Running the Goat marks International Women's Day
Posted by Michelle Porter on 2019 Mar 1st
We’re marking International Women’s Day 2019 with the the launch of two books featuring young women who found different ways to be the heroes of their own lives:
-the indomitable Edie Murphy in TO SEE THE STARS by Jan Andrews;
-and the unstoppable Peg in PEG BEARSKIN adapted by Philip Dinn and Andy Jones.
(LAUNCH: Tuesday March 5, at 7pm at The Rocket. There will be tunes from the Sizzle Sisters, readings, and of course, books for sale.)
This year the theme for International Women’s Day is #BalanceforBetterand focuses on building a gender balanced world.
Young adult and children’s books can help to build a world where women and girls can achieve equality.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in 1911 shaped the work of early International Women’s Day campaigners--and that tragic event is part of Edie Murphy’s story in TO SEE THE STARS.
In the coming of age novel, EDIE MURPHY witnesses The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire after she becomes part of the strikes for workers rights. The story follows Edie as she moves from her small fishing community in outport Newfoundland to service work in St. John’s and finally to factory work in New York City. It’s a celebration of the strength of women and the power of community.
“Jan always had a strong sense of social justice,” said storyteller Jennifer Cayley about To See The Star’s author, who passed away last year. “It was something that underlay a great deal of what she did. She was a person who believed in society. She believed that we needed to take care of one another and that people like Edie had a right to reasonable working conditions,” she said.
The story of PEG in PEG BEARSKIN is approaches the strength of women and the power of community in a different way. Peg is not as pretty as her sisters. She’s big, ugly, and hairy. But she’s also smart enough and brave enough to outsmart a witch, help a king, and find husbands for her two sisters and for herself.
“Using your wits or your skills you can be a hero, whoever you are,” the book’s illustrator Denise Gallagher said about the story behind the beautiful new book she illustrated.
Historical Note:
Less than a week after the first International Women’s Day was celebrated in 1911, the tragic 'Triangle Fire' in a New York City garment factory took the lives of more than 140 working women. In the following years, International Women’s Day efforts focused on working conditions and labour legislation in the United States.
There’s more on the history and current focus of International Women’s Day here: