Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly

This is a children's book adaptation of the adult book by the same name, with beautiful illustrations. HIDDEN FIGURES is about Dorothy Vaughan, Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, Christine Darden-- four Black women who ended up working for places like NASA, NACA, and Langley, because of how they excelled in their fields, even at a time when very few women or Black people were being admitted into those jobs.

The rallying cry of this story is that these women were incredibly competent and skilled, and they refused to take no for an answer. They were persistent, and didn't let anyone discourage them from doing what they want to do. I like the repetition in here, which works for a kids' book, because it really drives home the point that children-- especially girls-- should love themselves for what they do, and need to feel comfortable seeking out opportunities for themselves if nobody is going to go to bad for them.

I hope this book gets put in tons of schools, because it's very empowering and it celebrates women of color in STEM, which I think is wonderful. The illustrations are great, the message is powerful, and it takes an adult work of nonfiction and makes it accessible for young kids while formulating that message in a way that makes it easy for children to apply it to themselves.

4 to 4.5 out of 5 stars