It can be challenging to find girl empowering clothing that is age-appropriate and kid-friendly at many mass retailers. To make your back-to-school shopping a little easier, we’ve partnered with our featured clothing retailers to give A Mighty Girl supporters special discounts on clothing that will help your Mighty Girl express herself! Our featured clothing companies offer apparel to reflect a wide range of personalities, interests, and aesthetics, so you don’t have to worry about limiting your child’s imagination in the clothing she wears.

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We receive questions quite frequently from people asking for recommendations of specific types of books or movies so we've decided to start anonymously sharing select messages in this new "Ask A Mighty Girl" feature. 

 

Hi A Mighty Girl,

My eight-year-old daughter is very shy and has a terrible fear of dogs and is a generally fearful person. Can you recommend any picture or chapter books about girls who overcome their fears?

She isn't the strongest independent reader right now, but I read to her all the time and she loved all the Harry Potter books and I've read her Alice in Wonderland, and The Graveyard Book by Niel Gaiman lately. But we also still read picture books. I love Pirate Girl by Cornelia Funke. I think she likes fantasy and adventure fiction best.

So I'd welcome anything that she could read herself or that I could read to her.

Thanks so much! Your site is a wonderful resource and I like your facebook postings.

All best,
Jane Continue reading → Continue reading

"One had better die fighting against injustice than die like a dog or a rat in a trap." – Ida B. Wells

Today marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ida B. Wells, the courageous African-American journalist, anti-lynching crusader, women's rights activist, and civil rights pioneer. Wells was born into slavery in 1862 and freed at one year of age by President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. She became politically active in civil rights issues from a young age.

In one famous instance as a young woman in Memphis, she was ordered to give up her seat on a train to a white man and move to the smoking or "Jim Crow" car. Wells refused and was forcefully dragged from the train. She then took the unheard of action of hiring an attorney and suing the railroad; she won her case in the local court though the Tennessee Supreme Court eventually overturned it. This experience further ignited her desire to work against the injustices faced by women and people of color.

Wells became a well-known journalist and, after three friends were lynched by a mob, she launched a global anti-lynching campaign to raise awareness of the social injustice. She was one of only two African American women to sign "the call" to form the NAACP in 1909 and worked tirelessly throughout this period for women's suffrage. In the final years of her life, she became disenchanted with the nominees to the state legislature so, in 1930, she ran for the Illinois State Legislature, becoming one of the first black women to run for public office in the United States. Continue reading → Continue reading

This week marks the anniversary of amazing feats by three trailblazing women. On July 5, 1916, sisters Augusta and Adeline Van Buren set off on an incredible journey and began the first successful transcontinental motorcycle tour across the U.S. by two women on solo motorcycles. They rode 5,500 miles in 60 days often over unpaved roads while traveling from NYC to Tijuana, Mexico.

The entrance of the U.S. into WWI inspired the sisters' feat as they sought to prove that women could ride as well as men and were capable of serving as military dispatch riders. The women dressed in military-style leggings and leather riding breeches which were taboo at that time for women and, as a result, they were arrested several times along the way for wearing men's clothing. Yet, these two inspirational trailblazers were undaunted. As Augusta famously once stated, “Woman can if she will.” Continue reading → Continue reading

Many parents enjoy reading picture books to their young children but reading aloud to children doesn't need to stop once they are able to read on their own. On the contrary, many child development studies have found that parents reading to their children in elementary school and beyond can have a very positive impact on the children’s language and literacy development.

One study from the OECD discovered that these impacts are long-lasting – children whose parents regularly read to them as 1^st graders performed significantly better in reading at age 15 than children whose parents rarely, if ever, read to them. Plus, reading together provides a great bonding opportunity for parents and children – a little dose of quiet, reflective time in the midst of a hectic day.

With these benefits in mind, we’re pleased to present A Mighty Girl’s newest special feature – the Top Read Aloud Chapter Books starring Mighty Girls. This list was compiled with elementary-aged students in mind but many of these stories are also excellent for older children as well. Here's a summary of the types of books found in this collection: Continue reading → Continue reading

Wangari Maathai was a highly accomplished Kenyan environmentalist who has been the subject of a number of recent stunning picture books. After training as a biologist in the U.S., Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, an environmental and women's empowerment organization that trains women in rural Kenya to plant trees in order to combat deforestation. Since its founding in 1977, her organization has planted over 40 million trees and trained over 30,000 women in trades that provide them with income and preserve the country's natural resources. Maathai's efforts effectively transformed the landscape of Kenya and raised countless women out of poverty. For her great contributions, Maathai received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 -- becoming the first African woman to do so.

