Lady Liberty
A Biography
“Tributes to the Statue of Liberty abound, but this one stands out for its unusual approach and powerful illustrations.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
It begins in 1865 as a romantic idea, but ten years later Édouard Laboulaye’s dream catches fire. Sculptor Auguste Bartholdi gives the dream the form of a lady, holding a torch to “enlighten the world.” Engineers, plasterers, carpenters, and coppersmiths work together to turn the lady into a monument more than 100 feet tall. Doreen Rappaport’s poetic vignettes and Matt Tavares’s magnificent images remind us of the origins of a national symbol—and show that it took a lot of people to make the Lady.
Creators
Doreen Rappaport is the author of numerous award-winning non-fiction books for young readers, including No More! Stories and Songs of Slave Resistance, Free at Last! Stories and Songs of Emancipation, Nobody Gonna Turn Me 'Round: Stories and Songs of the Civil Rights Movement, and Beyond Courage. She lives in upstate New York.
Matt Tavares is the author-illustrator of Zachary’s Ball, Oliver’s Game, Mudball, Henry Aaron’s Dream, and There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived. He is also the illustrator of The Gingerbread Pirates by Kristin Kladstrup, among other picture books. Matt Tavares lives in Ogunquit, Maine.
