Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell

Written by: Tanya Lee Stone

Illustrated by: Marjorie Priceman

          Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? is a biographical picturebook of Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female doctor in America.  The book details her struggle to enter the medical profession through various naysayers and 28 medical school rejections, but Blackwell's resilience eventually pays off.  Through hard work and passion, Blackwell succeeded in changing the medical field and contributed to changing gender roles throughout history.

          Tanya Lee Stone presents the text with an engaging tone filled with conversational language to immediately draw readers into the story.  For example, the books starts with: "Well, you might find this hard to believe, but there once was a time when girls weren't allowed to become doctors."  This idea draws upon readers' prior knowledge of the medical profession today and brings in shocking claims to transport readers to the 1830s setting.  Additionally, Stone also utilizes humor throughout the depiction of Blackwell's childhood antics, which would make this story a fantastic read aloud!

          Many powerful ideas are presented within the text that remain relevant to readers today, despite their historical context within the book.  One of these quotations is, "some people are afraid of anything new and different."  I loved reading this quote, because it connects readers to Blackwell and the history by drawing on common experiences and struggles to face together.  Furthermore, authenticity of the text is built up with historical references and the "Author's Note" included at the end of the work to provide further information on Blackwell's life, as well as a list of sources to refer to.  There is even a real photograph of Blackwell at the end of the book along with commentary on how Stone is inspired to write about many "women who push boundaries" in history, like Blackwell (back flap).

          Marjorie Priceman's bright goache illustrations add to the text by depicting Blackwell's life with vibrancy and exuberance.  Her illustrations also make the text increasingly engaging for young readers, as the paintings are cartoon-like in many ways to familiarize children with the content.  The illustrations, in conjunction with the text, also play with gender roles and expectations, such as on one two-page spread in which Elizabeth considers becoming a doctor "during sewing circles" and "over tea."  By taking these traditionally prescribed female gender role settings and infiltrating them with this radically feminist idea of becoming a female doctor, the pair works to challenge gendered assumptions. Additionally, Priceman masterfully manipulates line and perspective to depict the various stages in Blackwell's life along with her emotions.

          I think this is a very engaging book for young readers to learn about women in the medical profession, and more specifically, the life of Elizabeth Blackwell- the female doctor that sparked it all!  The content of this book would fit well with scientific studies, career units (doctors), or any study of important women in history.  As stated earlier, I think the text lends itself well to read alouds, and would be especially effective for students in 2nd grade and above.

For additional biographical information on the life of Blackwell: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/changingthefaceofmedicine/physicians/biography_35.html