In the past several years, four picture books have been released on the life and work of Maathai. All four are beautifully illustrated and trace her life from her early girlhood days to her founding of the Green Belt Movement and the impact her work had on the land and people of Kenya. Continue reading → Continue reading

Earlier this month in our first ever member survey, we asked A Mighty Girl's supporters what new site feature they would most like to see. And, the winner was clear -- you wanted book clubs and we've delivered! With summer vacation just around the corner, it's the perfect time for... Continue reading

Many people are familiar with Astrid Lindgren's beloved children's classic Pippi Longstocking but her lesser known novel, Ronia, the Robber's Daughter," is equally fantastic and highly recommended for those seeking a compelling adventure story starring a courageous and compassionate Mighty Girl.

The story is set in the early Middle Ages in Scandinavia and follows Ronia, a young girl growing up in a robber clan led by her father, Mattis. Ronia is a very spirited child, who spends her time exploring the countryside and taming wild horses. One day Ronia saves the life of the son of a rival clan chief and the two become friends. Eventually, the revelation of the children's close friendship leads to a massive feud between the clans and the decision by the children to run off together to the woods. In the end, the story ends happily as, inspired by the children's example, the adults eventually repent of their feuding and peace returns.

"Ronia" features an impressive heroine who is quite reminiscent of a young Katniss of The Hunger Games fame - she's brave and spirited, loyal to her friends, and determined to stay true to her beliefs even in the face of adult opposition. In "Ronia," not only has Lindgren created a rich engrossing fantasy world, she subtlety addresses themes of prejudice, gender, friendship, loyalty, and, most of all, the challenge of growing up and discovering what kind of person you want to be. Continue reading → Continue reading

Each May the United States celebrates the history and culture of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. In honor of this month, A Mighty Girl has created a new special feature on the Top Asian Pacific American Mighty Girl Books. And, just as Asian and Pacific Islanders are a very diverse group, encompassing people who originate from the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia, the reading selections in this collection are equally diverse.

Thematically, the books range from those which focus on the experience of 2nd or 3rd generation Asian-American youth to others which address of the challenges of more recent immigrants. Books from this former group often confront issues such as dual identities, cultural clashes between family and societal expectations, and body image, and include many teen-oriented titles like YELL-Oh Girls!, Nothing But the Truth (and a Few White Lies), Born Confused, Monsoon Summer, and April and the Dragon Lady. The selections focused on more recent immigrants address many of the challenges this population experiences such as cultural disorientation, teasing or bullying, and language struggles. Great options for younger readers include The Name Jar, My Name is Yoon, and Good-Bye, 382 Shin Dang Dong. Older readers might appreciate Tangled Threads: A Hmong Girl's Story, Kira-Kira, A Jar of Dreams, Inside Out and Back Again, Blue Jasmine, Children of the River, A Step From Heaven, and Ask Me No Questions. Continue reading → Continue reading

In Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper, eleven-year old Melody has a photographic memory and is the smartest kid in her school but no knows it. Melody has cerebral palsy and cannot walk or talk. Stuck in preschool-level classes her whole life and unable to share her thoughts with anyone, her life has become an exercise in frustration. Yet, Melody refuses to be defined by her disability and, when she receives a keyboard that allows her to communicate for the first time, her life and those of everyone around her changes.

Young people, like many adults, are often uncomfortable and uncertain how to act when meeting people with disabilities. Out of My Mind is an excellent novel to help tween/teen readers ages 10 and up understand that people with disabilities are just like them, with thoughts and feelings; hopes and dreams.

Draper, a multiple Coretta Scott King Award winner and the mother of a child with developmental difficulties, was inspired to write Out of My Mind for "all the parents of disabled kids who struggle, to all those children who are misunderstood, to all those caregivers who help every step of the way. It's also written for people who look away, who pretend they don't see, or who don't know what to say when they encounter someone who faces life with obvious differences. Just smile and say hello!"

For a wonderful and, at times, emotionally-charged story of a young girl with an indomitable spirit that is sure to challenge many of the stereotypes and biases held about people with disabilities, A Mighty Girl highly recommends Out of My Mind. Continue reading → Continue reading