SIGNED, ABIAH ROSE

In a book that instantly evokes and sustains old-fashioned charm, readers meet young Abiah Rose, who lives in the Genesee River Valley sometime in the 18th century. She is a talented artist who, while allowed to pursue her passion to some extent, is prevented from taking full credit for her work. She is told by her family members that she shouldn’t sign her name to her pieces because people would not respect her work if they knew it was done by a female artist. Abiah acquiesces, but she defiantly hides a small rose in each of her pieces to mark it as her creation. She looks forward to the day when she is old enough to have her own shop and make her own choices, for she sees “no fault in the signing of [her] own girl’s name up on the work of [her] own girl’s hands.” The acrylic-and–colored-pencil illustrations look as if Abiah herself might have painted them, and each cleverly conceals one of her roses. Ideal for use with units on evolving gender roles and/or folk art in pioneer America. (author’s note, further reading) (Picture book. 6-10)