• CSM Reviews <--
• Adult Reviews
• Kid Reviews

Common Sense Note

Kids will root for the heroine of this inspiring story. Expressive characters rendered in watercolor add to the appeal.

Rate It!

Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Jennifer Gennari

"Come on Georgia," shouts Bessie Coleman to her sister, flapping her arms hard. "Fly with me right out of Waxahachie." Coleman spends so much of her childhood flying away from the restrictions placed on her that it is no surprise to readers when she decides to become a pilot.

Coleman's life is inspiring, and the story of how she became the first black and first female pilot in 1921 is important. The first eighteen pages present Coleman as a child and her decision to become a pilot. There are plenty of metaphoric clues, such as dancing to Louis Armstrong's music, which "makes her feel as if she's soaring free as a bird."

Watercolors by Yvonne Buchanan are light and breezy, with a sense of Coleman flying on many of the pages. Yet, at other times, the people look almost cartoonlike. One illustration stumped both parent and child: The perspective was from above Bessie lying on a rug, which made her appear to be hanging in midair.

This is an important introduction to the life of Bessie Coleman. Another book about her, for younger readers, is Nobody Owns the Sky: The Story of Brave Bessie Coleman. Lynn Joseph is also the author of A Wave in Her Pocket: Stories from Trinidad.

From The Book

All her life growing up in Texas, Bessie has held fast to one dream: to amount to something. She doesn't know what she will do, but she knows it will be something special and different. As Bessie waves from the train window, the cotton fields of Waxahachie slip far behind.

Plot Summary:

Flying is the theme in more ways than one in this true story of Bessie Coleman: Bessie flies away from repressive society and soars into the skies as the first black and first female pilot. Bright, colorful illustrations add charm and interesting detail.

Rate It Now

OR