Rebel Girls Lead is a small but solid volume in the growing "Rebel Girls" stable of biographies and stories of female empowerment, released to coincide with the inauguration of Kamala Harris as Vice President of the USA. This book focuses particularly on women who have assumed leadership roles, and over half of the biographies are repetitions from earlier books, including Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Tales of Extraordinary Women and Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls 2.
Each of the page-long biographies opens with the words "Once there was a girl..." (or similar) and details the challenges that these inspiring women overcame to realise their leadership potential and become icons for other women and girls. The biographies are accompanied by colourful portraits, each produced by a different female artist.
Given the origins of the series, it's not surprising that there is a distinctly American slant to the selection of subjects (15 of the 25), although I was pleased to see the inclusion of several non-US leaders, including Malala Yousafzai, Angela Merkel and Jacinda Ardern. The leaders are chosen from a variety of fields, many political, but also those who fight for women's and indigenous rights, peace and the environment. The timeframe spans from ancient history to the USA's newly-sworn in Vice President.
The volume concludes with a series of worksheets, encouraging young readers to consider their own leadership skills, style and aspirations.
My only disappointment was that I felt three of the biographies - those of Cleopatra, Elizabeth 1 and Michelle Obama, inexplicably downplayed these women's most notable achievements, focussing instead on the men they fell in love with and what beautiful clothes they wore. To me, that seemed contrary to the rationale of the series and a disservice to their phenomenal example.
My thanks to publisher Rebel Girls and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.