Susan Austin is an educator and an author who delights in teaching children through historical fiction. Drawing Outside the Lines is directed at 10–14-year-olds but I, at age 65, found it very enjoyable. The book is about the real-life architect, Julia Morgan, following her from her first sight of the magnificent engineering feat of the Brooklyn Bridge through her education and career beginning. It is historical fiction, but Ms. Austin has taken few liberties with the facts. Julia Morgan grew up in Oakland, California during the late 1800’s, at time when intelligent girls were ridiculed and taught that their place in life was being a wife and mother. Uninterested in the social life of a debutante, Julia enrolled in the University of California at Berkeley to study engineering, as there was no architecture program. She was often the only girl in her math, science and engineering courses. Enduring taunting by male students and denigrating by her professors, she showed her strength and resolve by becoming the first woman architect licensed in California. Although Julia Morgan obviously had a gift, she put tremendous effort into her education, toiling until late at night to get engineering drawings just right. There is a wonderful lesson here for young people.
Ms. Austin has provided additional information about Julia Morgan’s life and accomplishments in the Epilog and the Author’s Notes but there is so much more to discover. One should investigate Julia Morgan’s life and many notable accomplishments further, if only by reading the Wikipedia article about her. She was an amazing woman!
Thank you to NetGalley, Spark Press and Susan Austin for the chance to read this wonderful ARC. My review expresses my own opinions. ( )