Spring Reading 2021 The Big Day

 

This picture book is a fictionalized version of September 6, 1919 when Agnes Sadler became the first Black woman to cast a vote in Knoxville, Tennessee. Told from the viewpoint of her granddaughter, the story follows narrator Tansy and Big Mama as they have breakfast, get dressed, and travel by streetcar to the polls. Illustrations capture the period details from 100 years ago - a vintage milk truck outside the house, women in ankle-length dresses and suffrage sashes, an antique candlestick telephone. Back matter includes an Author's Note about Agnes Sadler, a brief description of Knoxville after the Civil War, and photos of Agnes with her family and of the Tennessee Woman Suffrage Memorial in downtown Knoxville. There is also a map showing which states allowed women to vote before the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, a discussion of women's suffrage worldwide along with a timeline. A list of sources includes books, newspaper articles and references from historical journals. The book's endpapers are a collage of newspaper clippings, flyers, suffrage handbooks, registrations cards, and photos.

As a native of Knoxville I am especially pleased to see a book that depicts the results of the suffrage movement and its effect in East Tennessee. Growing up and attending schools in the area I did not hear about the Nineteenth Amendment until U.S. History class in high school; there were certainly no picture books about Black Suffrage or Women's Suffrage when I was in elementary school. I hope this book is included in many classrooms and school library collections so that young students can see how those early voters valued the privilege it took so long for them to attain.