​Martha Matilda Harper was a young Canadian immigrant who came to Rochester, NY as a domestic servant in the late 1800's.  Martha dreamed of doing more with her life and used a hair tonic recipe to catapult her into the business world.  Martha opened a series of salons that focused on inner health promoting outer beauty.  She hired former domestic servants like herself and trained them in her method- The Harper Method, creating what we now know as the franchise.  The Harper Method, products, and inventions thrived until the 1970's, 20 years after Martha's death; however, her legacy seemed all but forgotten. 


Martha Matilda Harper and the American Dream is an eye-opening and revealing biography about a woman whose legacy might have been lost to time.  Biographer, Jane Plitt became interested in Martha's story after finding out that Martha was one of the first women in the Chamber of Commerce.  From there, Jane became determined to uncover Martha's story.  While many details of Martha's story have been lost, Jane has uncovered parts of Martha's life from her childhood in Canada to her death in 1950.  Martha Matilda's story should be one we learn about alongside suffragists such as Susan B. Anthony and inventors like George Eastman.  Extensive research has been done to attempt to put back together Martha's life and legacy. I was amazed at Martha's impact during her time and her tenacity to overcome obstacles.  I hope her story continues to unfold.

Collard Green Curves is an inspiring biography of a life that led to momentous change in a community through a series of trials, misfortunes and perseverance. Theresa Bowick reflects on her life growing up in  Rochester, NY with sincerity and genuine contemplation of the events that shaped her, both positive and negative.  Through Theresa's heartfelt and down to earth writing, I could easily relate to Theresa's story even though hers is so different than my own.  Theresa puts her whole self on the page in order to show the high and low curves of her life through her youth, relationships, schooling, marriage,  and body image struggles to show her growth and ability to change herself and the world around her.  I was continually impressed by her strength and capacity to build herself back up.  Even more than changing herself, Theresa became a positive force within her community rallying a community that told her 'people don't exercise here' to become healthy. ​