek and dig in the dirt. It was better than dressing in ruffles and lace any day!
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By Avi
Crispin is a young serf in Medieval England--an orphan despised by everyone for reasons he does not understand. Though I never had problems as dire as Crispin faced, I frequently felt mistreated as a child, and like him, the forest was my comfort and refuge. Like him, I had a lively curiosity about the lives of others and many times learned important lessons through observation. I shared Crispin's tendency to hero worship those who befriended me, and like him, I generally chose my role models well.
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By Cathryn Clinton
In 1962 South Carolina, it is not acceptable for a girl to declare she has been called to preach. Especially at the young age of twelve. But Esta Lea Ridley knows she is called to the Lord and she says so. She seems to have the gift of healing too. Some who support her have their own selfish motives. In the end, we and Esta Lea must figure out what her calling means. This book handles serious matters with a light touch.
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