The Ballot Box Battle

by Emily Arnold McCully

From a Caldecott-winning author comes a  lushly illustrated picture book about the fight for women's rights that makes for perfect for President's Day reading!

Caldecott medalist Emily Arnold McCully delivers the inspiring story of a young girl named Cordelia whose relationship with her neighbor, the great suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton, inspires her to a remarkable act of courage.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Picture Books, Childrens, Womens, American History

32 pages, Paperback

First published July 9, 1996

About the author

Emily Arnold McCully received the Caldecott Medal for Mirette on the High Wire. The illustrator of more than 40 books for young readers, she divides her time between Chatham, New York, and New York City.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't say this book particularly moved me or would be the best first introduction to Stanton but it was engaging and did a good job of portraying this event in history making it vivid and lively and I would recommend it along with other books on the subject.

[QNPoohBear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ten-year-old Cordelia is bored by her elderly neighbor, Mrs. Stanton's, stories about women's suffrage. Who cares? Men make all the decisions like that anyway. Cordelia would rather be riding horses! Then she discovers a common bond with Mrs. Stanton that helps her achieve her goal of riding a horse, if only a borrowed one. Through Mrs. Stanton's words and actions and the words and actions of the men of Tenafly, Cordelia's eyes and ears become more open to what Mrs. Stanton is trying to tell her.

Adult readers will probably recognize Elizabeth Cady Stanton, one of the first women's rights activists in the United States. This slight biography is told through the eyes of a child rather than just the facts laid out for the reader. I think this technique will make the story more interesting and relatable to young children, especially girls. I hope kids read this and think about that boring old person and wonder what stories that boring old person has to tell that are relevant to their own lives. Girls will especially be interested in this story, I think. My nieces were very well aware than "a girl" was running for President of the United States in 2016-the FIRST "girl" (well no, but the first in our lifetimes). They didn't really understand what else was going on just that someone female like them was poised to make history-and didn't. They were crushed when "Hilawy" didn't win and felt it was a blow to female kind. Prior to that time they didn't even know women COULD be President and Elizabeth Cady Stanton would be deeply upset by that. She would tell them the same stories she told Cordelia about the fight for equality and sometimes you have to take the reins yourself rather than wait for them to be handed to you.

Cordelia is a little bit spunky and very typically single-minded for a girl her age. She's focused on herself and what she wants. I found her a bit annoying until the end. I liked young Elizabeth better and my heart broke for her. She must have been brilliant but so brokenhearted by the rejection of her father. I know this story and remember it well from reading ahead in my English textbook when I was about Cordelia's age. Elizabeth's father is the sort of villain of the story as are the men who refuse to allow Elizabeth to vote. It's not so black and white, however, some men aren't sure what to do about this pushy Mrs. Stanton and two men are in support of women voting. I appreciate the author subtly and briefly showing different viewpoints.

The illustrations are pretty good. Elizabeth Cady Stanton is instantly recognizable as the elderly dowager she was in the 1880s. Cordelia's dresses date to the 1900s-1920s not 1880s but close enough for most people not to notice. The difference between her and young Elizabeth is readily apparent to those paying attention.

This book contains an author's note biography of Elizabeth Cady Stanton mentioning the books she used for research.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

By now there are lots of other books about the suffrage movement... I'd probably choose one of them instead of this mostly fiction story.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth book that I've read by McCully, and I realize that she's joined the ranks of my favorite authors. She introduces snippets of history, writing tales that make the era come alive.

[Andelyn Briggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book tells the story of women standing up for themselves and what’s right throughout history, and tells the story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an influential female figure in American history who fought for women’s suffrage. It’s a great book to teach students about Stanton and supplement other learnings about the suffrage movement, but it is not particularly interesting and easy to read. Though informational, I found the book quite anticlimactic. However, it would be good to read paired with other text and material in a classroom.

[Margaret Chind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted on Creative Madness Mama.

