Bold biographies: Cedar Rapids author pens kids book of daring females who made history

Linda Skeers knows a lot of daring women.

The proof is in her new book of biographies — geared toward readers ages 8 to 14 — 'Women Who Dared: 52 Stories of Fearless Daredevils, Adventurers and Rebels' which hit bookstores this week.

And once you get Skeers talking about the 52 fearless females she included in the book, it's hard for her to know when to stop.

She can tell you all about Annie Edson Taylor, the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Or Fanny Bullock Workman, who scaled a 23,000-foot mountain peak without any hiking equipment and wearing a long woolen skirt. Or Minnie Spotted Wolf, the first Native American woman to serve in the U.S. Marines. Or Mary Edwards Walker, a surgeon who served during the Civil War and remains the only woman to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

Of course, Skeers couldn't possibly pick a favorite.

'Every time I started researching and writing about a woman, she'd become my favorite,' she said. Skeers will admit, however, that Bessie Stringfield, the Motorcycle Queen of Miami, comes close. 'She got her first motorcycle at age 16 and rode it all over the South during the 1930s. I would have loved to have hung out with her.'

As young readers, and their parents, flip through the book, they won't likely know many of the names they come across. Skeers said that is exactly the point.

'There are so many great books already about famous women in history but they are all about the same women.' 'Women Who Dared' — Skeers' fourth book for children — is meant to highlight women who may be lesser known but whose deeds are certainly not less mighty. 'They all did something unexpected and there is a lesson in that.'

Skeers said she researched hundreds of women while working on the book and had to narrow it down, with the help of her editors, to the 52 — a daring woman for each week in the year — that are featured.

'I tried to find women from different time periods and countries and cultures,' said Skeers. 'They all had a little bit of a rebellious streak. I would find a fascinating fact and then there would be that recurring element that someone told them they couldn't do something but they did it anyway. I wanted to give them a high five or I would almost get a tingly feeling. That's how I knew they should be in the book.'

Doing that research, Skeers said, was the most fun. While researching, Skeers was even able to correspond with one of the woman she featured, Beatrice Ayette who was the first female ship captain from Ghana. Skeers then essentially wrote a 400-word biography a day for about 10 weeks straight to meet her deadline. One of her editors served as a fact checker to be sure all the information included in the book was accurate. And English illustrator Livi Gosling provided the accompanying portrait for each woman.

Skeers had long collected names of women throughout history whom she thought did cool things, but were not often talked or written about. A chance meeting with an editor at Sourcebooks who was interested in the same concept brought Skeers' idea to reality. In fact, she's under contract for two similar books celebrating women and their astounding accomplishments.

Skeers, who has a nursing degree but dreamed of being a journalist, hopes the book inspires another generation of daring women.

'I had always wanted to be a writer, and I knew that if I didn't try it that someday I'd regret it,' she said. 'So I would tell young readers to pursue it if they have a dream or a passion.'

'I think kids will be surprised by how incredibly daring and completely fearless these women were and that they have been doing these daring things for a long time,' she added. 'I know it amazed me.'

To help celebrate the launch of the book, Skeers has partnered with Barnes & Noble in Cedar Rapids for a book launch event Sept. 10. Skeers will give a talk and sign books and said she's particularly excited that there also is going to be cake.

There's also a youth writing contest, open to third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students. Students are encouraged to write a brief essay about a daring woman they admire by Oct. 2. Winners will be announced at another 'Women Who Dared' event on Oct. 8.

[naviga:h3 style="padding-left: 60px;"]IF YOU GO

What: 'Women Who Dared' Book Launch Party

When: 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 10

Where: Barnes & Noble, 333 Collins Rd. NE, Cedar Rapids

Cost: Free