The Pullman Porter by Vanita Oelschlager

The Pullman Porter by Vanita Oelschlager ISBN-13: 9781938164002 Hardcover: 44 pages Publisher: Vanita Books Released: May 1, 2014

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Children and adults under the age of 40 are forgetting about the Pullman Porter. They were very important figures in the history of American. This book will teach children and adults, who the porters were and why they were so important in our history. Porters worked in early train cars, they would look, listen and learn from their predominantly white passengers. They would read the newspapers passengers left behind, listen to conversations and begin to talk to one another. The porter learned how important education was for children and how important it was to take this message home to his children. He eventually landed at the forefront of the civil rights movement.


My Review:
The Pullman Porter is a non-fiction picture book about the Pullman porters. A lovely, full-color illustration covered each page. Each page also contained a paragraph with some facts about the working conditions of a porter and how these porters impacted history in a unique way. The text provided some good, basic information. It left me interested in knowing more, and the author listed several sources of further information at the end.

It's a lovely, educational book. Due to the lack of a narrative thread to tie the facts together, I doubt it'll become a favorite re-read book for most children. However, it would be an excellent book for a library collection.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.