Molly, by Golly!: The Legend of Molly Williams, America's First Female Firefighter

Representation is so important, and this book features a Black woman who becomes a firefighter against the odds. She represents what is possible. It’s a darling book for kids, both boys and girls.

I first learned about Molly Williams on the Stuff Mom Never Told You podcast titled, Firefighting Women. I ordered this book because it's the only children's book I've seen on the subject, but had reservations based on the book description and reviews that indicated the book had an eye for historical accuracy while at the same time insinuating Molly was a servant or volunteer. Unfortunately, my concerns were validated when I received the book, which does refer to Molly Williams as a servant, and later on indicates that "Volunteer # 11" was an affectionate nickname that Molly proudly embraced, rather than being indicative of the racist and sexist attitudes of the era and the resulting tendency not to bother naming racial minorities or women in official records.I get that this is a fictionalized account, and that it's a book for children. I also recognize that we know very, very little about Molly Williams. That still doesn't, in my mind, justify the ways Molly's reality was changed by portraying her as a servant or volunteer when she was, by all other accounts, a slave, especially when so much effort was put into making other parts of the story historically accurate. While this doesn't in any way diminish Molly's skill or ability or what she contributed to her community, what little information I've been able to find about Molly Williams doesn't convince me that firefighting was what Molly would have chosen for herself were she not a slave. I've seen several references indicating that when asked about firefighting, Molly would respond that she belonged to the fire station, or that she went where her owner told her to go... the selfless black heroine who willingly sacrifices herself to save white people seems more fanciful (and sadly typical) white narrative than historical likelihood. Needless to say, when we read this book my children (now 6 & 11) and I also had a critical discussion about whitewashing the racism of that era and perpetuating the magical negro stereotype.I gave Molly by Golly two stars because despite my concerns listed above, it is an engaging, lyrical story that my children enjoyed, and the illustrations are beautifully done.

Great story, but the book is very long and not an easy ready for young kids.

This book is wonderful. So pleased to have this in classroom library for students to learn of this brave woman.

I never heard of this woman before I was just looking around for African American books for my daughter and this book popped up. I love this story of how an African American woman back in those days can become a firefighter or at least considered one. This story should be told in elementary schools so females can see they can grow up to be just as good as a male firefighter.

Great read for Women’s History or Black History! It is about the first woman firefighter and how it all happened!

I bought this book for my kindergarten students to go along with our unit theme of community helpers & heroes. It was is a great resource for black history month which happened to be during our unit. Molly Williams is an African american who starts out as a cook for a fire station and then joins the team when there is an emergency.

BUY this BOOK! Perfect for Fire Service Read-At-School Days or for classroom discussion of women in history; discussion topics and questions along with background information on Molly included at the back.