By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist

Few things are as fascinating to a child as realizing that the amazing “character” and “story” she just read are true — that these things really happened, and that the person who did them was real. Not only is it a great way for kids to learn about historical figures, both famous and obscure, but it’s tremendously inspiring to know that they, too, could grow up to change the world.

So what better way to celebrate Women’s History Month with your child than with some great picture book biographies? We’ve put together a list of great picture books about figures in women’s history, which we selected based on the high quality of their writing and illustrations. We’ve also included quite a few new releases: books that you may not have discovered yet, but are sure to become a cherished part of your picture book library.

Of course, great biographies are available for readers of all ages! You can always go to our biography section and then use the menu on the left to sort by age to find the perfect biography for your Mighty Girl.

Just Being Audrey, by Margaret Cardillo, illustrated by Julia Denos: She was a child in Nazi-occupied Europe, then a movie star and a fashion icon. But most importantly, she had a spirit of kindness and compassion that shone through everything she did. This biography of Audrey Hepburn explores how a little girl growing up through a war would become a beloved celebrity and humanitarian. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist, and Carolyn Danckaert, A Mighty Girl Co-Founder

Every year brings great new children’s and young adult book releases, and 2014 was no exception — especially when it comes to books starring Mighty Girls! From fun fantasty to fascinating biographies, from thought-provoking realistic fiction to beautiful works of poetry, there have been dozens of wonderful releases in the past year. In fact, our 2014 Year in Review collection has topped 150 titles!

In this post, we showcase 35 of our favorite 2014 books for younger readers, including board books, picture books, and early chapter books. This wide assortment of titles feature diverse characters, engaging stories, and creative artwork that are sure to delight your Mighty Girl!

To learn about our favorite 2014 releases for tweens and teens, check out our post, Top 2014 Mighty Girl Books for Tweens and Teens. You can view our entire collection of recent Mighty Girl releases in our special feature 2014 Mighty Girl Books: A Year in Review.

Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist

In 2015, who knows what your Mighty Girl will do? A new year is full of possibility, prompting many of us to start dreaming about what new things we’ll do over the next twelve months. To help inspire your Mighty Girl, we’re sharing some of our favorite books about Mighty Girls who take a deep breath and leap with both feet into new experiences!

Of course, trying new things can be intimidating, and making your new dreams into reality takes persistence and planning. These books will remind your Mighty Girl that, even if it takes courage, time, and hard work, her dreams are always worth striving for!

And, if you're looking for more stories to help bolster your Mighty Girl's confidence to chase her dreams in the year ahead, check out our blog posts on 15 Self-Esteem Boosting Books for Mighty Girls and Confidence-Building Books for Mighty Girls. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist

When we share stories about famous women from history, adults in our community often comment that they’re amazed that they’ve never learned about these world-changing women. And, while people love the biographies we post for children and teens, many adults would also like to learn more about these inspiring women. To that end, in our first-ever post filled with reading recommendations for adults and older teen readers, we're sharing twenty books about incredible women of past and present.

Our recommendations are all biographies with the exception of one remarkable work of historical fiction, The Invention of Wings. Moreover, to help you discover a few of the amazing new biographies which have been recently released, all of our recommended books have been published in the past two years and several are brand new releases.

Since A Mighty Girl's website does not have a book section for adult readers, you won't find these recommendations on our site; however, we've included links below to Amazon so you can learn more or order individual titles.

So whether you're looking for a good book to delve into or a last-minute holiday gift for a friend, these women's stories are sure to inspire! Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist

When you’re looking for a gift for a book lover, the natural choice is a good book! There’s nothing more exciting for an avid reader than unwrapping a title they have been dying to read — or discovering an exciting new book they haven't heard of yet.

This year has been an excellent year for Mighty Girl releases, so there are plenty to choose from if you’re looking for a newer book for the young reader on your holiday list. In our new post, we've pulled together a selection of 35 new releases for children and teens. From fantasy to biography, from picture books to teen fiction — and even a few titles for parents — these's something for everyone in this collection.

It’s also a sneak peek at our upcoming 2014 Mighty Girl Year in Review series, which we’ll be releasing at the end of the year. And, if you'd like to learn more or order a copy of any of the books recommended below, just click the links for more detailed descriptions and reviews from other readers.

And, if you'd like to take a look back at last year's fantastic Mighty Girl books, visit our special feature on 2013 Mighty Girl Books: A Year in Review, which includes over 150 books for children and teens. Continue reading → Continue reading

We received a record number of photo submissions for our 2014 Halloween Gallery and we're awed by the creativity and variety of these Mighty Girls' amazing costumes. As we've always said, Mighty Girls know that their costume possibilities are limited only by their imaginations and with costumes ranging from ones based on favorite superheroes to ones inspired by historic role models, these Mighty Girls clearly know no bounds!

In this post, we've showcased a small sample of these incredible costumes -- to browse the over 1,300 photos submitted, visit the 2014 A Mighty Girl Halloween Gallery. And, to help you and your Mighty Girl learn more about the wonderful characters and historic figures depicted, we've also linked to our character collection and biography section where relevant.

And, if you're seeking girl-empowering dress-up clothing or costumes anytime of year, visit our extensive costume collection with options for all ages from infants through adults in A Mighty Girl's Halloween Costume Guide. You can also find Mighty Girl stories for many of the upcoming holidays, including Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas, in our Holidays & Celebrations collection. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Communications Specialist

Whether it's from preschool or college, graduations are one way that we mark an important transition in a child's or young person's life. If you know a Mighty Girl who is graduating this year, then in the middle of the flurry of school-end projects and graduation party planning, you’ve probably paused for a moment to reflect on the momentous change coming for both of you.

And, whether she's going to be starting school full-time as a first grader or moving cross-country to attend college, you likely want to pass on some words of wisdom as she takes her first steps into this new stage of life. One great way to do this is by giving her an inspiring book that praises her gifts, exhorts her to achieve her potential, and reminds her that you will always be there when she needs you.

With that in mind, A Mighty Girl is proud to present our top ten Mighty Girl books to empower your graduate in her new life. Unlike in other blogs, we won’t reference age recommendations since these books are truly universal: like Dr. Seuss’ classic Oh, the Places You’ll Go!, the importance of these books is in their message of empowerment and inspiration, not in their reading level. Each one will let your graduate know that a Mighty Girl can always find great things, wherever she may go. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Since A Mighty Girl launched in April 2012, one question we’ve received from many parents is what parenting books we recommend to help them raise strong, confident, independent, and courageous girls. With that in mind, A Mighty Girl is proud to launch our new parenting section, featuring over 150 carefully-selected books about a wide variety of parenting issues.

A Mighty Girl’s parenting philosophy is that kids should be encouraged to explore their own interests and strengths, rather than following society’s narrow idea of what is gender appropriate. We believe in encouraging girls and supporting the development of their healthy self-image while fostering their compassion and respect for others.

We also believe that kids need to learn basic life skills like financial management, responsible technology use, and stress management so that they can be happy and safe, even as their world expands from childhood life with Mom and Dad to teenage freedom and eventually adult independence. Most importantly, we believe that parents can make all of those things happen. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

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. The month of May was selected to commemorate the diverse and important roles of Asian-Pacific Americans for two reasons. First, early Japanese immigrants arrived in the United States on May 7, 1843, and second, the transcontinental railroad -- built predominantly by Chinese immigrants -- was completed on May 10, 1869.

Asian-Pacific heritage encompasses a broad and diverse array of cultures from an expansive geographic region. All of the Asian continent, as well as the Pacific islands of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia are included in this celebration. In honor of the essential role all of these cultures play in modern-day American culture, we’ve selected a dozen books which tell different stories of Asian-Pacific American girls. We’ve organized these selections by the age group for which they’re intended, and hope that you’ll enjoy our choices as much as we do! Continue reading → Continue reading

Aung San Suu Kyi, Burmese opposition politican. Photo credit: Htoo Tay Zar

Happy International Women’s Day! Today countries around the world celebrate the contributions of women past and present. A Mighty Girl has chosen to mark the day with this blog post featuring eight amazing women from around the world. Some of them will be familiar, but some of them will be new to you; all of them have left their mark on the world.

We have included reading recommendations for children and youth about each of the featured women. To view our complete selection of over 350 inspiring biographies of remarkable girls and women, visit our biographies collection.

Alia Muhammad Baker (b. 1953)

Baker was the chief librarian of Al Basrah Central Library in 2003 when the war in Iraq began. When she was denied permission to move the books, even after government offices moved into the library, she started smuggling books home; and when the officials fled the British advance and looters started to enter the library, she convinced the owner of the restaurant next door to allow her -- and eventually neighbors who joined her mission -- to store books safely in the dining room. Thanks to her efforts, 30,000 books were saved and became the core of a rebuilt library in 2004.

You can read more about Baker in The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq (ages 5 to 9) or in Alia’s Mission: Saving the Books of Iraq (ages 8 to 12). Continue reading → Continue reading