FAST ENOUGH

Future black female motorcyclist
Bessie Stringfield triumphs over boys who say she can’t join their daily bike
races in this fictional imagining of her childhood.

“Have you ever been told you are not
enough?” Bessie was. Boys, black and white, are shown telling this
darker-skinned girl with very large afro puffs that she isn’t “pretty enough”
or “tough enough.” After school, they race past her, laughing when she says she
wants to join them. Downcast, Bessie asks Mama if “girls can ride [bikes] fast,” to which Mama replies, “the only one who knows for sure is the Man
Upstairs.” At bedtime, she asks in prayer, with one eye open, and then falls
asleep. In her dream, she rides like magic through vast landscapes and cityscapes,
so fast “she even raced up into the night sky.” She wakes up ready, and that
afternoon, when the boys say “Go!” she zooms past them, astonishing everyone.
Dark brown, gold, and neutral tones dominate the captivating scenes, which
segue skillfully into paragraphs of backmatter information in smaller font
about Stringfield’s impressive exploits. She traveled widely on her
motorcycle(s) in the mid-20th century, using the Negro Motorist Green Book
to stay safe when riding across America. Discrepancies between different
versions of her life story are explained as an example of how legends grow.

A playful introduction to Bessie’s
exciting, triumphant, and unforgettable story. (Picture book. 5-9)