Margaret Frith (1936–2024)

This book is written from the view of an elementary student retelling the life of her favorite artist, Frida Kahlo. Frida grew up in Mexico and became ill as a child. When Frida was 18 and bedridden, her mother gave her paints and brushes. A mirror was taped to the top of her bed which allowed Frida to paint self portraits. Frida later consulted with and married the artist Diego Rivera. Together the two traveled and painted internationally. Frida and Diego eventually moved back home to show more Mexico. There, Frida was honored with her own show, but was too sick to walk. Frida was actually carried down in her bed for the exhibit. Frida died at the age of 47, but her artwork is still enjoyed by many today!
I got so much out of reading this book! First off, I love that the book tells Frida's life through the point of view of an elementary student! This made the book real easy and fun to read. I also think this book would be a good art supplement because it already features so much of Frida's work. A fun class idea would be to have students make their own Frida inspired journal entry like the one on page 28. show less

Margaret Frith’s Frida Kahlo: the artist who painted herself by Frieda Fry (ages 6-10), is a fictionalized biography written from the point of view of a student who is writing a school report about Kahlo because of their shared first name. Even the colorful illustrations by Tomie DePaola are fictionalized, in that they are described as being “created” by Frieda Fry’s little brother imagining Kahlo’s life. Other illustrations include reproductions of Kahlo’s paintings and archival show more photographs. Frieda’s “report” tells about Kahlo and her life from a kid’s perspective, emphasizing the events in her life most relevant to the experiences and interests of children, such as Kahlo being teased as a child because of her shrunken leg, her love of animals and pets, and the two years Kahlo stayed in bed recuperating from her life altering bus accident No mention is made of Kahlo’s politics or her marriage problems, which for the intended audience is entirely appropriate. The narrative device of the student Frieda works well for the intended audience, because it tells the life story of Kahlo from a “peer’s” point of view. Kahlo is an inspirational artist whose perseverance and tenacity in her paintings and her life will expand children’s horizons and especially inspire girls to conquer barriers to their dreams. show less

Who Was Louis Braille? by Margaret Frith, Scott Anderson (Illustrations) is a detailed book about Louis' life and how he created the braille system. It tells how he became blind, his life in general, his school, the issues he had, his success, those against him and more. Very readable and enjoyable book. Made me feel like I knew Louis and his friends. Great pictures along the way. Over 100 pages of just info too. Great job! I got this book from the library.

I really enjoyed the way this book was made. It's the story of Frida Kahlo, told by a little girl named Frieda Fry for a school report. She makes comments and attaches pictures throughout the report, which make the experience of reading Kahlo's biography more personal and engaging.