Her Right Foot

Her Right Foot
Dave Eggers
Shawn Harris
Chronicle, 2017 unpaged
Grades K-4
Non-fiction

Eggers traces the history of what is perhaps considered America's most famous and important landmark. Some of the facts about Lady Liberty offered will be known to readers (such as the fact that she came from France), while some may be a surprise (such as a dinner party happening right above the knee during construction). Halfway through the book the author gets to his main point: that Lady Liberty is in a position of mid-stride. Eggers goes on to demonstrate the positioning of the foot as a further symbol of America, stating that we are always on the move and changing. This leads to a celebration of immigration and features the journeys of many immigrant groups from the past to today. Eggers ends with a message to readers embracing the true purpose of the statue (and therefor America) to welcome the immigrant and defend freedom for all people. Back-matter includes photos of the moving foot in question, which visitors to the landmark may not have detected, Books for further reading, and sources used in research, as well as a close-up of the famous poem by Emma Lazarus as seen on the pedestal of the famous statue.

I love this book. It is much richer than it appears at first glance. Chock full of facts, history, and tidbits, readers can't help but learn about this famous symbol of freedom. Written in a conversational tone, Eggers includes humor with some laugh-out-loud funny moments, but don't let the entertaining writing style fool you. Beneath the surface lies real issues that are timely and relevant to society today, presented in a manner that kids will understand. Teachers will find this an excellent resource for classroom sharing and since the author touches on oxidation, there is STEM potential. I was grateful for the photos of the statue and the foot. This inclusion saved me time looking up photos on my own. I also appreciated the list of books for further reading. It is an excellent kid-friendly list of materials, not only about the history of the statue, but about architecture, engineering, and immigration on different interest levels. The illustrations, contributed by newcomer Harris are stars in their own right. A multiracial cast of characters adorns the vividly cheerful pages and help to convey the message of the author. The town I live in has connections to the designer of the statue and we have a street named after Bartholdi and boast one of the smaller models in our town square. I have personally visited the statue three times and feel as if I am well informed about this beloved icon. Still, Eggers left me with facts I previously didn't know and renewed my appreciation for the importance of this great American symbol of freedom.