Review Detail
Middle Grade Non-Fiction
611
A New STEM Biography
Overall rating
4.0
Writing Style
4.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
4.0
Learning Value
4.0
Born in 1957, Rachel Levine faced a number of challenges. She was often bullied because her family was Jewish and both of her parents worked. She also realized early on that she wasn't comfortable with her gender assigned at birth. but at the time, there was little knowledge about transgender people available. She was a good student, and went to Harvard University to major in medicine. In addition to practicing medicine, she also taught, and worked in adolescent medicine and worked with people who had eating disorders. In 2018, she became the Secretary of Health for Pennsylvania and worked to help the state deal with the opioid epidemic as well as maternal health and vaccinations for children.
Good Points
Chelsea Clinton's She Persisted series has short, easy to read biographies of a wide variety of women, such as Wilma Mankiller, Kalpana Chawla, Temple Grandin, and Simone Biles. They give a good overview of the person's life, and put it into the context of history and society. There is brief, easy to understand information about Levine's transgender journey and how she was treated. Author Lisa Bunker is one of New Hampshire's first transgender state legislators as well as the author of middle grade fiction such as Felix XYZ, Zenobia July, and the upcoming Joy, To the World written with Kai Shappley.
It's not easy to find books about people whose careers involved medicine or science, and I wish there were more books for young readers that explored STEM topics involving public health. Brown's A Shot in the Arm is one of the few titles I've seen, and I'm looking forward to Montillo's upcoming The First Women of Medicine. Fans of the She Persisted will want to read this newest installment.
It's not easy to find books about people whose careers involved medicine or science, and I wish there were more books for young readers that explored STEM topics involving public health. Brown's A Shot in the Arm is one of the few titles I've seen, and I'm looking forward to Montillo's upcoming The First Women of Medicine. Fans of the She Persisted will want to read this newest installment.
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