Bloom On

 

The Amelia Bloomer Project is one that's close to my heart!  Amelia Bloomer, just like Ellen Prentiss, the heroine in my picture book, Dare the Wind, followed her passion in spite of the gender expectations of her time.  Amelia worked for women's rights in the 19th century.  She was a suffragette and is best known for advocating for less restrictive women's clothing, including the 'bloomers' shown above, consisting of a loose top and a short skirt with pants underneath. Just as Amelia defied expectations, so did my heroine, Ellen.  Ellen learned to navigate clipper ships in an era when most women rarely worked outside their homes.  She eventually navigated the ship, Flying Cloud, on the fastest trip ever made by a clipper from New York to San Francisco. 

The Amelia Bloomer Project is an annual book list selected by a task force of the American Library Association.  The Project honors the best feminist books for young readers.  Dare the Wind was recently named to the 2015 Amelia Bloomer Project.  You can find more great books that celebrate amazing women by looking at the entire list.