I’m on bedtime duty when I visit my nieces, which means snuggling up and diving into really good stories — tales of women beating the odds and achieving great things. Well, sorta. When we’re done poo-pooing at the lions with Madeline, I often find myself scouring the girls’ bookshelves for something a bit more real-to-life to share with them. Which is why I’m so excited about the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls Kickstarter project, fundraising now.
(Update: You can now order the book at RebelGirls.co)
Related: My First Book of Girl Power. Lasso of Truth not included.
This book will feature 100 stories of diverse, inspiring women, including Serena Williams, Julia Child, astronaut Mae Jemison, the Bronte sisters. Sorry, no princesses here. (Unless you count Queen Elizabeth.)
Just a bunch of high-achieving women who lived their lives making no apologies to defy expectations, as they travel in space, serve on the Supreme Court, or cook the perfect chicken.
You do you, ladies.
The mini biographies are the perfect length for bedtime reading. And I love that each of the 100 women gets her own portrait, masterfully illustrated by a different female artist from around the world.
No less remarkable than the women featured in the book are the creators of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls, who are pretty incredible women themselves.
They’re the masterminds behind the Timbuktu labs, which is dedicated to female empowerment with projects like a young girls’ magazine, several books, and a toolkit to help under-resourced schools to build their own playgrounds. Talk about being the change you want to see in the world.
You can now order Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls on their website – we did and it’s amazing! Orders shipping now.
Posts like this are EXACTLY why I come this site again and again. Awesome work, CMP!
What a wonderful compliment, thank you Monique! We’re glad to have found it too!
If material is still being collected, please also include the story of the Rani of Jhansi who fought to protect her kingdom and adopted a child more than 3 centuries ago.
Minal, I’m afraid the book’s out of our hands, but thanks for introducing me to this amazing leader! Here’s hoping she ends up in Volume 2 of Good Night Stories!
Thank you SO much for this book recommendation. I had my dad buy it for my daughter for Xmas/Hanukkah as a alternative to more plastic crap. And also because I felt that my kids needed a bit of a reality check in the midst of all the “I wants” leading up to Christmas. I thought it was a book I’d read with my daughter (7), and that I would have to convince her to read with me, I wasn’t sure if it would hold her interest. But man did I underestimate the power of this book! Both her and my son (5) are absolutely in love with this book. They beg me to read it to them each day, and what starts with a “ok just choose one page each” always ends half a dozen pages later because none of us can put it down. And when I don’t have time to read it to them I often find them curled up together with my daughter reading it to my son. It is written so well, and so appropriate for young kids….I was worried it would bring up issues I hadn’t been ready to discuss yet, but it is written in a way that issues can be avoided when needed, but it is also such a great spring board for SO many life lessons. Thank you thank you thank you, this has been such a lovely book that has given me and my kids many special moments together. I’m actually embarrassed that I initially had only my daughter in mind for this book…it is equally important for boys to read, too. The reasons, of course, have been another great discussion in our house. Well done cool mom picks, thanks so much for another great recommendation.
Wow Meag, thank you so so much for such a sweet and thoughtful comment. I couldn’t agree more — my daughters (9, 11) are absolutely obsessed with the book and anyone who has come over and seen it has just been wowed. Boys, adults…everyone.
It’s truly special, and books like that don’t come along all the time. I’m glad you feel the same.