Publisher's Synopsis
Perfect Book for Young Teens. Who Roger Arliner Young was born in Virginia in 1889. Roger would grow up to be the first African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in Zoology. She came from an extremely humble background. Roger grew up in a poor family. A large amount of time and care went to helping her disabled mother. In spite of this, Roger managed to achieve incredible things by working hard her whole life. She was also quite brave. Throughout her life, Roger choose to do things that no African American woman had ever done before. Roger was the first African American woman to be awarded a Ph.D. in Zoology, but she is remembered for more than that. Before Roger, no African American woman had written a paper that would be published in a major scientific journal. She worked with other well-known scientists, contributing to our knowledge of marine life. Women continue to be treated by different standards than men, even today, but in the early 1900's it was a thousand times harder for women and a million times harder for African -American Women to become successful or accomplished in any field. This story describes some of the difficulties and the many accomplishments Katherine Johnson experienced in her life.
