Mama Went to Jail for the Vote [Hardcover]

Kathleen Karr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2000 | Grade Level: K and up

'Women are in chains, daughter!' Mama exclaims. 'We are half the population of this great nation, yet haven't any say in how it's run.' Susan Elizabeth's mother is always making statements like that. Mama is a suffragist, fighting for women's right to vote. Soon Mama begins picketing the White House and really does end up in chains. Then Susan Elizabeth begins to appreciate her mother's valiant fight, and joins it-in her own small but powerful way. This is a humorous and eye-opening fictional story of the women's suffrage movement.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3–A fictional account of the early-20th-century American Suffragist movement. Susan watches her mother parade and picket in front of the White House, absorbing the message that voting is preferred over violence as a means to change. When Mama is hauled away in handcuffs, Susan takes up the call, her sign demanding her mother's release from jail. President Wilson's attention achieves the young protagonist's goal, but it is still some time before Mama achieves hers. A historical note provides the language of the 19th Amendment and places some of the players and their actions in context. Alice Paul appears to be the inspiration for this story, which infuses an important chapter in history with humor, spunk, and drama. The color illustrations are adequate, but Laugesen's caricatures are not as strong as the landscapes and architectural details. Shana Corey's You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer! (Scholastic, 2000) and Catherine Thimmesh's Madam President (Houghton, 2004) provide additional insight into the cause and the characters.–Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 1-3. In this picture book for older readers set at the turn of the last century, the narrator, Susan Elizabeth, is the daughter of a suffragist. Mama dresses Susan in bloomers and takes her to rallies and to picket the White House. Then Mama is arrested and goes to jail for six months. Eventually, her work is rewarded: by a silver pin that says "Jailed for Freedom," and by the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment. This purposive book personalizes the fight for woman's suffrage, but none of the characters seem very real. Mama's dialogue is mostly high-sounding slogans; Papa is a patronizing caricature. Susan Elizabeth isn't very credible: she does everything from chatting with President Wilson to miraculously finding eggs during a parade to hurl at tormentors. That said, this does give a sense of the momentum of the movement and its importance to a young audience. The art, executed in colored pencils, relies heavily on the purple, white, and green of the suffragists' flag. Interestingly, the soft focus gives a more "ladylike" look to some of the proceedings. A note offers historical background. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078682509X
• ISBN-13: 978-0786825097
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Go Mama!, January 22, 2007

By 

Justice Jane (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mama Went to Jail for the Vote (Hardcover)

This page-turner will keep you on the edge of your seat as you follow the story of a suffragists' daughter. One small complaint is that a suffragist is defined in the book as someone fighting for the right of women to vote, when in fact it is someone fighting for suffrage for anyone--the right to vote of any person, man or woman. Small technicality in an otherwise superb story that reminds us all of the great price our predecessors paid to earn women the right to vote. I have read this to groups of children and the ensuing discussion is always lively. This is a tale not often told and I've been pleased to share it with many enthusiastic youngsters. With Courage and Cloth makes a useful companion as it tells the non-fictionalized account of the life of Alice Paul and the work of the National Women's Party.

5.0 out of 5 stars nice book nice experience, January 18, 2007

By 

Cole (TOWSON, MD, United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mama Went to Jail for the Vote (Hardcover)

I was very pleased with this boook and the contrast it provides the most children's books