Rosie: Stronger Than Steel

  • Type: Books
  • By: Lindsay Ward
  • Age Category: Children
  • Genre: Historical Fiction
  • Recommended by: Tom S.
  • ISBN/UPC: 9781542017947
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The tractor that helped win World War II !

Let me begin by admitting that this review is extremely biased. I am an unapologetic fan of the Ford N-series tractor, of which Rosie is a proud representative. Built between 1939 to 1952, these small durable machines were designed to do every job on the farm and then some.

In this book, we see Rosie being built by women on an American assembly line, shipped to the UK by airplane and boat, then working on English farms along with the "Land Girls" - British women serving as agricultural workers during World War II. Rosie's nearly all-female supporting cast is not merely charming; it also reminds readers of the many roles women played on the war's home front. (In her generous Author's Note, Lindsay Ward tells us that she was unable to confirm that women served on the Ford tractor assembly line, though there were many female assembly workers for other wartime Ford products.)

This would be a great next book for readers who like stories featuring realistic tractors and construction equipment. Fans of Tractor Mac (basically, an anthropomorphic International Farmall) should really enjoy Rosie's adventures.

As for me, my own Rosie - a 1949 Ford 8N - keeps busy helping me plow snow, clear brush, and haul water to my trees and grapevines.

"Thank you, dear Rosie, for all you have done."