Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard

This book was incredible! I really loved how the book was sectioned off by each event that lead up to the wedding. The book might be a little long for kindergartners and first graders at the beginning of the year to read straight through, but because the book is divided into sections, teachers could just read a section or two in one sitting. The main character, Sarah, is someone that everyone can relate too. Everyone gets anxiety and exaggerates the worst possible outcome.Sarah was still show more very sweet and even helped her little cousin, Willie, by telling him it was okay even though she was still scared about being the flower girl. The moral of this story is how important family is and to push through and conquer your fears. The illustrations were also incredible. They really expressed the emotions of the characters well and all of the colors used really correlated with those emotions. show less

Based upon the story of her own grandfather, Cornelius C. Fitzgerald, and his siblings, and their attendance at a Quaker-run school for newly liberated African-American slaves in post-Civil War Tennessee, Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard's Virgie Goes to School with Us Boys is the moving and inspirational story of a young girl who refuses to relinquish her dream of getting an education. Pestering her older brothers - George, Will, Nelson, Val, and C.C. - and then her parents, Virgie eventually show more wins permission to attend school, despite her family's concern that she is too small to make the long journey, and that she will cry for her mother, during the long week when the children must live in town.

Chosen as a Coretta Scott King Honor Book for its illustrations, Virgie Goes to School With Us Boys is as appealing, visually speaking, as it is from a storytelling perspective. E.B. Lewis' watercolor artwork captures each scene beautifully - the Fitzgerald siblings, drawn together into a tight group, confronting the frightening forest that looms ahead; Virgie herself, a quill in her hand and a big smile on her face, ready to dive into her studies - accentuating the underlying emotional significance of the story. I particularly appreciated the fact that it was Virgie, despite the nay-saying of her brothers, who managed to rally the group as they were passing through the woods, suggesting that they sing, in order to keep their courage up. The author's afterword, in which she gives more information about her family, and the characters in the story, was quite interesting.

All in all, a book I highly recommend: to young readers who enjoy family stories, particularly historical ones; to children who think education is a waste of time, rather than the precious gift that it is; and to anyone looking for high-quality picture-books featuring the African-American experience. show less

Set a bit after 1865, Virgie Goes to School with Us Boys is a simple story about a persistent, endearing girl named Virgie who wants to go to school. All throughout the summer she pestered her older brothers and parents until her father finally relented and told the boys that Virgie will be joining them at school. All of her older brothers, except C.C. (Cornelius, the narrator of the story) tell Virgie that she can't handle going to school because she's too small. After summer ends, Virgie show more finally gets proves them wrong. Virgie is a strong willed young lady. Her character and desire never falter or waver on the seven mile trek to school and when she gets there she's excited instead of scared. Virgie's brothers couldn't stop her from going to school. Nothing could. After all, she was free now too. show less

This book tells the tale of a small girl and her desire to go to school. For me, young Virgie and her journey to school with her brothers, represents the experiences that women bring to the work place or to the school with men and the desire that we all have to learn. What is most interesting about this book is that it is all based on a true story and about a real family.