The Daring Nellie Bly: America's Star Reporter

by Bonnie Christensen

From the award-winning picture book biographer of Woody Guthrie comes the inspirational story of Nellie Bly. Born in 1864, during a time in which options were extremely limited for women, Nellie defied all expectations and became a famous newspaper correspondent. Her daring exploits included committing herself to an infamous insane asylum in New York City to expose the terrible conditions there and becoming the first American war correspondent of either sex to report on the front lines of Austria during World War I. In 1889, Nellie completed her most publicized stunt, her world-famous trip around the world in just 72 days, beating the record of Jules Vernes’ fictional hero in Around the World in 80 Days .

With an informative text and pen-and-ink illustrations reminiscent of the graphic style of the late 1800s, The Daring Nellie Bly captures the independent spirit of America’s first star reporter, Nellie Bly.

Genres: Picture Books, Biography, Nonfiction, History, Journalism, Womens, 20th Century

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 14, 2003

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

In terms of a picture book, this is just okay. The illustrations are decent but nothing spectacular, and the writing style, while engaging, is nothing "special." However, it definitely worked in terms of sparking my appreciation for the intrepid journalist Nellie Bly and I am eager to read more about this amazing woman. Bly's accomplishments would earn esteem even today--the fact that she undertook her missions in the late 1800s when few women worked--and few working women were respected--is astounding and more than admirable!

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nellie Bly is a badass and should be known by all. I knew of her, but this story had me researching more once the kid fell asleep. A great introduction to Nellie for young and old.

[Bookbag_Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Energy Rightly Applied And Directed Will Accomplish Anything

Determined To Do What No Girl Had Done Before

I Am Off For New York. Look Out For Me.

She Will Be Recognized As Pushing And Determined, Independent, Able To Take Care Of Herself Wherever She May Go.

TRAVELED TO // Pennsylvania, New York City, Around The World In 80 Days
MET ALONG THE WAY // Nellie Bly & McGinty

[Xitong Han · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, and would definitely read the next book if this book was a series since the book was really hard to put down and I'm sure hypothetically, the next book would be just as great. The book was balanced very well, it's really fun and educational. The writing is effective and easy to understand so it's great for all ages. I also loved the layout of the pages, the illustrations were fun and the way the words were placed made it easy on the eyes and again, really fun and great for all ages. The overall tone of the story is inspiring, and it was really interesting learning about Nellie's life, all her accomplishments, and challenges. Nellie Bly is an amazing and inspiring woman and her life and all she does is really fascinating, and the author also executed everything very well. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book for today’s girls to learn about the time when women were not allowed to vote and seldom considered for white collar jobs. When Nellie read an article by a writer who wrote that any woman who had a job “was a monstrosity” and that “in China… they kill baby girls to sell them as slaves, because they can make no good use of them.”, she wrote a fiery letter to the editor. The editor was so impressed with Nellie’s letter that he offered her a job as a journalist on his newspaper.

Her determination to succeed and publish the truth Nellie to go under cover at a women’s insane asylum, becomes the first woman war correspondent on the Eastern Front in WWI, and takes up the cause of orphaned and abandoned children.

She is most known for her record breaking trip around the world where hordes of people cheered her on and her newspaper’s circulation increased by 24,000.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a neat book chronicling the life and adventures of this independent 19th century woman. We have not had the pleasure of reading Around the World in Eighty Days & Five Weeks in a Balloon, but once I do get to reading that book with my kids, we will for sure return to this book and further explore the bold Ms. Bly.

[Shiloah · Rating 4 out of 5]

We enjoyed this wonderful true story about a woman who made big strides in the movement for women to have a voice and to do big things. Woman power! We are so grateful for women like Nellie who have gone on before us to help us to get to the abundance of freedom we have today.

[Danette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Around the world in 80 days? Sure!

6/8/19 Read with Naomi, Julia, Micah, and Skylar for Summer Book Club

[Elizabeth Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nellie Bly is an important woman in American history.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think one of the reasons I like this book so much is because I am so fascinated with Nellie Bly. She was truly an amazing woman overall but especially for the time she lived. She had such courage and determination I think that she is a wonderful role model for students today. This book has sent more than a few students to go and read more about her.

[Lara Streyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Daring Nellie Bly: America's Star Reporter" by Bonnie Christensen is a wonderful portrait of the America's first female reporter. It is a picture book and each page is filled with informative text and pictured renderings of Bly's life. Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran in Pennsylvania, she sought better opportunities for herself and women in society. Her spunk and determination gained her the attention an editor at the Pittsburgh Dispatch and soon she was a full-time reporter. Her reporting took her on travels to Mexico and even undercover as a patient at one of New York's most notorious insane asylums. This led to exposes on unfair practices affecting women. After reading Jules Verne's novel Around the World in 80 Days, Bly took it upon herself to beat the fictional record of Verne's lead character. Many said it could not be done, but Bly proved them all wrong making the journey in 72 days. She soon catapulted to fame as the world's star reporter. Bly continued to pioneer for women's rights well into her later years.

