THE BOBBIN GIRL

Rebecca Putney, ``Bobbin Girl,'' gazes out from the cover of this exceptional work and draws readers into the fascinating lives of the young women who were part of the unique social and industrial milieu of the mills in 19th-century Lowell, Massachusetts. Rebecca, ten, works at the mill to help her mother's finances. The excitement of employment—of young, independent women living, working, and learning together—is effectively contrasted with the need, ultimately, to strike. Judith, an older girl whom Rebecca admires, inspires the work stoppage; Rebecca decides for herself whether she, too, will struggle for better working conditions. Exquisite watercolors are perfectly integrated into the text, extending it and amplifying it. Many marvelous spreads—workers filing into the imposing factory, girls gathered in a boardinghouse parlor, an outdoor rally, and, especially, a tumble of girls rushing down stairs and out of the factory into the light—beckon readers into another era. A careful author's note offers background; this is a perfect classroom companion to Katherine Paterson's Lyddie (1991). Some will say McCully (The Pirate Queen, 1995, etc.) has surpassed herself. (Picture book. 6-9)