It was actually last week that we read this book but I kept forgetting to sit down and write a review for you! This is a book that I picked up on a whim after a glance at a local used bookstore before it closed. The Ballot Box Battle is a story about Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a long-term supporter of the idea of women's rights, especially the right to vote. Right now we are working on an Elections unit study from Homeschool in the Woods and I dug this out of our bookshelf thinking that it would make a good read aloud to go with the theme, and it was a perfect choice!

In this story a young girl who wants to learn to ride horses and stand up to the local boys including her brother goes to a neighbor, Ms. Stanton for lessons and advice. This was an attractively illustrated book and set our day off just right that we continued on the theme of suffragettes in our elections study. I highly recommend this one for your study on elections and especially women's rights.

View all my reviews
This review was originally posted on Creative Madness Mama.

[Dolly]

Using a fictional young girl as the main focus of the story, the author describes Elizabeth Cady Stanton's life story and her efforts in the Women's Suffrage Movement.

The narrative shows Ms. Stanton telling the fictional neighbor girl, Cordelia, about growing up in an environment where girls are valued far less than boys, while knowing that she was just as smart and as capable.

She describes major events in her life that shaped her decisions to follow her calling as an activist, a leader, an author, and a prominent member of her community. She also encourages Cordelia to pursue her dreams and to continue the fight for women's suffrage.

The illustrations, created using watercolors and pastels, give the feeling of an older time and help to give young readers a glimpse into what life was like in the late 1800s.

Overall, I really liked the way that the biography tells readers about Ms. Stanton's life even without sharing many details. The final page of the story helps readers fill in the blanks with the details that were omitted.

Without being a very definitive book about Ms. Stanton, this story still depicts an important event in her life and helps young children discover the struggles that finally brought women the right to vote in America.

This book was selected as one of the books for the June 2018 - Women's Suffrage discussion at the Picture-Book Club in the Children's Books Group here at Goodreads.

[sarafem · Rating 5 out of 5]

First let me say that my school's library has this book's reading level at 2.8, and I don't know whose crack our librarian is smokin', or if it's a publisher misprint, but this book is at least upper third grade and more likely fourth. I was really excited about reading a feministy picture book on a younger kid's level, and sadly, the RL misled me and I was let down.

That said, it's still an excellent book about a young girl's relationship with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a leader in the women's suffrage movement. She can't relate to Mrs. Stanton's passion for women's right to vote and she is embarrassed by Mrs. Stanton's public display on Election Day. But then when her brother and his friends mock them, she realizes how pointless the prohibition is. Mrs. Stanton's courage inspires her to face her own challenges head on.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ballot Box Battle/ Emily McCully / 1996
Genre: Non-fiction
Format: picture book
Plot summary: Ten-year-old Cordelia accompanies her neighbor Elizabeth Cady Stanton to the polling place on Election Day as Mrs. Stanton goes to the polls to attempt to vote. Along the way, Cordelia learns a lesson in determination.
Considerations: none
Section source: School Library Journal
Recommended age: 6-9

[Brenna Quirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young Cordelia and wise Mrs. Stanton depict what women's rights looked like for a span of ages in the late 1800's. This inspiring and evoking story is a combination of multiple biographies that highlights women's desire to be courageous and learned without feeling they are breaking the law or stereotypes attached to them. These themes are centralized around Mrs. Stanton's attempt to fill her departed brother's shoes, her strong feministic views that cause her to encourage Cordelia to strive to for more, and her desire to see younger generations of women to be treated with the respect of a citizen - including voting!
I enjoyed this book and found its dialogue to be thought provoking. We have come a long way as a society since 1880, and though these struggles don't directly apply I think it even stirred up a lot of thoughts about equality and the perspective of those who are oppressed. I am a sucker for illustrations and I quite enjoyed the older and authentic looking art that fit the time period. It allows for the children to really place themselves back in the 1880's and properly compare and contrast the setting and characters to now.
I would definitely recommend this book as an early reader to many children, and in particular young girls. I think either gender could read this book and pull equally important lessons, but it would act as a window for boys and a mirror for girls. I would recommend reading this to any young girl between the ages 4-8 interested in history, equality, government or leadership, and horses. This particular group would relate to the book most and be more highly engaged because they are interested in the lessons and information it has to provide.
As for the diversity, of the book did a good job of addressing the lack femenism in the late 18th century though it could have represented more ethnicities and more than just two women. Though in some ways just the two of them was accurate because most women had either never known anything else or were to scared to speak up.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and would read this book or something similar to my own daughters one day.

