At Last She Stood
How Joey Guerrero Spied, Survived, and Fought for Freedom
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- € 14,99
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NCTE Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children Honor Book
Chicago Public Library Best Book
"A courageous, uplifting biography of a woman almost lost to history.” –ALA Booklist
World War II spy, Filipino guerrilla fighter, war hero, Medal of Freedom recipient, leprosy survivor, teacher, peacemaker . . . The legendary and inspiring life and work of Josefina “Joey” Guerrero is introduced to readers by two-time Newbery Medal winner, National Book Award finalist, and bestselling author Erin Entrada Kelly. For fans of Steve Sheinkin and Candace Fleming.
Joey Guerrero, a native of the Philippines, was diagnosed with leprosy (Hansen’s disease) as World War II unfolded in Europe and Asia. Soon after the Japanese occupied the Philippines, Joey—believing she would die soon—joined the guerrilla movement to complete covert missions in support of the Allies. Because of her condition, she was rarely searched by Japanese soldiers, which allowed her to courier secret messages, including an invaluable minefield map that she taped to her back. She was eventually awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom and admitted to the National Leprosarium in Carville, Louisiana, where she lived for nine years. When she was cured and released, she found it difficult to find work because of racial discrimination and her health history and was forced to pawn her Presidential Medal to make ends meet. Eventually, she shed her previous identity. When she died in 1996, her obituary identified her as a secretary from Manila. But Joey Guerrero was much more than that—she was a hero who changed the course of history.
Erin Entrada Kelly’s engaging nonfiction debut combines themes of the Philippines, World War II, the Asia-Pacific War, spy stories, Louisiana, immigration, disease and medicine, racism, perseverance, religious devotion, and hope. Illustrated with photographs, maps, and other illustrative material and featuring sidebars that clearly illuminate key moments in history, At Last She Stood is for readers and educators who love Candace Fleming, Deborah Heiligman, Christina Soontornvat, and Steve Sheinkin. Includes an author’s note, source notes, index, and other back matter.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Kelly (On Again, Awkward Again) excavates the life of a brave, little-known Filipina who helped the Allied Forces win WWII while living with Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy. As a devout nine-year-old Catholic in Lucban, Josefina Veluya (1917–1996) pretends she's Joan of Arc, and wonders, "What would it be like to be a tiny girl in a giant war, surrounded by people who underestimated you?" At 16, orphaned following her parents' deaths, Veluya develops tuberculosis and winds up in Manila for treatment; cured, she later meets and marries medical student Renato Guerrero. In 1941, her chronic fever, skin lesions, and joint pains are diagnosed as leprosy. As Japanese forces invade the Philippines, she becomes involved in the guerrilla movement, first spying on Japanese soldiers, then carrying a critical map 40 miles through Japanese military checkpoints to aid in liberating war prisoners. Though details of the subject's childhood are slim, Kelly recreates vivid moments throughout Veluya's life, interspersing historical context surrounding key figures, leprosy treatment, and Filipino history. The result is a handy primer for those interested in the period, and a bolstering entreaty for readers to seek out more information. Ages 8–12.