This is a read I would recommend for 3rd to 5th grade readers, especially as a read-aloud. It would be a wonderful read during a lesson about the women's rights movement. The book also provides a great timeline of dates that could lend itself to a Social Studies tie-in. I could even see potential projects where students choose to find a book and report about their own American hero: the Wright Brothers, Amelia Earhart, Harriet Tubman, Abe Lincoln, Ben Franklin, Susan B. Anthony etc., This was an enjoyable read and a book I can see myself using in my future classroom.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did a project with my students. It started with the book The Daring Nellie Bly: America's Star Reporter by Bonnie Christensen. I've sort of fallen in love with Nellie and this project has really taken off. I, of course, had to read the classic Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne since it is what inspired Nellie to embark on her own journey 'round the world. I found many books on Nellie and her life, as well as graphic novels of Verne's book. I checked out a children's book called Nellie Bly's Monkey and, while neither the most factual, nor the most age appropriate vocabulary, the kids just think it's funny that someone tried to write a book from the monkey's perspective. I found a book with amazing photographs called Bylines: A Photobiography of Nellie Bly. And numerous others. We've read about Nellie, watched a short video about her, researched the locations she went to (using a reliable, school-provided database), found pictures of the locations she went to (using Wikimedia Commons and learning about copyright), wrote paragraphs about them (not plagiarizing), typed the paragraphs (practicing keyboarding and word processing) and it will all be compiled into one big Google Lit Trip. I'm very excited with how this is turning out.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nellie Bly is one of those bigger than life characters - beating Phileas Fogg's 80 day record around the world, and unlike Fogg she was real and a woman to boot in the late 1800s. As a journalist Nellie Bly became famous as she pioneered investigative journalism with reports on conditions at Nasylums, unfair and illegal working/living practices that in particular impacted women.

This book combined two things I love: picture books for older children and biographies of women. In the genre of Eleanor, Tallchief: America's Prima Ballerina and Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride (technically a fictional story based upon true characters and events) this book does not disappoint as it tells of the exciting adventures of an intrepid female reporter in the 1800s when newspapers and all interesting jobs were the purview of men.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This biography touches on a remarkable woman who broke down the barriers in her way as a woman and exposed the conditions fueling the many social movements of the late 19th and early 20th century. As a stunt reporter, Nelly Bly exposed conditions in insane asylums, corruption in the Mexican government, and set out to prove that the world could indeed be circumnavigated in less than the fabled 80 days written by Jules Verne in his famed 80 Days Around the World. She also wrote supportive articles during the Pullman strike and reported behind the front lines during World War I from the Eastern front. As a crusader, Nellie Bly helped orphans and continued to expose the conditions in which thousands of powerless people toiled.

Great use of biography and women's history to look at character and breaking down stereotypes with students.

[Betsy Owens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nellie Bly presented the challenge of actually traveling around the world and beating the record of the fictional character, Phileas Fogg (Around the World in 80 Days). It took some convincing, but her editor allowed her to do this. The chronicle of her journey – delays and advancements is interesting. I always had heard of the book, Around the World in 80 Days, but I’ve never read it. Hearing about a woman who actually took on this challenge (and beat it!) makes me want to read the original book.

It would be fun to research with students how quickly we could travel around the world today, landing at the same stops mentioned in Nellie Bly’s biography and/or the stops in the novel.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know about Nellie Bly's around the world quest. This book really enlightened me about that. It was a longer than the average picture book biography. I don't think I could use it with a younger audience simply because of wavering attention spans, but I enjoyed learning from it. I think with an upper elementary to early middle school audience, this would work out really well. The illustrations are just right for the book, conveying not only the events of the story, but the general tone of the era. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I'd add it to my children's biography collection happily.

[JoAnna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Three-line review: This children’s book follows the story of Nellie Bly, a pioneering female journalist who set a record for traveling around the world in 72 days. The book specifically detailed how Bly came to travel around the world and the path her long journey took, but it failed to cover other achievements in her life – such as the 25 inventions she patented, which are given a simple sentence on the final page of the story. While she may be known primarily for her global travels, the book’s title implies that the story is about Nellie Bly in general, and in that aspects, it is a letdown.

[Brian Cave · Rating 4 out of 5]

This biography tells the tale of Nellie Bly, and her days of reporting for the New York World newspaper. This biography not only in tells the life of Bly but puts in emphasis of how hard it was for women to have jobs during this time, let alone a notable job like Bly had. Bly was the first reporter on the ground in WW1, and at the time, was the fastest person to travel the world in 72 days.

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nellie Bly was the first person to take up the challenge to circumnavigate the globe in less time than the fictional character from Jules Verne's novel Around the World in 80 Days. Bonnie Christenson did a wonderful job on this picture book biography sharing with young readers a truly inspirational woman who would stop at nothing to reach her goals.

[Melissa Messner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this celebration of one of my favorite historical figures: Nellie Bly. This picture book for older readers is a good introduction to an amazing person and her fascianting journalistic accomplishments.

[Cece · Rating 4 out of 5]

This biography was very intertaining. Nellie was a very determined woman. The students in my 5th grade placement enjoyed reading the story.

[Holly Mueller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one! Nellie is fascinating and would be a great addition to a collection of biographies. Timeline, Bibliography, and Videography at the back.

[Missy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story made me want to check out the 1997 PBS documentary about Nellie Bly. Inspiring.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was educational but not boring. I thought it was interesting and I learned things I hadn't learned before. I did not prefer the pen and ink illustrations though.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed finding out more about her - enjoyed picture book

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another one O didn't want to read originally because it was black and white. However, we both enjoyed the story about a strong female in a male dominated world.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picture book is a quick way to introduce my students to an amazing woman during my unit on urbanization and industrialization.

[Tessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nellie Bly is one of my favorite people and this picture book is a nice introduction to her. The pictures fit her dashing style perfectly.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

did not read yet

[Sarah Threlkeld · Rating 4 out of 5]

An inspiring biography aimed at upper elementary students. Learning about Bly's life made me want to hop on a boat or plane and see the world.