Girls Who Rocked the World!: Heroines from Sacajawea to Sheryl Swoopes

History is full of women who made a difference in the world. This book profiles several. Focusing on women in history who were extraordinary before they turned 20, this book highlights heroines such as Cleopatra and Phyllis Wheatley among others. A good collection since the greatness of these women have always been played down throughout history. Cleopatra, who is one of the world's most fascinating women and my personal favorite, especially. An inspiring book. Also recommended if you enjoy reading about important historical female women - Lucy and the Beauty Queen (a fictional book about a young Cleopatra) and the Emily Cobbs Collection which references a young Queen Victoria.

    In her teens, Amelie Welden began writing this book, "Girls who rocked the world", about girls under 20 that have had a major impact on the image of women around the world, throughout history. These tales of hardships and obstacles women have overcome to reach success against the odds is perfect motivational reading for the girls of today. Amelie Welden combines girls from all different situations and backgrounds in this book that share the same characteristics of a heroine. Whether it is Joan of Arc, a French crusader, or Martina Hingis, Women's tennis championship, girls can find good role models. Among the 33 women mentioned in the book, three of which, I found exemplified outstanding characteristics of a heroine making this book a worthwhile read, Cleopatra, Phillis Wheatley, and Helen Keller.    This book begins with most likely the most famous woman ruler of them all, Cleopatra. Blessed with riches from the beginning, this girl had all the makings to become a woman who would rock the world, and she did. She faced incredible responsible at the age of only 18 when she was crowned Queen of the Egyptian Empire. Ruling her empire was a difficult task when she was thought of as inferior, for being a women to other male rulers, but that didn't shake her confidence. From the start things went rough for the Queen and she found herself exiled from her own country because advisors felt threatened by her ideas and independence. However, determined, and clever, she devised a plan in order to get into her country to meet Julius Caesar, and the rest is history. The significance of her story is to prove to the world that girls can succeed in a position dominated by men. With the right skill and attitude shown by Cleopatra for her country, any girl can become good at her passion. Cleopatra's heroic courage and willingness to put her life on the line for the sake of her beloved country, is an admirable quality every girl should have.     Unlike Cleopatra, Phillis Wheatley was born at a time when it was unheard of for African-Americans to be anymore than slaves, let alone women. However, Phillis Wheatley decided to change her stars, and follow her love for writing. Writing was a way for Phillis to express her feelings, a privilege that any girl should have. Unfortunately no one would listen or hardly appreciate the poetry of a black girl, no matter how good it was. But knowledge is power and as Phillis advanced in her studies, she gained respect. Her life proved that even a black girl could be an intelligent and an educated person if given the opportunity. She opened new doors for the rights of African-Americans and took society a step closer to accepting her race. She taught the world to look past superficial things like skin color and take a deeper look into what the person has to say. It takes a lot of courage to do this at a time when the slavery issue was so controversial, but Phillis Wheatley dared to be different and never gave up on her dreams. He

I read this book with my daughter who is 7. Both of us were awed by the featured women in the book. The book is short and the stories concise. It is inspiring to see not only women who changed the world, but young women doing so much. Every school and girl in America should read this book. I am buying them as gifts for every girl we know!

Girls Who Rocked the World is an inspiring book. Not only do you learn interesting facts about many famous and accomplished women, you also receive a unique perspective into their dreams, fears, struggles, and successes. I will recommend this book to everyone I know!

I originally purchased this book for my 8 year old daughter. I think I like it better than she does! I absolutely *LOVE* reading about 14 year old girls who rocked the world... and I feel empowered to follow my dreams to rock the world a little myself. I especially love the current-day kids at the end of each section with their plans!!