113. How Do You Spell Unfair?

How Do You Spell Unfair? MacNolia Cox and the National Spelling Bee. 2023. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: MacNolia Cox was no ordinary kid. Her idea of fun was reading the dictionary. From A to Z, she learned words' meanings and spellings. She loved to read, study, and spell. In 1936, the eighth grader won her school spelling bee. After MacNolia passed a fifty-word written test and an oral competition, she advanced to the Beacon Journal newspaper's citywide bee.

Premise/plot: Nonfiction picture book about MacNolia Cox's experiences with the National Spelling Bee in 1936. The National Spelling Bee is held in Washington, D.C. She was one of two African-American children competing in the Spelling Bee--both being among the first to do so at the national level. 

My thoughts: This is a picture book that explores prejudice and discrimination from a specific historic event. Chances are most readers have not heard of this particular instance. Though MacNolia Cox seems to have been greatly celebrated--especially at a local and statewide level--at the time. 

I was not familiar with the history of spelling bees--regional or national. And the epilogue gives an overview of how spelling bees eventually became integrated.

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers