America
the Beautiful by Katharine
Lee Bates, Neil Waldman (Illustrator)
In
1893 Katherine Lee Bates, a poet and teacher, climbed to the
summit of Pikes Peak. She was inspired by the view to write the
poem "America the Beautiful," which was later set to
music. Here for the centennial of "America the
Beautiful" is a book that pays tribute to the magnificence of
the American landscape in full-color paintings.
Purple
Mountain Majesties : The Story of Katharine Lee Bates and 'America
the Beautiful by Barbara Younger, Stacey
Schuett (Illustrator)
Colorful, lively,
and carefully researched, here is a picture book about the trip
west that a young Wellesley professor took, which resulted in an
expression of hope for America's spiritual life that has stirred
citizens of all ages ever since. In l893, when she was
thirty-four, Katharine Lee Bates was invited to teach summer
school in Colorado Springs. Crossing the country, and exploring
the Rockies, she was forcefully moved by a realization of the
nation's great physical blessings. Most glorious scenery I ever
beheld, she wrote after a journey to the top of Pikes Peak. Later
that day, she composed four stanzas of verse that eventually
became the words of America the Beautiful. Capturing the essence
of Katharine's imagination, idealism, and humor, Barbara Younger's
graceful text provides an intriguing glimpse of American history
and women's history. Stacey Schuett's expansive, heartfelt
illustrations, glowing with color, bring readers close to canyon
and sky, prairie and mountain.
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