NONFICTION - ELEMENTARY

To the Top of the World: Barbara Hillary, the First Black Woman to Reach the North and South Poles

by Deborah Blumenthal (text) & illus. by Anastasia Magloire Williams
S. & S./Atheneum. Oct. 2025. 40p. Tr $19.99. ISBN 9781665927734. K-Gr 3
COPY ISBN
K-Gr 3–It is rare to find a picture book biography that truly brings life to a subject. Blumenthal and Williams succeed wildly in this biography of Barbara Hillary, the first Black woman to reach both the North and South Poles. A nurse for over 55 years, Hillary, who was also a breast and lung cancer survivor, decides at the age of 75 to become the adventurer she has always wanted to be. Through fierce determination, grit, and accompanied by her wry sense of humor, Hillary goes dogsledding, photographs polar bears, and reaches both the poles by the time she was 79. The details of her journey are shown in illustrations that range in style from realism to more cartoonish; these provide admirable support to the book. Back matter is included.
VERDICT Recommended for purchase for any collection wishing to spotlight a truly remarkable individual.
Reviewed by Maria Graybosch , Oct 03, 2025

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