Katharine Lee Bates first wrote the lines to “America the Beautiful” after a stirring visit to Pikes Peak in 1893. But the story behind the song begins with Katharine herself, who pushed beyond conventional expectations of women to become an acclaimed writer, scholar, suffragist, and reformer. Katharine believed in the power of words to make a difference, and in “America the Beautiful,” her … vision of the nation as a great family, united from sea to shining sea, continues to uplift and inspire us all.
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Don’t be fooled into thinking this is a picture book meant for young children or toddlers. This book is perfect for elementary school children (or older) and teaches the reader about the author of a poem set to music that we know as “America The Beautiful.”
I have sung this song many times in my life and never thought much about the words or the author that penned them. However, after reading this book, I was intrigued by Katharine’s life and how she came to write this poem that became a sort of national anthem for the United States. It isn’t the official one, but reading the words felt like it described our country and its people. The poem went through several revisions before it became the one we know today. I could picture her crossing the country and observing the “amber waves of grain” and “purple mountain majesties” that inspired her words. The original poem was written 127 years ago and the USA was a different country then, but we can still see some of what Katharine saw all those years ago.
The illustrations really brought the words of this poem to life. There is an illustration of Niagara Falls and I felt like I could feel the water and dip my hands into the blue water. Side note, make sure if you read the eBook version to have a table or color e-Reader to view the book. An e-Ink reader will not do the illustrations justice.
Outside of her achievement with this poem, Katharine was quite a remarkable woman. She helped fight for women’s rights, especially the right to vote. She believed that women could do anything that men could do and encouraged education for all.
This book captures some of our history that might be lost and the format is perfect for anyone to read and whet their appetite for more about Katharine or anyone else that helped shape our country. We give this book 5 paws up.
I usually don’t judge a book by its cover, but I’m not going to lie. When I saw the gorgeous cover for Nancy Churnin’s children’s book For Spacious Skies, I fell in love with the cover and knew I had to read the book. I’m really glad I did because everything about it was fantastic, and I even learned a few things I had never known about the song America the Beautiful and its creator, Katharine Lee Bates.
For Spacious Skies tells the condensed biography of Katharine Lee Bates, the creator of the song America the Beautiful although when it was written, it was originally a poem. Katharine Lee Bates comes across as a fantastic person. She lived in a time when men were seen as being far superior than women, but she didn’t let that stop her from getting an education and being a voice for those that felt they had no voice.
I admit that I didn’t know the history behind America the Beautiful, so this book was the perfect starting point. I think my favorite fact in the book was that Katharine Lee Bates never wanted or accepted any payment for penning America the Beautiful. She just wanted to give something back to the country she loved so much.
This is a biography picture book for older children, and I believe that it’s written in a way that speaks to children and will draw in their attention quite easily. The length is perfect, and the wording is fantastic. Everything flows perfectly. I also liked the fact that Nancy Churnin includes an author’s note as well as a timeline of Katharine’s life and accomplishments at the end. The author’s note goes into a little more detail about Katharine’s life which is great for adults, children who want to learn a bit more, or for a discussion. The timeline makes it easy to picture events as they happened.
The illustrations in For Spacious Skies are absolutely breathtaking! Olga Baumert is the illustrator, and her talent shines through in every page. Each illustration is full of detail and really helps to drive the story. Although my 5 year old was a little young for this book, he did love the illustrations in it and even asked if we could just look at the pictures as they are quite colorful and really draw you in. Seriously, I could go on and on about amazing the illustrations are, but it’s better if you just pick up a copy of the book yourself to see what I’m talking about.
Overall, I feel that For Spacious Skies is the ultimate girl power book. Katharine Lee Bates was obviously a force to be reckoned with according to this book. If you’re looking for a book with a strong female and beautiful illustrations, pick up a copy of For Spacious Skies. I would definitely recommend For Spacious Skies by Nancy Churnin to adults and children aged 8 and older. I feel as if this book needs to be required reading in all elementary schools and should be in every school library. That’s how good and informative it is. Grab a copy, and see for yourself!
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(A special thank you to Edelweiss for an eBook copy of For Spacious Skies and to Nancy Churnin and Lone Star Literary Life for a hardback copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.)