Let Liberty Rise!: How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty
How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty
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- 75,00 kr
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- 75,00 kr
Publisher Description
How did 121,000 Americans save their most beloved icon? Here is an inspiring story about the power we have when we all work together!
"All rise to this evocative, empowering offering." -- Kirkus Reviews
On America's 100th birthday, the people of France built a giant gift! It was one of the largest statues the world had ever seen -- and she weighed as much as 40 elephants! And when she arrived on our shores in 250 pieces, she needed a pedestal to hold her up. Few of America's millionaires were willing to foot the bill.
Then, Joseph Pulitzer (a poor Hungarian immigrant-cum-newspaper mogul) appealed to his fellow citizens. He invited them to contribute whatever they could, no matter how small an amount, to raise funds to mount this statue. The next day, pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters poured in. Soon, Pulitzer's campaign raised enough money to construct the pedestal. And with the help of everyday Americans (including many thousands of schoolchildren!) the Statue of Liberty rose skyward, torch ablaze, to welcome new immigrants for a life of freedom and opportunity!
Chana Stiefel's charming and immediate writing style is perfectly paired with Chuck Groenink's beautiful, slyly humorous illustrations. Back matter with photographs included.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Groenink's cartoon-style illustrations jauntily animate Stiefel's account of how children helped ensure the Statue of Liberty would stand tall in New York Harbor. When money to complete the statue's pedestal ran out, newspaperman Joseph Pulitzer appealed to readers to raise funds. Digitized gouache and pencil vignettes show an inclusive group of earnest children making contributions, from a "poor office boy" mailing in a nickel to a kindergarten class in Iowa lining up to send more than a dollar. Donations from both children and adults raised more than $100,000 toward the pedestal's completion. While a late spread reveals the full-height Lady Liberty amid a firework-filled inaugural celebration, the story ends on a quieter note, with the radiant statue backed by sunlit storm clouds, welcoming shipboard immigrants into the harbor. A timeline, bibliography, and further reading list, as well as additional statue facts and archival photos, conclude this true tale of cooperation among all ages. Ages 6–8.
