Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 12/01/2016 K-Gr 3—Past and recent first ladies are brought to light in this informative picture book. Each spread is dedicated to a general question about the first ladies and their accomplishments or challenges. The main text answers and explains, for instance, the evolution of the role of the first lady, while smaller inserts provide specific examples or bits of trivia. (Lucy Hayes was nicknamed "Lemonade Lucy" because she didn't serve alcohol at the White House. Frances Cleveland hosted special receptions for working women.) Watercolor and pencil illustrations are finely rendered, hinting at humor but nicely avoiding caricature. The text is friendly, chatty, and inviting and often addresses readers directly ("Close your eyes…imagine if one of your parents became president of the United States."). This title does an excellent job of highlighting the important roles that these women played throughout history, whether it was enacting innovative initiatives (at home or abroad) or simply expanding the presence of women in U.S. culture. A chronological list of the presidents and the first ladies can be found in the back matter. A final page will be included with the 2016 election results. VERDICT A delightful introduction to America's first ladies for elementary U.S. history collections.—Anne Chapman Callaghan, Racine Public Library, WI - Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2017 ’Tis the season to freshen up the shelves with the latest books about all things presidential, and a title by an ex-White House staffer and the ever entertaining and illuminating Matt Faulkner sounds like a winner. A poorly organized Q&A format, however, results in a tangle of trivia whose sprightly illustrations can’t make up for the chaotic spillage of information that doesn’t fully adhere to the question under consideration. Pat Nixon’s trip to China is offered as the sole answer to “Did first ladies do anything outside the White House?” rather than in the travel section. Under that same travel question, though, appears Nixon’s gutsy encounter with a leprosy patient (country unmentioned), but not under “Have first ladies tried to help people who were sick or hurt?” Some observations are misleading: Lucy Hayes’s reputation for offering lemonade libations “because of a ban on alcoholic drinks at the White House” leaves kids wondering whether that ban was historic or ongoing. Other remarks simply miss the question entirely, such as Florence Harding’s “firsts”-voting for her husband, getting Secret Service Protection, riding in an airplane-in answer to “What else do first ladies teach us?” The pre-pub galley leaves a cliffhanger of “final page to come after November 8th . . .” but whatever the outcome, the update is unlikely to elevate this effort to must-have status for a library purchase. A list of presidents, their terms, and their spouses, as well as selected resources, is included. EB - Copyright 2017 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

Booklist - 12/15/2016 Think you know your First Ladies? Think again, as this colorful book looks at their varied roles and experiences. Arranged thematically rather than chronologically, the text includes anecdotes from the women’s White House days, acknowledgments of their accomplishments, and information that gives broader social or historical context to their stories. The double-page spreads use a Q&A structure. After discussing the basics, such as the nature of the First Lady’s job, Shamir answers questions such as, “But it’s cool to live in the White House, right?” and “Do First Ladies really make a difference?” Answers might take a single sentence or several paragraphs, surrounded by large, imaginative illustrations showing particular First Ladies in action. Created with watercolor and pencil, the artwork helps create the book’s buoyant atmosphere. Faulkner takes full advantage of the large pages with multiple images, some set off by white space, some imaginatively layered, and others grouping several First Ladies or events. Packed with interesting facts and illustrated with style, this upbeat overview of America’s First Ladies will entertain kids intrigued by history. - Copyright 2016 Booklist.