Children's Review: The Girl Who Wore Pants

This spirited biography by Susanna Isern (The Voice of the Forest), translated from the Spanish by Cecilia Ross, pays tribute to changemaker Luisa Capetillo, who dared to challenge convention and gender norms by fighting for women's right to wear pants.

Readers meet Capetillo, born in Puerto Rico to a French mother, as a child: "She was a restless, curious girl who loved to learn." In school, she was taught the duties of "good wives, mothers, and homemakers." Illustrator Esther Gili depicts a row of girls engaged in needlepoint, Luisa refusing to stitch with an exasperated look on her face. As an avid reader, Luisa reads in French and Spanish and thrills in the "new worlds and new ways of thinking" introduced to her. She also loves playing outdoors but resents how her skirts restrict her movement. When she asks her mother why girls don't wear "more practical clothes," the "absurdity" of her answer--it is a social custom--leaves Luisa perplexed. The next morning, she boldly resists these norms by running in a pair of her father's old pants ("Luisa felt free!"), scandalizing the community.

Text and illustration seamlessly transition to Luisa as a young adult, advocating for women's rights by reading to illiterate factory workers. Later, during her world travels, she faces a "public scandal" but is acquitted by a judge, in what Isern describes as a "pivotal moment." While the illustrations offer some insight into this event, additional backmatter with further details about the scandal and other significant aspects of Capetillo's life would enrich the reader's understanding and inspire deeper exploration of her remarkable story.

Isern explores Capetillo's groundbreaking "bravery and her unconventional clothing" in a direct and straightforward style, effectively conveying Luisa's determination: "She could only think about that annoying skirt that made it difficult for her to move freely." Gili's illustrations, filled with calming earth tones and vibrant bursts of teal, rose, and marigold, capture Luisa's joy in being skirt-free. On one spread, Gili shows her mid-leap, running through a field of flowers, birds flying alongside her. These same birds, a symbol of the liberty Capetillo longed for, also adorn the opening and closing endpapers.

Young readers today might be surprised to learn of a time in which women were confined to skirts. Isern's story is a solid introduction to a woman who dared to defy expectations and paved the way for greater freedom and equality for women. The final spread, featuring contemporary women of all ages and abilities, underscores Capetillo's enduring legacy.  --Julie Danielson

Shelf Talker: This dashing biography of women's rights pioneer Luisa Capetillo tells the story of a woman who fought for her right to lead her life on her own terms.

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