Review by Booklist Review
Newbery medalist Kelly returns to her journalism roots with this biography of Josefina "Joey" Guerrero, a small but fierce Filipina woman who overcame staggering challenges. Her story is divided into three parts filled with brief, episodic chapters. It begins with Joey's childhood in the Philippines and her adoration of Joan of Arc. Due to scant source material on Joey's early life, the book then skips to her young adulthood, during which Japan occupied her country and she developed Hansen's disease (formerly known as leprosy). Like her childhood heroine, Joey fought for her country, using her physical condition to her advantage to spy for the Americans. While details are not always clear in this section, Joey's unwavering determination is. The next two sections are more straightforward, describing the abysmal treatment of Hansen's disease at the time, Joey's medical treatment in the U.S., and her activism to raise awareness of the disease. Lengthy text boxes offer historical context on topics such as WWII and Japanese propaganda. A courageous, uplifting biography of a woman almost lost to history.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Kelly (On Again, Awkward Again) excavates the life of a brave, little-known Filipina who helped the Allied Forces win WWII while living with Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy. As a devout nine-year-old Catholic in Lucban, Josefina Veluya (1917--1996) pretends she's Joan of Arc, and wonders, "What would it be like to be a tiny girl in a giant war, surrounded by people who underestimated you?" At 16, orphaned following her parents' deaths, Veluya develops tuberculosis and winds up in Manila for treatment; cured, she later meets and marries medical student Renato Guerrero. In 1941, her chronic fever, skin lesions, and joint pains are diagnosed as leprosy. As Japanese forces invade the Philippines, she becomes involved in the guerrilla movement, first spying on Japanese soldiers, then carrying a critical map 40 miles through Japanese military checkpoints to aid in liberating war prisoners. Though details of the subject's childhood are slim, Kelly recreates vivid moments throughout Veluya's life, interspersing historical context surrounding key figures, leprosy treatment, and Filipino history. The result is a handy primer for those interested in the period, and a bolstering entreaty for readers to seek out more information. Ages 8--12. (May)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 4--8--Two-time Newbery Medalist Kelly returns to her journalism roots for an excellent foray into nonfiction, rescuing from obscurity "a diminutive Filipino woman who walked through war zones, carried secret messages for the Allied Forces, [who] spent much of her time in forced quarantine." Born in 1917, Josefina Guerrero died in virtual anonymity in 1996, "but the pieces she left behind are enough to leave us in wonder," Kelly promises. She impressively delivers a remarkable story of an orphan girl with Joan of Arc aspirations, who miraculously used her Hansen's disease to her advantage as a World War II spy, and earned a Medal of Freedom from President Truman, only to pawn it to survive in a racist America that didn't recognize her courage. Fellow Filipina American Capistrano thoughtfully and empathetically embodies Kelly's clever use of present-tense prose, underscoring an immediate timelessness to Joey's phenomenal accomplishments. VERDICT Author and narrator jointly honor an extraordinary American hero.
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Review by Horn Book Review
When Josefina Veluya Guerrero (1917-1996), known as Joey, was a little girl in the town of Lucban in the Philippine Islands, Joan of Arc was her hero. A devoted Catholic, she "wanted to serve her faith and walk through battlefields" like Joan. And, as Kelly's excellent nonfiction debut delineates, she did just that. As WWII begins, Guerrero is a young mother suffering from leprosy, but she joins the resistance movement and spies on the actions of Japanese soldiers, writes reports, delivers messages, and attends to injured fighters. When it is rumored that the Japanese military intends to slaughter prisoners in the Santo Tomas internment camp, she undertakes a tortuous forty-mile journey on foot to deliver an essential map to the U.S. Army's Thirty-Seventh Division headquarters. After the war, Guerrero's story continues at Carville, a leprosarium in Louisiana where she spends nine years. It's a large stage to set, and Kelly provides thorough historical context for it all -- many sidebars for information about the war and leprosy, as well as abundant archival photographs and maps, all while attempting to keep Guerrero's narrative, related in immediate-sounding present tense, in the foreground. A fitting tribute to a fascinating figure. Back matter includes an author's note, further resources, source notes, an extensive bibliography, and an index (unseen). Dean SchneiderJuly/August 2025 p.117 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A recipient of the Medal of Freedom, Josefina Guerrero (1917-1996) was a war hero and "a symbol for hope and greater courage." In opening and closing notes, Kelly explains that despite thorough efforts, she encountered gaps while researching her subject. Still, she writes, "the pieces [Josefina] left behind are enough to leave us in wonder," and a compelling portrait of a brave and resolute woman emerges. Born in 1917 in Lucban, Philippines, imaginative young Josefina--called Joey--was a devout Catholic who longed to hear the voice of God, like her idol, Joan of Arc. Her adult life with her husband and daughter was upended when she developed Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy. Due to social stigma, she and her family hid her condition until 1941, when Japan bombed first Pearl Harbor and then an American military base on Manila Bay. After Joey's status was reported to the authorities, she fled, eventually serving as a guerilla fighter and delivering a map that allowed U.S. troops to liberate those imprisoned at the Santo Tomas camp. Later, she relocated to the Tala Leprosarium, where she advocated for better treatment for those with Hansen's disease and secured increased funding for the leprosarium. Prose written in the present tense lends the narrative immediacy, while informative and deftly interspersed photos, captions, and sidebars provide context to the cultural and historical climate. An intriguing, well-told account of an extraordinary life. (notes, bibliography)(Biography. 9-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