[Haley Sims · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ballot Box Battle is about a little girl who, initially, wants to know more about jumping horses. She talks to her neighbor, Elizabeth Stanton, and learns more about what it is like to be a woman growing up in their time and how it takes courage to receive their rights as United States citizens. This book is a great way to introduce a lesson that involves voting, constitutional rights, and/or women's suffrage. I thought the author fluently expressed what it was like being an educated, underappreciated woman during the post-revolutionary time. By the end of the book, the reader has an idea of how women were looked down upon and how they had to get out of their comfort zone to make their voices heard and have the courage to do so.

[SarahElizabeth Greenmyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although a fictional story, a very good story to teach about the paths women had to walk to vote.

[The Transmuted Tree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Red 1st

I loved this story of a determined, plucky woman fighting for equal rights in the 1800's & a little girl she inspired. It made me wonder how I would have been back then.

[Josiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is really what Emily Arnold McCully seems to do best, creating picture books that pair meaningful stories from history with splendid illustrations.

The Ballot Box Battle allows us the unique opportunity to experience the story of women's suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton through the eyes and ears of her young granddaughter Cordelia. Cordelia knows that her grandmother is fighting for important civil rights, but to her the bigger significance of her grandmother's work pales in comparison with her own love of horses. In fact, it takes a discussion with her grandmother that is initially about horses before the two of them have their first meaningful talk about the efforts that her grandmother is making on behalf of females everywhere.

Cordelia's grandmother has a very poignant story to tell about when she was young, and how the death of her brother rocked the foundations of her world and very nearly destroyed her father. Cordelia's grandmother as a child had strived hard to please her father and do all of the things that only boys were supposed to be capable of achieving, but in her father's mind there would always be a gulf that his determined daughter could not cross, and she could never be as good as a new son to take the place of the one he lost.

Cordelia never comes to entirely understand her grandmother's insistence on giving women the right to vote, but she can see even in the way that she herself is treated by her brother that one should not be dismissed just because of one's gender. At the end of the book Cordelia musters up her courage to prove in a small but important way that she is as capable of achievement as anyone else, and her success is also a minor triumph for her grandmother, who had battled for years against the presupposition that girls just shouldn't, or couldn't, do some things.

< i>The Ballot Box Battle is a very good story with some excellent historical and emotional content, and I would easily give it two and a half stars.

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Through full-page illustrations, a fictionalized account of one of Elizabeth Cady Stanton's attempts to vote is told through the eyes of young Cordelia. Cordelia takes riding lessons from Mrs. Stanton & doesn't understand why she'd want to vote. But Stanton's courage inspires Cordelia to stand up for herself. It's a simple account and thus doesn't really stand on its own, but would be perfect to kickstart more learning on women's suffrage and feminism.

[Sandie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was cute. It would be PERFECT to use as a supplement when teaching about women's rights!!! It's a bit long, but it's a great way to show students that not every person always had the same rights as everyone else.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

suffrage, 1880, Elizabeth Cady Stanton-she tries to vote but is ridiculed by men and rejected from voting

[Kelly Triplett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nicely written story of history. It would b a nice book to include in lessons discussing voting and equality.

[Ashley Greenfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nicely written story of history. It would b a nice book to include in lessons discussing voting and equality.

[Derrick Lomax]

ggg

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

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