10 Picture Books to Borrow from the Library During Women's History Month

March 8 is International Women's Day, and there's no better way to celebrate than by snuggling up with your daughters (and sons!) and reading some beautifully illustrated children's books about the true stories of smart, talented, brave, and influential women. Here are ten picture books about girls who made history that are available to borrow with your Avon Grove Library card.

​Need a library card? Find out how to get one here!

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Bloom: A Story of Fashion Designer Elsa Schiaparelli
by Kyo Maclear

By the 1930s Elsa Schiaparelli had captivated the fashion world in Paris, but before that, she was a little girl in Rome who didn't feel pretty at all. Bloom: A Story of Fashion Designer Elsa Schiaparelli is the enchanting story for young readers of how a young girl used her imagination and emerged from plain to extraordinary.

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She Made a Monster: How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein
by Lynn Fulton

On a stormy night two hundred years ago, a young woman sat in a dark house and dreamed of her life as a writer...as she drifted off to sleep, she dreamed of a man that was not a man. He was a monster.

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Ordinary, Extraordinary Jane Austen
by Deborah Hopkinson

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Jane Austen is one of our greatest writers. But before that, she was just an ordinary girl.

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Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of Elizabeth Cotten
by Laura Veirs

Elizabeth Cotten was only a little girl when she picked up a guitar for the first time. It wasn't hers (it was her big brother's), and it wasn't strung right for her (she was left-handed). But she flipped that guitar upside down and backwards and taught herself how to play it anyway. By age eleven, she'd written "Freight Train," one of the most famous folk songs of the twentieth century. And by the end of her life, people everywhere from the sunny beaches of California to the rolling hills of England knew her music.

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Mary Wears What She Wants
by Keith Negley

Once upon a time (but not too long ago), girls only wore dresses. And only boys wore pants. Until one day, a young girl named Mary had a bold idea: She would wear whatever she wanted. And she wanted to wear pants! Inspired by the true story of Mary Edwards Walker, a trailblazing doctor who was arrested many times for wearing pants, this fresh, charming picture book encourages readers to think for themselves while gently challenging gender and societal norms.

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Harlem's Little Blackbird: The Story of Florence Mills
by Renee Watson

A tribute to lesser-known Harlem Renaissance performer Florence Mills includes coverage of her youth as a child of former slaves, her singing and dancing performances that inspired songs and entire plays, and the struggles with racism that prompted her advocacy of all-black theater and musicals.

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Ada Lovelace, Poet of Science: The First Computer Programmer
by Diane Stanley

​"A fascinating look at Ada Lovelace, the pioneering computer programmer and the daughter of the poet Lord Byron." -- Provided by publisher

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Helen's Big World: The Life of Helen Keller
Doreen Rappaport

An introduction to the life and legacy of Helen Keller and her teacher Annie Sullivan.

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Wangari's Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa
​by Jeanette Winter

As a young girl growing up in Kenya, Wangari was surrounded by trees. But years later when she returns home, she is shocked to see whole forests being cut down, and she knows that soon all the trees will be destroyed. So Wangari decides to do something-and starts by planting nine seedlings in her own backyard. And as they grow, so do her plans. . . . This true story of Wangari Maathai, environmentalist and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, is a shining example of how one woman's passion, vision, and determination inspired great change.

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Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos
​by Monica Brown

Chronicles Frida Kahlo's life-- from her childhood to her rise as one of the world's most influential painters-- capturing the beauty and strength of Frida's creative spirit, which carried her through tragedy and triumph, and the animals that inspired her along the way.

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Do you have a favorite picture book about girl power that wasn't listed here? Share your recommendation below!