Plot Summary
What to do About Alice? chronicles the exuberant life and whirlwind lifestyle of Alice Roosevelt, the oldest child of Theodore Roosevelt. Alice charmed the nation and the world while becoming one of her father's most-trusted advisors. Perhaps understanding the fragility of life, after losing her own mother two days after Alice's birth, Alice lived every day to its fullest.
Critical Analysis
Barbara Kerley is an award-winning author who has devoted her life to educating children either through teaching or by writing informational books. In writing What to do About Alice?, Kerley drew her facts from several reputable resources including Princess Alice: A Biography of Alice Roosevelt Longworth by James Brough; Princess Alice: The Life and Times of Alice Roosevelt Longworth by Carol Felsenthal; Crowded Hours by Alice Roosevelt Longworth; and The Letters of Theodore Roosevelt edited by Elting E. Morison. Carol Felsenthal is credited in Kerley's book for fact-checking the text and artwork for What to do About Alice?.
This book chronicles Alice Roosevelt's life from infancy to her role as the wife of a Congressman. It is designed to be read from start to finish as there are no chapters or divided sections. The design of the book is appealing and intriguing, although boys may not wish to read a book which features a girl. The digital illustrations bring the text to life. When Alice wanted to see how high her grandparent's sofa springs would send her, the accompanying illustration by Edwin Fotheringham shows a proper-looking little girl, complete with pink hair ribbon, flying high into the air, with added lines to emphasize the height to which she was jumping. In describing Alice's plight of wearing leg braces and the consequent falls she had, Fotheringham's use of dots show her fall down the stairs and her quick chase of the boy who dared to laugh at her for falling. Edwin Fotheringham's dots are most apparent when Alice decides to educate herself in her father's library. The maze of dots trace her search from shelf to shelf as "she taught herself astronomy, geology, even Greek grammar. She read Twain, Dickens, Darwin, and the Bible, cover to cover."
When Alice was seventeen, Theodore Roosevelt became the president of the United States. Kerley mentions that Alice helped her step-mother by taking on more responsibility of watching her younger siblings. Fotheringham gives the reader a clear view of Alice's "helpfulness" as the children, with Alice in the lead, are pictured sliding down the White House stairs on trays. Alice's idea of being a proper hostess was greeting her father's guests when they arrived at the White House. Alice is seen hiding behind a column on the White House porch holding "her pet snake, Emily Spinach -- which Alice named for its color and its resemblance to a very thin aunt."
Although What to do About Alice? is a children's book, readers young and old will find this book enthralling. Once the book is started, the reader is mesmerized by the colorful and humorous way Kerley describes the highlights of Alice Roosevelt's life. Kerley arrests the reader's attention on the first page: "Theodore Roosevelt had a small problem." The problem wasn't herding cattle, leading the Rough Riders, killing a grizzly bear, capturing outlaws, being New York's governor, or even serving as the vice president of the United States. The problem was What to do About Alice? Theodore Roosevelt summed it up by saying, "I can be president of the United States, or I can control Alice. I cannot possibly DO BOTH." Throughout Theodore Roosevelt's many successes in life, he never succeeded in the never-ending dilemma of deciding What to do About Alice?
Awards and Honors
Texas Bluebonnet nominee, 2009-2010
Review Excerpts
"It’s hard to imagine a picture book biography that could better suit its subject than this high-energy volume serves young Alice Roosevelt." Publisher's Weekly, March 31, 2008
"This book provides a fascinating glimpse into both a bygone era and one of its more interesting denizens as well as a surefire antidote for any child who thinks that historical figures are boring." Grace Oliff, School Library Journal, March 1, 2008
"Sprinkling her account with well-chosen quotations, she outlines Alice Roosevelt Longworth's childhood and its increasingly outrageous hijinks, as well as the loving (if sometimes exasperating) relationship she enjoyed with her renowned father. Fotheringham's digital illustrations perfectly evoke the retro styles of an earlier age, depicting a confident Alice sailing through life and tackling every challenge with delight and aplomb." Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2008
Other Books by Barbara Kerley
The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins : An Illuminating History of Mr.
Waterhouse Hawkins, Artist and Lecturer
Walt Whitman: Words for America
A Cool Drink of Water
The World is Waiting for You
Visit her website for more information: http://www.barbarakerley.com/
Other Books Illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham
The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy) by Barbara Kerley
Tony Baloney by Pam Munoz Ryan
Mermaid Queen: The Spectacular True Story of Annette Kellerman, Who Swam
Her Way to Fame, Fortune, & Swimsuit History! by Shana Corey
Visit his website for more information: http://www.edfotheringham.com/
Book Connections
Desk Drawer Anthology: Poems for the American People by Alice Roosevelt
Longworth
When Audrey Met Alice by Rebecca Behrens
The World's Fair by T. L. Tedrow
Connection Activities
- Have each student create a bookmark with a drawing from Alice Roosevelt's life on one side and an interesting fact he/she learned about her on the other side.
- Using a globe or world map, pinpoint the different countries Alice visited and brainstorm what is known about that country.
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