She Sang Promise: The Story of Betty Mae Jumper, Seminole Tribal Leader (edition 2010)

This picture-book biography of Betty Mae Jumper, born Betty Mae Tiger in 1923, chronicles the life of the first woman chief of the Seminole nation of Florida. In a sing-song tone, Jan Godown Annino, who is personally acquainted with her subject, describes Betty Mae's childhood, her family's decision to move, because her life was threatened (Elders tried to throw her into a swamp at the age of five, because of the Ho-la-wa-gus, or bad spirits, that she inherited from her French father), and her discovery of writing, and determination to attend school. Her traditional education with her family (both her mother and grandmother were Medicine Women), her formal education at the Cherokee Indian Boarding School and the Kiowa Teaching Hospital, her years as a nurse and a translator for her people, and her election as the Seminole's first female chief in 1967, are all covered in the text. The rear material includes an afterword by Betty Mae's son, Moses Jumper, Jr., a more detailed account of the author's meeting with Betty Mae and of Betty Mae's life, and a historical chronology of the Seminole people.

She Sang Promise: The Story of Betty Mae Jumper, Seminole Tribal Leader is an informative book about a fascinating Native American woman whose accomplishments deserve to be better known. I've been meaning to read Betty Mae Jumper's Legends of the Seminoles, so I was glad to learn something about the author's life! I was a little more ambivalent about the text itself (as opposed to Betty Mae's story), as I sometimes found its sing-song quality a little distracting. Leaving that aside, the story itself is engrossing, and Lisa Desimini's colorful illustrations were appealing. Recommended to young readers who enjoy biographies, or are interested in the Native American experience and women leaders. ( )