A Mighty Girl's 2020 Books of the Year Friends of American Writers Chicago Winner 2021 Young People's Literature Award Beatrix Potter was a writer, an artist, and a scientist too, and she strove to find a place in the world for her talents. Everyone knows Beatrix Potter as the creator of the Peter Rabbit stories. But before that, she was a girl of science. As a child, Beatrix collected nature specimens; as a young adult, she was an amateur mycologist presenting her research on mushrooms and other fungi to England's foremost experts. Like many women of her time, she remained unacknowledged by the scientific community, but her keen eye for observation led her to an acclaimed career as an artist and storyteller. A beloved author is cast in a new light in this inspiring picture book story. K-Gr 3-This picture book biography stresses Beatrix Potter's scientific research. As a child, Potter found inspiration in nature. The text describes her methods as observing, questioning, collecting, and recording. Potter and her brother Bertram loved animals. However, when a pet died, she mourned the loss and also studied the animal bones. As Metcalf explains in an extensive note, artists in the 19th century boiled their dead pets so they could remove the skin and muscles, preserve the skeletons, and therefore learn about the inner workings of animals. Potter's parents encouraged her art, but she did not receive the same formal education as her brother. She was deeply interested in fungi; she spent years experimenting with spores, making sample slides to study under her microscope, and creating detailed drawings of fungi. When she tried to submit her work to the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, male scientists initially dismissed her findings. Why she stopped studying fungi and pivoted to children's books is not explained; the answer seems to have been lost to history. Wu's colorful, vivid illustrations appear to be rendered in pastels. Wu does not attempt to replicate Potter's style but captures a sense of her drawings within the larger spreads. VERDICT Celebrating how Potter's talents and interests informed each other, this inviting biography illuminates an unfamiliar aspect of an accomplished woman's life.-Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's Sch., Richmond, VAα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. "This inviting biography illuminates an unfamiliar aspect of an accomplished woman's life." ― School Library Journal "An unusual combination of women's history and science that shows not all questions can be answered."-- Kirkus "Metcalf's lyrical text is succinct and focused . . . this makes a worthy addition to STEAM and women's history units." -- Booklist "Metcalf's tale illustrates difficulties of breaking through prejudiced systems…a story that both shows what was and hints at what might have been."— Publishers Weekly Lindsay H. Metcalf has worked as a reporter, editor, and parenting columnist for The Kansas City Star. She lives in Kansas. Junyi Wu is a freelance illustrator and designer and a graduate of ArtCenter College of Design. Her passions include pies, puns, and puzzles. She is based in Orange County, California.