Trailblazers: Jane Goodall

Trail Blazers - Jane Goodall is the most recent in the useful new middle-grade biography series, focusing on some of history's greatest game changers. The book follows the life of Jane Goodall, from a child with a love of animal stories and a stuffed chimpanzee called Jubilee as her favourite toy, to one of the world's most renowned wildlife experts who, with very little formal training, changed the course of animal science. The story is clearly and chronologically told, with chapters for each key phase in Jane's life. Interspersed with Jane's story are sections on related topics, such as apartheid, a spotter's guide to chimpanzees, and strategies for conservation. A timeline and 'further reading' section at the end add extra value if linking to topic work in class. While I knew much of Jane's early chimpanzee work already, it was enlightening to learn about her later conservation efforts and the fact that, still, now, in her 80s, she tours the world for 300 days a year giving sell-out educational talks and lectures. What I love about these Trail Blazers is the way you can see the course from normal childhood to making a difference in the world - simply by being persistent and going after what they want, people with little in the way of external advantages can be a huge force for change in the world. And if that isn't a powerful and important message for our school children right now, I don't know what is. 176 pages / Ages 8+ / Reviewed by Carol Carter, school librarian

Suggested Reading Age 7+