 |
| Front Cover: No One Is Better Than You |
Edith Renfrow Smith was born in Grinnell, Iowa in
1914 to one of the few Black families in the area. In 1937 she became the first
Black woman to graduate from Grinnell College. In 2024, at the age of 109, she
continues to encourage and inspire everyone she meets.
 |
| From the back cover of No One Is Better Than You |
Her life story is told
by Monique McLay Shore in her wonderful new picture book biography No One Is Better Than You: Edith Renfrow Smith and the Power of aMother’s Words. The beautiful and historically accurate illustrations are
by Erica Lauren Butler.
 |
| Edith's graduation from Grinnell College, 1937. Illustration by Erica Butler. |
Yesterday I received my first copy of the book, hot
off the press. It is beautiful! I congratulate Monique and Erica for bringing
Edith’s story to life and making it known to the wider world and for generations to come. The book is available at the Grinnell College Book Store.
I played a small part in the evolution of this book.
Last spring I got an email from the alumni office at Grinnell College, (my alma
mater,1966). I learned that another alum, Monique Shore (1990), was working on
a children’s book biography of Edith Renfrow Smith. I had recently read about
Edith in the college magazine so I was already intrigued. Knowing that I
had published many children’s books, the alumni office asked if I
would be willing to give any advice to Monique, who was new to the publishing
world. Of course I agreed.
Monique had stayed in Grinnell after her graduation and became interested in local
history. She works as a librarian at the town library. By the time I connected with her she had already done extensive research about Edith and her family,
interviewed Edith and her daughter in Chicago and in Grinnell, and located an
illustrator for the book. As I read Monique's manuscript I could see places where she
could make it even better—by adding more details in some cases, moving some
information to the back matter, and letting the illustrations tell the story in
lieu of long descriptions.
Since Monique lives in Iowa and I live in Los Angeles,
we met on Zoom. I had forgotten that the college yearbook is called The
Cyclone. During one of our meetings I
could hear the tornado watch siren as Monique hastily carried her computer to
the basement of her house. But nothing stopped the progress of the book.
The process of shaping the manuscript that I went
through with Monique was the same as when I am working on one of my own books
except that in this case I was wearing the editor’s hat. And in the end, all
the final decisions were made by Monique and Erica, with valuable input they got
from Edith and her daughter. (It is rare that a biographer has the opportunity
to get feedback from the subject of the book!) By mid-October the book was
almost ready to go off to the publisher and Monique asked me to help with the
proof reading—it is always good have a fresh pair of eyes to check one last
time. Although I found a few small things, the book was in great shape and
ready to go to the printer.
And now the book is ready for the world at large. Edith comes alive on every page through Monique’s well chosen words and Erica’s beautiful
detailed illustrations. The story is a window on the life of a Black family in a small
Iowa town in the first half of the 20th century and later, on Edith’s adult
life in Chicago, where she lives today. Although written for children, No One Is Better Than You is for all
ages, and not just for people in Iowa and Chicago, but everywhere. And the
theme is universal: No one is better than you. I highly recommend this book!
The story of the creation of No One Is Better Than
You , from idea to printed page, is chronicled in Monique’s blog. You can also read about the book and its creation in an
article celebrating its publication in the Southeast Iowa Union newspaper.
 |
| Edith with her mother. Illustration by Erica Butler. |
