Fact Friday: Finish the Fight: the brave and revolutionary women who fought for the right to vote by Veronica Chambers and the staff of the New York Times

Image: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Finish the Fight: the brave and revolutionary women who fought for the right to vote by Veronica Chambers and the staff of the New York Times. 144 p. Versify/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, August, 2020. 9780358408307. (Review of finished copy borrowed from public library.)

It may be cold, wet and dreary out there, but it's Friday! Happy Friday TMS Readers! Fact Friday features Finish the Fight: the brave and revolutionary women who fought for the right to vote by Veronica Chambers and the staff of the New York Times. Where would Edmund Hilary be without Tenzing Norgay? Certainly not at the summit of Mt. Everest without the skill and guidance and this humble sherpa. Where would Robert Peary be without Matthew Henson? Probably lost in the snow of the arctic without Matthew Henson's navigational skills and endurance and not the first to claim the North Pole. These two white men received all the credit while the people of color who were responsible for getting them there faded into the background. 

This year is the centennial celebration of women in the U.S. attaining the right to vote. Two white women receive most of the attention in history books but it was a long, sustained haul to this historic event. Women of color were part of the movement and had to deal with the racism of their fellow suffragists. Over the course of this year, Daily Book Talk readers may have noted several Fact Friday entries were devoted to books about women's suffrage, including one dedicated to highlighting Black women suffragists. Ms. Chambers and the staff of the New York Times compiled this colorfully illustrated collective biography focusing on the efforts of a diverse group of suffragists that include Native American, Asian American, Black and Latinx American women whom history forgot. It's fascinating reading that should inspire teen readers to prepare to become part of an informed electorate. Finish the Fight belongs in every school and public library.