She's Wearing a Dead Bird On Her Head [Hardcover]

Kathryn Lasky (Author)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

A fictional account of Harriet Hemenway and her cousin Minna Hall, the founders of the Audubon Society, recounts how the latest in 1896 Boston fashion led the two women to form a club to protect birds.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Proper Boston ladies Harriet Hemenway and her cousin Minna Hall are absolutely incensed by the latest style: ladies' hats topped with not just feathers but whole birds ("from egrets to pheasants to owls to warblers... even pigeons!"). The fad dovetails with the women's suffrage movement: "Fashion was killing birds as well as killing women's chances to have the right to vote and be listened to. For who would listen to a woman with a dead bird on her head?" Harriet and Minna found the Massachusetts Audubon Society; take their crusade to sportsmen, socialites and schoolchildren; lobby for laws to protect wildfowl; and even help bust an illegal feather warehouse. Catrow (The Cataract of Lodore; Ridiculous Rhymes from A to Z, reviewed below) contributes flamboyant caricatures of the behatted Bostonians in convincing period costume, and his watercolors of birds mimic John James Audubon's own naturalistic paintings. Despite Lasky's and Catrow's enthusiasm, however, Harriet and Minna in their zealotry seem just as exaggerated and one-dimensional as their fashionably feathered foes. Ages 5-9.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4?In an amusing picture-book format, Lasky tells the story of two strong-willed women who started the Audubon Society in Massachusetts around the turn of the century. When wearing dead birds as hat decorations became a raging fashion, Harriet Hemenway and her cousin Minna Hall were outraged. They contacted other ladies of fashion to start a club, named it after John James Audubon, and began the Bird Hat Campaign. The bird hats and their wearers look ridiculous, just as the cousins claim. The exaggerated expressions and postures of Catrow's figures bring humor to every page, but the serious business of political action comes through just the same. Lasky neatly includes the varied strategies that the women employed to achieve their purpose. Though equally determined, Harriet and Minna have distinctly different personalities. Most, but not all, of the incidents are based on actual events, which the author's note clearly explains. Like Rhoda Blumberg's Bloomers! (Bradbury, 1993), Lasky's title will entertain young readers while offering them a fascinating and little-known slice of history.?Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library, OR
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion; 1st edition (October 11, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786820527
• ISBN-13: 978-0786820528
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,362,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hi Readers! Thanks for coming by my author page. I've written all sorts of books - from fantasy about animals to books about science. One of my favorite animal fantasy series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole, is a major motion picture. I liked writing about Ga'Hoole so much that I decided to revisit that world in a new series, Wolves of the Beyond. Visit my website, www.kathrynlasky.com to see a slide show about the real wolves I researched for the series and for the latest update on the Guardians of Ga'Hoole movie. All my best, Kathryn

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Founding of the Audobon Society Takes Flight!, January 15, 2001

By 

Chris Heater (Indianapolis, Indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head! (Paperback)

"She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head" is an absolutely wonderful book to illustrate how we need to be kind to our feathered friends! Great when read with "voices" to match the pinch-faced, conservation minded women who star in the book! Hurray to Kathryn Lasky for writing a this child-eye opener and to David Catrow for bringing it to life!

13 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A little heavy handed, June 24, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head! (Paperback)

I wanted to like this book, I really did. The design is exquisite, the illustrations compelling with lush, gorgeous colors. The story is a fascinating one and the idea of turning it into a picture book for younger children was fantastic. It has many important themes such as the struggle for women's sufferage and the idea of empowerment, working for a cause you believe in, and the elements of successful political action, all told in a way that young children can understand. However, I found the text just a little too preachy for my taste, and I am very sympathetic to the cause. I don't think environmental causes are helped by looking down on those who view things differently, instead I would like to read books that help children to understand why there are differences of opinion and have empathy for those who are different. I found the words like "silly" "disgusting" "revolting" "nauseating" "ghastly" used to describe feather-wearers to be unconstructive, uncompassionate and not particularly admirable.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an awesome book!, January 25, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head! (Paperback)

I am in first grade and I am six years old. I really like this book. The pictures are funny. I like the dodo bird and the heath hen, and the spoonbill escaping from the picture. I learned about the Audubon Society, it saves birds. I also learned that Harriet and Minna were cousins and real people. This book is great for ages six and up!