Abzuglutely!

A Bank Street Best Book 2025
2025 Kansas NEA Reading Circle List

“As long as people are reading this book, Bella will be with us still.” —Gloria Steinem

★ “As a model of a flamboyant, loudmouthed liberal, it would be hard to top Bella Abzug, and here Aronson does her justice… Could budding activists learn something from her example? Abzuglutely.”—Booklist, starred review

“A vigorous biography of politician and activist Bella Abzug… D’Aquino’s expressionistic ink, colored pencil, and wax crayon illustrations match Aronson’s verve and admiration, spotlighting Abzug in vivid reds and depicting her in open-mouthed poses to demonstrate her relentless campaigning for social change. An adoring and inspirational life story, as ardent as its subject.”—Kirkus Reviews

“The layout of D’Aquino’s child-friendly illustrations and occasional handwritten phrases brings the words to life and makes Abzug’s impact tangible…The book ends with an inspirational call to action for readers in the twenty-first century to help fulfill Abzug’s vision.”—The Horn Book

“This inspiring and informative picture book biography introduces readers to Bella Abzug, a lawyer, activist, and congresswoman who is often considered a pioneer for the modern women’s movement. The colorful pencil and crayon illustrations depict her in her signature red and wearing a hat, and perfectly capture her larger-than-life personality. The text is cleverly placed within the drawings, and the font varies in type, size, and color to emphasize key phrases and ideas. A detailed author’s note, time line, and bibliography are appended along with archival photographs. As Aronson concludes, Abzug ‘didn’t get everything she fought for, but she got the battle started. So your voices could be heard.’ This first children’s book about an important trailblazer “abzuglutely” belongs on the shelf of every library alongside other portraits of leading Jewish women…”—School Library Journal

“At last, there is a pic­ture book biog­ra­phy of the cru­sad­ing fem­i­nist leg­is­la­tor and activist Bel­la Sav­itzky Abzug (1920−1998). Author Sarah Aron­son and illus­tra­tor Andrea D’Aquino present Abzu­gr as a smart and tough native New York­er, a girl who grew up defy­ing gen­der roles and con­tin­ued on that path through­out her career…. Aron­son clear­ly estab­lish­es the dichoto­my of views about a per­sis­tent woman who would nev­er give up… D’Aquino’s close-up por­trait of her is as bold as the woman her­self, show­ing Abzug’s core mes­sage with­in a mouth wide open in speech.”—The Jewish Book Council