Review for Junko Tabei Masters the Mountains | Alicia Alonso Takes the Stage | Dr. Wangari Maathai Plants a Forest
I received these three books from the publisher/Netgalley in exchange of an honest review!
My blog is pretty full (up to March, almost April) and so I thought I would just make three short reviews for these books in one post! That way I can still show them on my blog not that long after the release date (7th Feb), plus I don’t need to figure out what to move 3 times. I just move one post!
I was delighted that there are more books coming after Ada Lovelace. I really enjoyed that book and so I was delighted to see more in this series. I was at first not entirely sure if I wanted to read them as my schedule is already so overly full, but then something happened, and well I considered it a sign to just read them. And I am happy I did. I really enjoyed these three books.
Junko Tabei Masters the Mountains: Another woman I don’t know. Or well, I probably know her as I have read books about mountains and mountaineering before, but again, I just cannot remember everything that I read. In this book we follow the dreams and more of Junko Tabei. A girl born in Japan in WWII and this book takes place after all that. When Junko discovers mountaineering/hiking and how she at first struggles but then completely falls in love with it. But we see that it isn’t easy. She is a girl in Japan just after the war. She is supposed to get married. Thankfully, her dad is supportive and allows her to study and also supports her with her mountain/hiking. I just adored seeing Junko climb more mountains, find a club that is OK with her climbing, and also making friends. It isn’t always easy but I just loved seeing Junko persevere and climb higher and higher mountains. Make great plans. And I am also so happy for her that she found a husband who is also into mountaineering/hiking and also supports his wife. I had a laugh when she told him about Everest and he wanted to first make a baby with her. XD I can imagine that if your loved one is gone for months, maybe longer, that you want to have someone around, someone who reminds you of your wife. Someone to take care of. I loved what happens after, see Junko continue on with her dreams. See her push through! There were some sad moments, but mostly beautiful inspiring moments.
Alicia Alonso Takes the Stage:
I definitely don’t know this girl. I love these books. I wonder what other inspirational girls I will discover thanks to this series. In this book we meet a girl named Alicia who loves loves loves to dance. From Spanish dances when she lived in Spain to learning ballet when she returns to Cuba. Only her parents just think it is a fun pastime but not something to do as professional job, and my heart just broke for her. She is so good at it, has so much joy from it, but then this. We see her continue on, dancing for all her life, getting better and better. And finding love. I just loved that part! I was a bit sus about her hubby, I don’t know why, so I am happy that they were so happy. And we see how she finds love and luck and joy in New York, I just enjoyed reading about her performances, about all the opportunities she got. But then. OH NO. I was just crying. That is just horrible. Many people would have given up. Just lain in bed and not do anything. But no Alicia. She kept on going. Dancing in her head, thinking of all the dances. And I loved that her husband was there for her to support to. To help her. And then comes the rest, what after this all? I was just so excited and now I want to see if there are photographs of that performance! And I loved that Alicia decided to inspire other girls and boys and went to teach them. She had a studio, a new dance school. Love it. Plus, like all the other books we get an afterword, I loved that those are added!
Dr. Wangari Maathai Plants a Forest:
I had no clue who Wangari Maathai is, though her name vaguely sounds familiar. Maybe I have read a few bits and bobs about her somewhere, but my mind just cannot remember everyone. XD In this book we meet Wangari, a girl living in Kenya. A girl who is very close with nature and her family. And a girl who gets the chance to fulfil her dreams when her parents allow her to go to school and from that point even to university and more. Wagnari loves science and biology and I just adored seeing her get all the chances. But of course, not everything is right. We read how she encounters racism. How her country is changing. From British rule to their own democracy. Well, I wonder if it is that much better given how is in control of the country. 😐 But she fights. She tries to make her country beautiful and save again. Because due to deforestation people are getting poorer. Water is harder to find. Mudslides are common. I loved how she build up an organisation. Visited women. Taught them about nature and planting trees. It was all very interesting to read and I was just rooting so much for Wagnari. Also quite worried given the government and how they reacted. It was all very inspirational to read, Wagnari did so much for her country. And then there are the absolutely gorgeous and fun illustrations.