Splash! Ethelda Bleibtrey Makes Waves of Change by Elisa Boxer
Full disclosure - I love picture book biographies. They are such a great way to broach history with younger children. My local library has such a diverse array of picture book biographies, featuring people and stories often overlooked during my childhood. Elisa Boxer crafted such a lovely tribute to Elthelda Bleibtrey with “Splash! Ethelda Bleibtrey Makes Waves of Change” (2022). In 1917, as Ethelda was recovering from polio, her doctors recommended swimming as a form of therapy. Swimming opened a door to peace and power - a theme the author so gracefully weaves into this story. In 1919, Ethelda was seventeen years old when she was arrested at Manhattan Beach, New York, for bucking a law that women must wear knee-high socks while swimming. This started a trend. So many women followed her lead. The policemen roaming the beaches with measuring sticks couldn’t keep up, so they gave up enforcing the law. A year later, Ethelda went on to win gold medals in all swimming events in the Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium - the first woman to do so! Later in life, she became a nurse who provided swimming therapy for kids with polio and cerebral palsy. She was a true picture of peace and power.
Heart: My daughter had a lot of questions about the law stating that women had to wear knee-high socks while swimming. It made her angry that the law was only applied to women. The author definitely wants the reader to explore that question of power - how do you use your power to create social change? Ethelda used her power by resisting a law that she found unfair. She used her power to win medals in the Olympics. She used her power to help children who had similar physical struggles. This is a great time to discuss what powers your child/student has…and how do they use them for good?
Head: Ethelda set the record for most Olympic gold medals won by a woman in the same year American women were (finally!!) given the right to vote. This book is a great jumping off point for exploring women’s suffrage. There are so many amazing books out there! Elisa Boxer has another great book, “The Voice that Won the Vote.” (2020) “A Take-Charge Girl Blazes a Trail to Congress” (2023) is a brand-new biography by Gretchen Woelfle about Jeannette Rankin, the first woman elected to Congress. For 4th graders and up, I recommend “History Smashers: Women’s Right to Vote,” (2020) by Kate Messner. Additionally, if you are looking for another picture book about a female swimmer who broke barriers, check out “Annette Feels Free” (2022) by Katie Mazeika.