Check It Out

Did you know?  Hillary Clinton was not the first woman trying to break the glass ceiling.  In 1884, Belva Lockwood ran for president. 

Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen’s new book, Ballots for Belva, the True Story of a Woman’s Race for the Presidency, tells the story of an independent, never-give-up woman.  Belva’s determination was evident in her childhood belief that she could move mountains.  In a way, she did.  After becoming a wife, becoming a mother, and becoming a widow, she went to law school and became a lawyer.

She decided to run for president after her frustration that he own political party  (the Republican Party) refused to make women’s suffrage a part of their official platform.  “I cannot vote, but I can be voted for.”

And votes she got.  From nine states that agreed to count the ballots with her name on them.  Pennsylvania threw away the ballots of those who voted for Belva, out of disbelief that anyone would vote for her.

This book provides a glimpse into a little known event in United States history.   Bardhan-Quallen pulls you in on the first page, a little girl determined to move mountains.  Courtney A. Martin’s illustrations depict the era in a manner of rich full page portraits.

This will be a fabulous book to share with all ages during this election year.

I was sent this book as a review copy and am so glad it arrived in my mailbox.

Book details:
Ballots for Belva, the True Story of a Woman’s Race for the Presidency,

Author: Sudipta Bardham-Quallen
Illustrator: Courtney A. Martin

Includes author’s note, glossary, timeline for Women’s Suffrage, and bibliography.

ISBN: 978-0-8109-7110-3

Hop over to Nonfiction Monday to see other great nonfiction books.

Have a great Labor Day.

Happy Reading,

MsMac