Send a Girl!

or my annual plug of shameless self promotion

Of all my books, this is the one I like talking about the most.

Send a Girl!

A big reason is that instead of talking about myself I can talk about Brenda Berkman, the subject of the book Send a Girl! The True Story of how Women Joined the FDNY.

But it is Fire Safety Week so it’s an extra-special time to talk about Brenda’s story, and my tiny part in it. Plus, not only did I write a children’s biography of a firefighter, I experienced a total loss from fire the same year the book was picked up by Bloomsbury. A very strange sim moment that made the process even more meaningful to me.

One of the questions I get the most is how I found Brenda’s story, and the truth is I found it completely by accident—just Googling “modern women trailblazers”. But like most story ideas, just a spark of something new and different can take you into uncharted territory if you’re a curious person. And this project was no different.

When I first read about Brenda, there were few articles out there about her service in the fire department, and everything was for adults. Once I read enough to know just how dedicated and determined she was (is), I knew if I could find the right angle, her life could also be a beacon for young readers. Even though these days most often the response from kids is shock when you tell them women weren’t allowed to have certain jobs, stories of how women broke through those barriers are still really important. Kids (and their parents) need to know how much work went into the progress we now benefit from. And exactly why taking steps backwards is a huge threat to our cultural wellbeing.

I think it’s also really important to spotlight firefighters, and all first responders, and the work they often volunteer to do. The ideal situation would be the opportunity for paid career level work for all of them, but the fact is not all areas have the means to do this and some 65% of firefighters are volunteers. Unincorporated and rural areas, in particular, are primarily volunteer and when there’s a sudden demand—such as this past March in my little corner of West Virginia when forest fires got out of control—the volunteers can’t handle it all so the residents have to also step up. I can’t even imagine having to try to save my home from a forest fire, and yet I live here, so it’s never far from my mind that it’s a possibility.

Because many of these areas, like mine, also have no taxes, it’s unlikely we’d have paid firefighters. Volunteers help keep that tax burden down, however, departments struggle to find and retain them, especially younger ones because they are also balancing jobs and families, raising kids and often caring for aging parents. And despite women like Brenda breaking down the walls of departments full of fireMEN, women still only comprise a very small number of firefighters overall nationwide.

All of this makes Brenda’s story even more remarkable and poignant. I feel fortunate I got to be the one to tell it. It’s a fantastic book for elementary classrooms, especially during this week of Fire Safety in October, and in March for Women’s History Month, but like all books, a great permanent library addition at school or home. And even though it’s a book meant for children, I’ve had an incredible reception from adults as well. Picture books are really for all ages and I might be a little biased, but nonfiction in particular has a wide range because it’s just a little dose of learning and inspiration all ages benefit from.

I’d be remiss to not mention that my first picture book Gloria Takes a Stand, is really what led to being able to write Brenda’s story.

Gloria Takes a Stand

And Gloria’s work is what has helped both Brenda and me to be where we are today. Although I don’t put myself in the same category of activists, I do feel that words are important and powerful, so hopefully these words will carry on for a long time.