The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

A Perfect Fit: How Lena "Lane" Bryant Changed the Shape of Fashion by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal Clarion Books (imprint of HarperCollins), 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shirley Reva Vernick Buy at Bookshop.org This lyrical picture book biography shows how Lena "Lane" Bryant founded the eponymous fashion brand that celebrates bodies of all shapes and sizes. A brilliant seamstress at the turn of the 20th century, Lena was struggling to make ends meet…until customers started requesting designs that wouldn't "squeeze or pinch" women with nonstandard shapes. Lena remembered something her grandfather had once told her: real success lies in helping others. So she got to work creating comfortable and stylish clothing in all sizes and styles, including maternity wear with "room to grow." That was when her business, inspired by the goal of providing accessible fashion, took off. In providing customers with the perfect fi...

Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat  by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by Giselle Potter Beach Lane Books (imprint of Simon & Schuster) Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Meg Wiviott Buy at Bookshop.org Moving quickly from bookkeeper at LA’s Seventh Street produce market in the mid-1950s to sales (the only woman among a workforce of men) Frieda Caplan “loved people” and “She loved to talk.” Frieda also loved to try new things, especially fruits and vegetables other than apples, bananas, and potatoes. Frieda’s instincts and “a funny feeling in her elbows” told her when she’d found something other people would grow to love too. With packaging and recipes she encouraged people to try new things, like mushrooms, while the other salesmen all said, “No!” It was not long before Frieda owned her own produce company and sold unusual fruits and vegetables: black radishes, baby corn, kiwi fruit, jicama, and quince. If you see produce in the grocery you’ve never seen before, chance...