The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read
CCBC Review:
A remarkable woman achieves a lifelong dream in this nonfiction picture book. Gifted a Bible by a group of evangelists, Mary longed to learn how to read but had no time or opportunity to do so. Enslaved until she was 15, Mary later worked to help her single mother support their family; as a married adult she worked as a sharecropper to support her three sons, whose birthdays she marked in her Bible. At 114 years old, having outlived her husband and children, Mary became the nation’s oldest student as she learned to read in her retirement home. Celebrating her birthdays with family and friends, Mary, who lived to be 121, would read aloud from her Bible. Cut-paper collage illustrations accompany the narrative of this impressive, persevering Black historical figure. ©2021 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Oge Mora
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 5-9
Age Range:
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Formats:
Biography, Autobiography and Memoir
Picture book
Subjects:
19th Century
20th Century
African Americans
Biography
Books and Reading
Christian People
Faith, Spirituality and Religion
Older Adults
Perseverance
Work and Labor
Diversity subject:
Black/African
Christian
Publishers:
Random House, Schwartz & Wade
Publish Year: 2020
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9781524768287
CCBC Location: Non-Fiction, 306 Hubbard