A lush and lyrical biography of Harriet Tubman, written in verse and illustrated by an award-winning artist. We know her today as Harriet Tubman, but in her lifetime she was called by many names. As General Tubman she was a Union spy. As Moses she led hundreds to freedom on the Underground Railroad. As Minty she was a slave whose spirit could not be broken. An evocative poe A lush and lyrical biography of Harriet Tubman, written in verse and illustrated by an award-winning artist. We know h...
| Title | : | Before She Was Harriet |
| Author | : | Lesa Cline-Ransome |
| Rating | : | |
| Genres | : | Childrens |
| ISBN | : | 0823420477 |
| Edition Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 32 pages pages |
Before She Was Harriet Reviews
First sentence: Here she sits/ an old woman/ tired and worn/ her legs stiff/ her back achy/ but before wrinkles formed/ and her eyes failed/ before she reached/ her twilight years/ she could walk for miles/ and see clearly/ under a sky lit only with stars. Premise/plot: Before She W...
Fantastic verse-like sparse text and gorgeous illustrations. My only complaint is that it has no author's note or back matter. ...
Gorgeous book. I liked the circular nature of the story and the reminder that Harriet Tubman wore many names and roles during her life. ...
Fascinating backwards look through Harriet Tubman's life. Teaches about her life both before and after her famous Underground Railroad days. What an incredible woman. ...
This beautifully illustrated poetic biography takes you backwards and forwards in the life of Harriet Tubman. Unlike a lot of other books about her, you learn more about her life before she escaped slavery. The watercolors really are fantastic. Good for older kid or preschool story...
Stunning illustrations paired with lyrical bio-in-verse. It's a lovely glimpse into the life of a social justice lioness. My only tiny complaint (and it's tiny) is that she starts the story waiting for a train and ends the story getting on it, but we don't know where she is headed or w...
Exquisite watercolor illustrations complement an engaging story that allows readers to look back in time on the life journey of Harriet Tubman. I appreciated how the author chose to begin the story near the end of Tubman's life now that she's "tired and worn / her legs stiff / her back...
To me, this book nears perfection. I look at Harriet Tubman as one of the most interesting figures in history. It seems to me that many people think of her mainly in relationship to the Underground Railroad, whereas she accomplished much, much more. The "before she was" format was idea...
Wonderful and powerful. Beginning with Harriet Tubman as an old woman, this story traces her role as a suffragist, during the Civil War, as a conductor on the Underground Railroad leading others to freedom, and as a slave working the fields in Maryland. The almost lyrical text is simpl...
Both illustrations and text are absolutely beautiful. While this is just an introduction to Harriet Tubman and you'll likely want to pair it with other books (or at least a lot of discussion), this is a wonderful biography to introduce this remarkable woman. ...
I loved the text and art in this one. Another good one for a mentor text. ...
I love how this travels backwards to tell Harriet's story; the illustrations are gorgeous; and this reads like poetry. ...
I started skimming what I thought was "just another" book about Tubman, but found myself going back the beginning to read it all more carefully. The way its written, one role per spread, really helps the reader to think about how full and incredible her life really was. the artwork thr...
A non-fiction picture book about Harriet Tubman. The illustrations are very nice, particularly with their smart use of lighting. The text isn't overwhelming and delivers a lot of information in few words. ...
There are plenty of picture book biographies of Harriet Tubman, but the Ransomes have created a beautiful and poetic look at her life. Each time the page turns, another part of her life is named and shown. Old woman, suffragist, General Tubman, Union spy, nurse, Aunt Harriet, Moses, Mi...
One of my favorite books of 2017. I can't believe I forgot to review it last year :((((( ...
This is more of an impressionistic biography but a beautiful one. Sparely written - are they poems? Only a few words on each line and not many on each page and nary a comma or period in sight. But these few words are evocative. The illustrations are gorgeous and powerful double-page sp...
Beautifully written juvenile autobiography of Harriet Tubman. Encourages us to see what came first in her story. Gorgeous emotional illustrations. 2018 King Illustrator Honor Book. ...
I did not expect to be impressed by this book. There have been so many books done about Tubman, some of them fairly recently, that were well done, I couldn't see what was left to say at this time. Well, the book proved me wrong. It is told in a reverse kind of "This is the house that J...
Great story and beautiful illustrations!! ...
I really really wish there was more information about her experiences as a general, spy, and leader, but there are other books that fulfill that role. This would be a great introduction to Harriet Tubman. 4.5 AR level ...
This is a gorgeous book! I love how the book uses the names she was given or chose to use to tell the story of the many important roles she played in this country. ...
As I told a librarian waffling whether to get this or not since they already have multiple books about Harriet Tubman, "It really is a wonderful read, the way they tell her story in a way that feels unique and inspiring." ...
Harriett Tubman's life and many roles, chronologically backward. I wish there had been some back matter to dive further into those different stages of Harriet's life. ...
A Harriet Tubman biography from the perspective of Ms. Tubman herself as she looks back on her various titles. ...
This a wonderful biographical picture book about Harriet Tubman. The illustrations are amazing and so is the text. Highly Recommended. ...
Last week I was honored to hear Carol Jago read this book at a conference. It's a poetic story about a woman many call a hero. This is the perfect mentor text to jumpstart a piece of writing and thinking, too. I highly recommend it. ...
Great way to tell a story, using all the different names and going backwards! Beautiful illustrations. ...
Woo Booooyyy! That was good. Just enough and SO much. Beautiful words and illustrations. Another great book by the Ransomes. ...
Darn right. This is a great piece of art and a great summary of her incredible acts. The last page has a "and this is why we do this" satisfaction to it. ...
